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BIC Turntables?

My first table, back in '78, was a 960. I wouldn't mind getting another one, if only for nostalgia's sake.

shacky, your music room looks so pleasant, with the potted plants and warm shadows!
 
To remove the stuck platter bearing on a BIC 920/940/960/980, the only 100% effective method is to use heat.

Do not use a hot-air heat gun -- this will damage the rubber mat. Instead, use a soldering gun of the 100w-200w type. Place the tip of the gun on the top edge of the stuck bushing and shaft. You will need to leave it on there for several minutes. Meanwhile, your helper takes two flat-bladed screw drivers and slides them under opposite sides of the platter.

While you heat the bearing assembly, your helper works the platter up and off.

Fred

* * * * *
 
Regarding the "sets down at the 45 position" problem.

This is due to the two sticky cam followers adjacent to the red cycling cam. These are about 5-6" long. They are mounted on the same pivot bearing. Two tension springs are used to return them to "neutral" position. The failure mode is that the pivot bearings get sticky so that the tension springs no longer can return the followers to neutral position.

To fix this you must disassemble the cam followers, and clean the pivot bearing with a thoroughness that boggles the mind. To take the followers off the shaft, you must remove the coathanger-type speed change linkage that goes over to the belt guide next to the motor pulley. And to remove the aforementioned linkage, you must remove the large aluminum plate that attaches to the the bottom of the tonearm with a 1/2"hexnut.

Usually, when the cam followers pivot bearing has been thoroughly cleaned, and you have relubed, the mechanism still won't work.

It is often necessary to polish the sliding surfaces with #1000 sandpaper or finer. I frequently find that ANY replacement lubricant other than light machine oil actually re-gums up the mechanism.

I nearly always find that the compression spring that fits on top of the two cam followers for "damping" needs to be replaced with a "softer" spring, or that the existing spring needs to be shortened.

The cam followers on this series of BIC's were poorly designed, and only barely worked when the machines were new. Thus the need for minor changes. You can use giant return springs, but be prepared for increased mechanism noise.

Fred

* * * * *
 
fropiler said:
Any leads on a belt? I just broke mine while screwing around with the platter.

At least the arm returns to it's rest now. I moved the red gear by a notch.
Click to expand...

South Street Service sells BIC gear and offers the original orange belt. Fred can probably get one for you also.
 
Thanks Fred. Hey, I just noticed that the spring is dangling from the pole that the stylus selector controls. Not really sure where it's supposed to connect - does it make much of a difference anyway?
 
The stylus selector (conical vs. elliptical) introduces a slight change in the anti-skate force, to compensate for the slightly different skate forces generated from the different "footprints" of the two geometries.

Maybe someone will post an exploded view of the base of the arm, to show where that spring attaches to.

Fred
 
Don't have a picture but it hooks onto a little hook on the inside bottom of the vertical (the one with the VTF and anti-skate markings on it) gimbal ring. It's black plastic.

Doug
 
So I picked up for free today and it turned out to be a 1000 model. It looks pretty cool and I brought to a repair shop this afternoon to have them look it over and see if anything needed to be fixed. It'd be nice to get it restored. I have a feeling this could be a nice upgrade from my entry level Technics.

It didn't have a needle, so if the repairs don't cost too much can anyone here recommend a decent cart for this table?
 
I have a 1000...cool little table...esp.the elec cueing.I have an old grado on mine at the moment...but I have a spare ADC XLM that will probably end up on it. The arm is good enough for most carts. Good luck!
 
Nice, I'm a bit worried because I've been stuck with a p-mount for years and now with this table i'm going to learn how to adjust the arm and needle.
 
So, the repair shop called this morning and said it would be about $100 bucks to fix it up. So I'm up in the air about it, I'm not sure if its worth it or if I should just save up for a new Technics 1200.
 
You got it for free, so you would be into it and up and running with a vintage BIC for $100. That is really not too shabby considering to replace it with anything off CL or Ebay would cost you a chunk of change. Then the lubing and cleaning work on top for any 30 odd year old turntable - either your time or someone else's for a fee. So on the one hand, good to go.

