Just won a Grado tonearm on eBay - anything missing here?

[beatcomber]

I just won an "untested" Grado Laboratory Series tonearm on eBay for what I think is a very good price.

I'd been wanting one of these for a while to mate with my 1961 Thorens TD-124, which originally had one before I owned it; I still have the original armboard that will fit it.

I believe it has all of the necessary parts, except for the thumbscrew that secures the weight... could a fellow Grado tonearm owner take a look at the images and confirm that nothing is missing?

If all is well, I'll probably rewire it and use it with the Grado Signature 8MR that @marcmorin kindly made available to me.

 

[bob smog]

Looks complete to me.

Mine was attached to a Grado Laboratory Series Turntable

I machined a brass counter-weight for mine, so I could use a wider range of cartridges.

 

[beatcomber]

Looks complete to me.

Mine was attached to a Grado Laboratory Series Turntable

I machined a brass counter-weight for mine, so I could use a wider range of cartridges.

VERY nice. What cart(s) are you using?

Those Grado turntables are rare birds. IIRC you have two of them, right?

 

[Crestwood23]

Very cool! Definitely the ideal aesthetic match to the 124 - how do you think it will stack up sonically to the more modern Jelco you have on there now? Or is this in addition to the Jelco?

 

[bob smog]

I was using a Shure M97 and an AT 440mla. Probaby needs something a little heavier.

The Grado tables are really nice a extremely well built. I'm currently on a Fairchild 412 kick, so the Grados are sitting.

Curious to hear your impressions of the Grado arm. At the time I was using it, I really didn't understand the nuances of TT setup. Even so, the Grado seemed like a good performer and is certainly easy on the eyes.

 

[beatcomber]

Very cool! Definitely the ideal aesthetic match to the 124 - how do you think it will stack up sonically to the more modern Jelco you have on there now? Or is this in addition to the Jelco?

Good question. I have no immediate plans to sell the Jelco; it works perfectly with my DL-103, which I'm still enjoying. I also don't know how the wood will be affected by humid summer weather, so having a metal arm available is a good idea.

I'm seeing this as a nifty alternative, for use with higher compliance carts. I have a nice Grado 8MR sitting here and plan to use that once I buy a new stylus for it.

Once received, assuming that all of the wiring works properly, I'll first clean/polish the pivot and possibly refreshen the wood if it's dried out. It will probably be test-driven with a Shure M97XE before moving up to that nice Grado cart.

I have the 1961 receipt for my TD-124, and it was originally sold with this exact arm. I still have the original armboard, ready to go:

 

[beatcomber]

Any guess as to what the little box(?) with the Grado logo inside the main box is?

This is how they were packed when new:

 

[JFRACE]

The arms originally came with 3 lead weights to use with it as well. The head shell sleds are very finicky as well, and tend to bend over time due to the pressure from being screwed into the arm. You'll lose sound in one or both channels over time,I did.

Just remember, the arms need about 2 grams and up to really shine. The bottom rubber piece has a raised dimple on it for set up,as you turn the bottom of it, it will help adjust VTA. You'll have to measure twice for VTA, the outer groove and inner groove will have different VTF measurements due to this. It will give you 2 different measurements if not adjusted and may be off by as much as 0.1 grams.

The screw in the top is used to adjust VTF as well. Start with it out in, float the arm, then use the screw to adjust VTF. It's spring loaded.

Pats audio makes a nice replacement head shell sled that's spring loaded. When I had the arm rewired though, I clipped the sled wires and used it for mounting only while having the plugs go direct. I ran the wires direct to RCA jacks behind the table and just plugged in that way.

 

[bob smog]

I had to rewire mine as well and went the direct route as well.

 

[bob06]

Didn't you have one of these before?

 

[beatcomber]

Didn't you have one of these before?

Yes, but it was missing parts, so it was immediately returned.

 

[beatcomber]

The arms originally came with 3 lead weights to use with it as well. The head shell sleds are very finicky as well, and tend to bend over time due to the pressure from being screwed into the arm. You'll lose sound in one or both channels over time,I did.

Just remember, the arms need about 2 grams and up to really shine. The bottom rubber piece has a raised dimple on it for set up,as you turn the bottom of it, it will help adjust VTA. You'll have to measure twice for VTA, the outer groove and inner groove will have different VTF measurements due to this. It will give you 2 different measurements if not adjusted and may be off by as much as 0.1 grams.

The screw in the top is used to adjust VTF as well. Start with it out in, float the arm, then use the screw to adjust VTF. It's spring loaded.

Pats audio makes a nice replacement head shell sled that's spring loaded. When I had the arm rewired though, I clipped the sled wires and used it for mounting only while having the plugs go direct. I ran the wires direct to RCA jacks behind the table and just plugged in that way.

I had to rewire mine as well and went the direct route as well.

Depending on its condition, I will likely do a rewiring. It looks like a very easy job. A new Pat’s cartridge sled might be a good idea too.

 

[bob06]

Yes, but it was missing parts, so it was immediately returned.

 

[the_nines]

Nice!

What year is the arm?

 

[bob06]

Nice!

What year is the arm?

If his receipt doesn't have the serial # of the arm on it then it is a 1961 arm. The original one that came with the table.

 

[beatcomber]

Early ‘60s for sure, but I don’t know the exact date of this one.

I do have the 1961 receipt for my TD-124, which was originally sold by the dealer with an arm like this one, but the original arm had been removed when I bought the table.

 

[the_nines]

Sweet.

 

[beatcomber]

Good news, the tonearm arrived safe and sound today!

It looks to be the complete package, including the knurled screw for the counterweight that appeared from the listing images to be MIA, all four lead washers, the owners manual, tracking force gauge, and a few other doohickies and doodads. It's in excellent condition and probably spent much of the past 55-odd years in its box. The wood is even free from scratches and wear.

For $210 shipped, I think I did pretty good.

I have it now mounted on my 1961 Thorens armboard, but I won't be able to mess with it for a couple of days because I'm going out of town tomorrow night for work. During the weekend I'll clean it up and polish the pivot bearing (which is really just a long, pointed screw), and drop a little lightweight oil into the pivot cup. It already moves pretty freely.

I'd like to rub some oil into the wood to freshen it, but I don't know if that will have an adverse affect on performance or not; maybe I'm overthinking it. Any thoughts?

The arm wires seem a little brittle, so I don't know what to expect once I hook it up. If I have to rewire it, that won't be too hard to do, it's a very simple design.

I look forward to hearing what it can do!

 

[Sam Cogley]

Very nice. I have one of these, the only thing missing is the spring for setting tracking weight - which can be done with the counterweight, I'm assuming someone didn't like the spring set method and removed it sometime in the past 55 years. I look forward to seeing how you like the arm on your TD124. Mine will probably go on a Pickering Gyropoise 800 if I ever get around to restoring that table.

 

[beatcomber]

How the heck do you get the lead washers off the counterweight?