Fixed cueing on my Technics SL-1400 MK2- pics->

Fasterdamnit

Super Member
These decks use a plastic cam that surrounds a brass bushing. As the plastic ages, it becomes brittle and shrinks a bit- it splits at the bushing rendering the cue lift inoperable. You cannot squeeze the cam shut around the bushing, there is a permanent gap. I downloaded the service manual from Vinylengine and pulled her apart.

The fix? Increase the inner diameter of the plastic cam using a Dremel and a grinding stone on low speed. If you go fast the plastic melts instead of being abraded. Go slow and sneak up on the new size. You want to be able to put the brass inside and close the circle of plastic so there is no longer a gap. Have the brass bushing fit a little loose with the plastic closed. I also made two little dimples in the plastic on either side of the break so the the epoxy has a mechanical connection, not just adhesive. Now grab your JB Weld (I used original, wish I had JB Weld Kwik.) I used a tie-wrap to clamp the piece after applying the epoxy. I used it in between the brass and plastic and to bridge the break. The tie wrap holds the break closed. Once the epoxy starts to set, you can gently shave off excess using an X-acto knife. Clean the top and bottom edges of the bras bushing. Once fully cured, test for fit and use a small metal file if needed to dress any areas causing clearance problems.


Once back together, the automatic arm lift and home function will work again as well as basic lift.

SL1400cuecam2.jpg


SL1400cuecam1.jpg


TechnicsSL1400MK2fixed001.jpg
 
Nice :) I'll have to take a look at my 1300MK2 and see what I need to do. By the way, the cam was designed wrong when made, so alot of them failed very early on. Even after Panasonic redesigned it, it still failed.
 
Joel, whom had come up with a repair for this table, had some good info about the breaking gears. Unfortunatly, once he passed on his site has been taken down. Thats too bad to because there was a lot of interesting info there.

http://www.theturntablefactory.com/

The MK2's are superb tables. Its really too bad the 1300-1500 broke, basically beyond repair. Though there are a few folks like yourself who have got theres up.
 
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Wow, I'm glad you thought about using the dremel to increase the diameter of the plastic ring. I was about to do that after my days of frustration but didn't have the courage to go through. Haha, I just redid my gap filling and as long I don't put the cue lever all the way up, there is no rubbing. Bit of a pain, but now I can finally put the unit back together.

I will bookmark this thread! Thanks for showing another tested method!
 
These decks use a plastic cam that surrounds a brass bushing. As the plastic ages, it becomes brittle and shrinks a bit- it splits at the bushing rendering the cue lift inoperable. You cannot squeeze the cam shut around the bushing, there is a permanent gap. I downloaded the service manual from Vinylengine and pulled her apart.

The fix? Increase the inner diameter of the plastic cam using a Dremel and a grinding stone on low speed. If you go fast the plastic melts instead of being abraded. Go slow and sneak up on the new size. You want to be able to put the brass inside and close the circle of plastic so there is no longer a gap. Have the brass bushing fit a little loose with the plastic closed. I also made two little dimples in the plastic on either side of the break so the the epoxy has a mechanical connection, not just adhesive. Now grab your JB Weld (I used original, wish I had JB Weld Kwik.) I used a tie-wrap to clamp the piece after applying the epoxy. I used it in between the brass and plastic and to bridge the break. The tie wrap holds the break closed. Once the epoxy starts to set, you can gently shave off excess using an X-acto knife. Clean the top and bottom edges of the bras bushing. Once fully cured, test for fit and use a small metal file if needed to dress any areas causing clearance problems.


Once back together, the automatic arm lift and home function will work again as well as basic lift.

Great job, great table!

At the risk of jinxing you, I have had bad luck with an epoxy only solution. I ended up drilling some 1/64" holes to allow be to wrap/thread a pair of fine copper wires around/through the plastic piece which were soldered to keep the twist joint from unwrapping. That way if the epoxy fails, there is still something keeping it together. The first several attempts using various epoxies failed quickly. Luckily in two cases, I was in test mode with an AT-11E that had a plastic cover attached and was dry running without a record and the cover protecting the stylus when it failed. The third time was a few days in, but luckily no damage was done (except to my nerves.)