A 1200 would cost quite a bit more, although older units used would be just a bit higher than $100 typically. So on the other hand, if you want one of them, not so good to go with the BIC.

The problem you have to solve is that these two are apples and oranges in terms of style, type of drive, one is a straight DJ industrial strength pro table, the other is a vintage changer or automatic turntable for home use only. They really are both great "record players" but from completely different - yet great - design and basic vibe. Too subjective for me to call. You can always sell the BIC if you don't like it. But you may be delaying a decision you maybe already have made in wanting a Technics 1200.
 
I'd say do it! Anyone got a pic of the 1000? The 980 was my first exposure to a non-Technics table when I was little.
 
Cool, I think I'll do it. I just called the shop and told them to go ahead with the fixup. All I need now is a good choice of cart.
 
goraman said:
The BIC 980 was my first table,They liked the Grado F1 and the white Sure of the time.
It did need a felt mat the hard rubber one was awfle.
Click to expand...

I have a friend that has a 980. I helped him put a new belt on it. I noticed that hard mat...what was BIC thinking? It is as hard as the keyboard I am typing on. My friend put little round stick-on felt pieces on top of the mat. I was not that impressed by the construction of the table. I am sure people here swear by theirs, but it seemed like a table that mounted to an "all in one" system to me. It still played records okay, but my friend said he had problems with it over the years. Hard to believe that it was their "top of the line"

I have had a Technics SL-D202 I bought new. It looks mint, and has never hiccuped. Sounds great with a Shure M111-HE stylus. I think you can't go wrong with Technics. A certain model (1200MkII ?) had a lift problem. I wish Technics had experimented more with different plinths. I like the ''real wood look " of some other brands.
 
Bstable said:
I have a friend that has a 980. I helped him put a new belt on it. I noticed that hard mat...what was BIC thinking? It is as hard as the keyboard I am typing on. My friend put little round stick-on felt pieces on top of the mat. I was not that impressed by the construction of the table. I am sure people here swear by theirs, but it seemed like a table that mounted to an "all in one" system to me. It still played records okay, but my friend said he had problems with it over the years. Hard to believe that it was their "top of the line"

I have had a Technics SL-D202 I bought new. It looks mint, and has never hiccuped. Sounds great with a Shure M111-HE stylus. I think you can't go wrong with Technics. A certain model (1200MkII ?) had a lift problem. I wish Technics had experimented more with different plinths. I like the ''real wood look " of some other brands.
Click to expand...

The BIC 980 was nothing to look at for sure,and the tone arm is unimpressive as well.I can't think of 1 single reason why that old table should have sounded as good as it did but it did...
For what ever reason I still don't understand they didn't rumble,howl,or add any thing it shouldnt have.The geomitry of the arm and table where right and with a good MM cartrage they sounded very good.A real suprise to most of my freinds during the 80's when Pioneer,Technics DD,and Thorns where the most popular on my block.
 
Bstable said:
I have a friend that has a 980. I helped him put a new belt on it. I noticed that hard mat...what was BIC thinking? It is as hard as the keyboard I am typing on. My friend put little round stick-on felt pieces on top of the mat. I was not that impressed by the construction of the table. I am sure people here swear by theirs, but it seemed like a table that mounted to an "all in one" system to me. It still played records okay, but my friend said he had problems with it over the years. Hard to believe that it was their "top of the line"

I have had a Technics SL-D202 I bought new. It looks mint, and has never hiccuped. Sounds great with a Shure M111-HE stylus. I think you can't go wrong with Technics. A certain model (1200MkII ?) had a lift problem. I wish Technics had experimented more with different plinths. I like the ''real wood look " of some other brands.
Click to expand...
Well, the 980 was near TOTL. Actually the BIC 1000 was the TOTL. I agree, the M111HE is a great cartridge. And the lift problem was with the 13/14/1500MK2.
 
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