[mcguyver]

Recently, a buddy of mine bought a tan PTW out of the classifieds here. It was listed as having a "Tackleberry" motor. When I got the gun to give it a once-over, I noticed that it did not in fact have a motor done by Centurion Services in Poole, England. This is Tackleberry, there is no other, and only motors done by him can be called that.

I have seen this a few times now, either people have no godddamned clue what they are talking about, or they were told it by some hipster with a soldering iron claiming to be offering this service, when in fact it is not the case. Up until 2009 or so, Tack posted up a quick fix on the PTW forums, but since then, as trial and error has taught, this is no longer done. Instead, a rewind is done. You can tell it has been done, as the top motor shown below has lashing and epoxy over the windings between the armature core and the commutator. The bottom motor was the one listed as being a "Tackleberry", and it is most certainly not. The motor shown atbthe top simply has a rewound armtaure installed in its original structure.

I have sent perhaps 30-40 motors to England to be redone over the years, so I have seen exactly what was done, and how they are marked upon return. To avoid counterfeiters hoping to make a profit (I know a couple places guys claim to have this done in Canada, and all are bogus), I will not show the specific markings Tack uses to denote polarity during reassembly. You can send me a pic of your motor if you have suspicions and I will confirm it for you.

I would hazard a guess that perhaps 90% or more of the motors sold as being "Tackleberry" in Canada are nothing of the sort. A motor new from England straight from Centurion should cost you $450 or more, depending on exchange. A rewind and motor service about $250.

Caveat Emptor.