You are correct, clearances are quite tight, so adding a wire is non-trivial.

I have repaired three tables (all Sl-1300 MK2, long story for another time.) If I remember correctly, the white piece can be melted/mended with a soldering iron. The black piece is more heat resistant. In each case I have now resorted to wire reinforcement. (At the moment only one table is in active service and continues to bring me joy.)
 
Joel, whom had come up with a repair for this table, had some good info about the breaking gears. Unfortunatly, once he passed on his site has been taken down. Thats too bad to because there was a lot of interesting info there.

http://www.theturntablefactory.com/

The MK2's are superb tables. Its really too bad the 1300-1500 broke, basically beyond repair. Though there are a few folks like yourself who have got theres up.

Well,
I firmly believe "beyond repair" is a matter of time, money and skill. Pick two. These tables can be fixed. :yes:

Wow, I'm glad you thought about using the dremel to increase the diameter of the plastic ring. I was about to do that after my days of frustration but didn't have the courage to go through. Haha, I just redid my gap filling and as long I don't put the cue lever all the way up, there is no rubbing. Bit of a pain, but now I can finally put the unit back together.

I will bookmark this thread! Thanks for showing another tested method!

Glad to help! That is why I posted the description and pics. Power to the DIY people!
:guitar:
 
Great job, great table!

At the risk of jinxing you, I have had bad luck with an epoxy only solution. I ended up drilling some 1/64" holes to allow be to wrap/thread a pair of fine copper wires around/through the plastic piece which were soldered to keep the twist joint from unwrapping. That way if the epoxy fails, there is still something keeping it together. The first several attempts using various epoxies failed quickly. Luckily in two cases, I was in test mode with an AT-11E that had a plastic cover attached and was dry running without a record and the cover protecting the stylus when it failed. The third time was a few days in, but luckily no damage was done (except to my nerves.)

You are correct, clearances are quite tight, so adding a wire is non-trivial.

I have repaired three tables (all Sl-1300 MK2, long story for another time.) If I remember correctly, the white piece can be melted/mended with a soldering iron. The black piece is more heat resistant. In each case I have now resorted to wire reinforcement. (At the moment only one table is in active service and continues to bring me joy.)

Do you know what JB Weld is? it will NOT break. Metallized epoxy. I have fixed cylinder heads with this that are still running to this day.

JB Weld advert-

"Properties (psi)
Tensile Strength: 3960
Adhesion: 1800
Flex Strength: 7320
Tensile Lap Shear: 1040
Shrinkage: 0.0%
Resistant to: 500° F

Mechanics -- you can use J-B WELD with confidence. It is designed for safe, reliable, permanent repairs in engine compartments and heated environments up to 500° F. It's strong as steel and impervious to water, gasoline, chemicals, and acids." :thmbsp:
 
Do you know what JB Weld is? it will NOT break. Metallized epoxy. I have fixed cylinder heads with this that are still running to this day.

JB Weld advert-

"Properties (psi)
Tensile Strength: 3960
Adhesion: 1800
Flex Strength: 7320
Tensile Lap Shear: 1040
Shrinkage: 0.0%
Resistant to: 500° F

Mechanics -- you can use J-B WELD with confidence. It is designed for safe, reliable, permanent repairs in engine compartments and heated environments up to 500° F. It's strong as steel and impervious to water, gasoline, chemicals, and acids." :thmbsp:

Yes, the JB weld will not break, my concern is with the adhesion to the part in question, in particular the white (nylon?) piece. Yes you did take steps to get a good mechanical bond and I wish you the best.

No, for this repair, I did not attempt to use JB Weld, but an industrial grade high shear strength epoxy and a commercial epoxy for plastic. (I did not have good luck when attempting to repair a chainsaw handle that a tree fell on using JB Weld but that is another long story.)

All in all, I am more comfortable with additional mechanical reinforcement especially when using the AT-15SA (the acquisition of the the third turntable in question was purely for the cartridge and not the turntable!)
 
Yes, the JB weld will not break, my concern is with the adhesion to the part in question, in particular the white (nylon?) piece. Yes you did take steps to get a good mechanical bond and I wish you the best.

