Pioneer PL-71 - Issue with tone arm.

frankiebull

Active Member
Picked up a Pioneer Pl-71 at a garage sale a few days ago with an unusual problem. The tone arm and rest were loose and wobbling around. I was able to fix these with a nut and washer under on bottom side of tone arm rest and disassembling the pivoting mechanism and reassembling correctly. Luckily the two bearings were still there and in good shape.

When I went to test it, it only played through the left channel. After looking everything over I found that one of the spring loaded contact pins in the tone arm collar was pushed in too far to make contact. Is there any way to get in there to repair? There is a tiny screw on bottom of tone arm near the collar but removing it doesn't seem to do anything. Can this be fixed or should I just keep my eye open for a replacement tone arm?
 

Attachments

  • DSCN3296.JPG
    DSCN3296.JPG
    76.4 KB · Views: 50
Try wiggeling the connector socket out from the arm with a cartridge shell inserted to it, with the tiny screw unscrewed and without fastening the lock ring to the shell. You should get it out enough to get a better grip of it. I would unsolder the cables from the other end first and push them in a bit to avoid breaking them when pulling the socket out.
 
These connectors are really difficult to get off without damaging connector or arm tube. The pins are spring loaded. You could try spraying a little WD40 or similar into the connector to help lubricate the pin and spring. Tap the side gently to try encourage it to spring back out. It may move enough to grab it with a pair of needle nosed pliers. Then clean the whole thing with Q tips and spray a little contact cleaner in there.
 
Has the tonearm been rewired?

If so, it is possible that too much heat was applied to the pins when the new wires were soldered on and the plastic the pin slides through has melted (talking experience with PL-71 here). Only remedy is to work it back and forward a lot to free it up (wear the hole bigger). Lube may help but if this is you problem it will not be a long term fix.
 
Thanks for the suggestions. I had to leave town unexpectedly for work. I will be back home by the weekend and will try some of these suggestions. It does not appear to have been rewired. I guess I did not make clear that it appears that the pin is pushed back beyond the plastic piece with the holes in it. If that is the case then the connector socket has to be removed. When I tried that the other day it was stuck tight. I can easily see how it could be damaged easily by trying to remove it. Maybe some WD 40 between it and the tonearm. Meanwhile, I am watching eBay for a replacement. They don't come up often tho.

I have been reading a lot of the posts about this turntable. Before I purchase a replacement tonearm I will check to see if it has any of the other common issues. Speed fluctuation, etc.
 
I am not seeing any way to get the connector socket loose from the tone arm. I tried some wd-40 to loosen it but it absolutely won't budge. Is this even doable? Searching for tone arm re wiring on this particular tone arm comes up with nothing. Has any one even done this? A replacement seems to be difficult to find as well.
 
In my case there was a single screw on the under side of the arm. Once that was removed the socket/end of the arm just slid out.

Maybe someone has super-glued your one in.
 
Maybe so. It is obvious that someone has fiddled with this in the past. Because I did remove the single TINY screw from the bottom and I can't make it budge.
 
Something of a Hail Mary, but as a last resort you could try to warm the end of the tonearm with a hair dryer or a thermostat-controlled hot air gun, set warm enough to soften any glue, but cold enough to not melt any plastic parts. Start low, give it time, and increase the temperature gradually. I´d like to add "Don´t try this at home", but I suppose that would defeat the point of it.
 
I have watched eBay for a replacement tonearm since November of last year with no luck. They just don't seem to come up. So I decided to try to remove the socket one more time. I removed the tone arm so I could get a good grip on it and twist using the cartridge for leverage. Just when I thought it was going to bend, I felt it break loose. It was still a chore to get it off. The pictures are what I discovered.

Does anybody have any ideas about how to fix this?

Are there some replacement parts I can purchase?

There was a small brass or maybe copper shim in there. It is in one of the photos. Does it belong in there? My guess is no. My guess is this is what made it so difficult to remove. I am willing to try anything. With only 10.00 in it I have some wiggle room.
 

Attachments

  • IMG_1839.jpg
    IMG_1839.jpg
    63.1 KB · Views: 23
  • IMG_1838.jpg
    IMG_1838.jpg
    51.7 KB · Views: 24
  • IMG_1840.jpg
    IMG_1840.jpg
    51.6 KB · Views: 23
  • IMG_1843.jpg
    IMG_1843.jpg
    57.6 KB · Views: 23
The blue wire is broken part way along the arm tube? The white wire is broken off and squashed?
I'm not sure on the shim .... grounding? Is there any sign of a black ground wire inside the tube that may have been attached to it?
What is the diameter of the socket where it fits inside the arm tube (measure with calipers)? Someone might have one in their parts bin that would work.
 
There are also a couple Pioneer arm tubes at Organdonorparts.com from other models .... the socket from one of those might work.
 
The blue wire is broken part way along the arm tube? The white wire is broken off and squashed?
I'm not sure on the shim .... grounding? Is there any sign of a black ground wire inside the tube that may have been attached to it?
What is the diameter of the socket where it fits inside the arm tube (measure with calipers)? Someone might have one in their parts bin that would work.
The blue wire is in tact. Yes the whit wire is broken off and will have to be re-soldered. The black wire is still in tact and soldered on at the other end of the tone arm. All four wires will have to be fed back through if I can fix this thing.
 
Back
Top Bottom