The Linn is one of the great products of audio history. It is a fine product and historically important, since it, and its manufacturer, Ivor Tiefenbrun (sp), were very important in the rediscovery of listening as the most important test of quality. The Linn redefined what could be expected from records and established the importance of the source as the determinant of ultimate quality.
When it came out the usual notion was that distortion figures were most important thing to pay attention to in electronics, that wow and flutter were the thing that mattered to turntables, and that speakers were the most important part of stereos. Stereophile had been fighting this attitude for years, but with only marginal success. The Linn didn't have as good figures as the average direct drive table, but sounded better to many many serious listeners, and established the hi end in phono reproduction at about the same time that Audio Research was doing the same in electronics, and The Absolute Sound came along to do the PR for the hi end. (Obviously this thumbnail sketch is a gross oversimplification.)
None of which has much to do with whether you want the table. Linns can sound very good, or nothing special. They are fussy -- they need to be set up correctly, and need to be sited carefully. Like almost all suspended subchasis tables they bounce alarmingly when you use the cuing. They don't get up to speed instantly.
But people who like them gush on and on about speed and pacing -- they are good at digging out information and,more important, presenting it coherently so that you can follow the small details in relationship to the whole. There have been many upgrades to the Linn, and new ones sound different than old ones, but all changes are available as retrofits -- not cheap at all, but perhaps worth considering if you get bit by the bug.
The Linn was an expensive turntable, and so the arm attached is probably a very good arm, ditto the cartridge. It possible that the cartridge is a moving coil,and if so you will need a step up transformer or headamp.
Ask your friend to be very careful moving the turntable, or do it yourself. You should remove the platter at the very least, and be gentle. Protect the arm and stylus.
The Vinyl Engine site has a lot of information including manuals and so on. I'd like to hear what you do, and what you think of it.