No, for this repair, I did not attempt to use JB Weld, but an industrial grade high shear strength epoxy and a commercial epoxy for plastic. (I did not have good luck when attempting to repair a chainsaw handle that a tree fell on using JB Weld but that is another long story.)

All in all, I am more comfortable with additional mechanical reinforcement especially when using the AT-15SA (the acquisition of the the third turntable in question was purely for the cartridge and not the turntable!)

I understand that the plastic is the weak point. That is why I made sure that I was creating a single piece of JB Weld to take the mechanical loads. It is analogous to you using the wire. It is a ring inside the plastic and surrounding the brass bushing that is continuous on both top and bottom of the circle and with the material bridging the break. The two dimples increase the mechanical hold. Once I decide on a new stylus, the AT20SLa will go back on.

I do not expect it will break again. But if it does, I will gladly report back and eat some crow. :yikes:
 
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I do not expect it will break again. But if it does, I will gladly report back and eat some crow. :yikes:

Hmmm, probably with enough garlic and tabasco it might be tasty!

Seriously, I hope it works for you. FWIW, I believe SaSi also managed with only some sort of glue or epoxy! For some reason it wouldn't work for me. I really hope it's just me, but I thought I'd give you the benefit of my experiences. I'm a bit paranoid, but failure could be fatal to a good stylus.

Best wishes!
 
Hmmm, probably with enough garlic and tabasco it might be tasty!

Seriously, I hope it works for you. FWIW, I believe SaSi also managed with only some sort of glue or epoxy! For some reason it wouldn't work for me. I really hope it's just me, but I thought I'd give you the benefit of my experiences. I'm a bit paranoid, but failure could be fatal to a good stylus.

Best wishes!

I appreciate the concern. Eaten a lot of game birds over the years, but never had any crow. I hear it tastes like frog legs... :drool:


How long before your pieces popped open again? I can see how that big long lever puts a serious load on the shaft during return.
 
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How long before your pieces popped open again? I can see how that big long lever puts a serious load on the shaft during return.

Well, the first attempt failed fairly quickly. The first, on the first or second dry run. The second, I run it a couple of dozen times using a cover over the cartridge that just rested on the mat and spiraled in until the auto-return kicked in. I set it up to repeat (SL-1300 MK2 in fully automatic with auto repeat) and it ran for 20 or 30 cycles before failing. The third passed an extensive dry run. I then graduated to a real record and it failed on the second album on the auto return. Luckily no damage was done except to my nerves.

My guess is that a failure on the return may not with luck be fatal to the stylus, but auto cueing could be. So there may be less danger with a SL-1400 MK2 than a SL-1300 MK2.
 
Good point. I have to cue vs. full auto. I am on LP #11 or 12 since yesterday. I will really run a lot of discs through it this week. Even if I am not listening.
 
I just might do this method if my cue arm fails again, did 4 quick runs by placing near the end, works fine, but it's far from perfect. Haha, I just wanna clear the bench to work on other stuff. But, with your experience I don't think I will be parting this unit out just yet.

Just for clarification, mine and/or others. After the epoxy set, how did you get the piece back on to the brass brushing? Carefully file it down until the fit was snug?
 
I just might do this method if my cue arm fails again, did 4 quick runs by placing near the end, works fine, but it's far from perfect. Haha, I just wanna clear the bench to work on other stuff. But, with your experience I don't think I will be parting this unit out just yet.

Just for clarification, mine and/or others. After the epoxy set, how did you get the piece back on to the brass brushing? Carefully file it down until the fit was snug?

The brass bushing is epoxied to the plastic cam. It is now one piece.
 
So you disassembled the brass bushing from the plate and during the clamping process had the brass bushing already in?

Ahh, now I get you. The post on the plate stayed where it was- the female brass fitting was epoxied into the plastic. Re-assembly was simple. I just dropped the finished assembly over the post on the plate.
 
Ahh, now I get you. The post on the plate stayed where it was- the female brass fitting was epoxied into the plastic. Re-assembly was simple. I just dropped the finished assembly over the post on the plate.

Good to know. Thanks for the clarification.

Haha, we all do repairs differently. I left the bushing on the post as one piece. Applied some glue on the bushing, clamped the plastic piece and placed my epoxy putty to fill the gap/structural support and let it cure.
 
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