Dual 1218 Tonearm Issues

[Dual 1218]

Hello everyone. I'm a newbie to this site and to the world of turntables. I'm looking for your expertise and hoping to fix my problem.

I bought a dual 1218 and I knew the tonearm has issues as it was demo in front me. However i still wanted it in the hopes to successfully fix the issue.

Basically the TT works perfectly except for the tonearm not really responding to the stop/switch. The tonearm goes up and down on its own, it randomly goes up in the middle of the song then back down. Not adjusted correctly when playing the record from the start. Safe to say the tonearm needs adjustments but is that the only thing it needs?

Also, the start stop switch is kinda stuff but still moves.

It's in mint condition very clean. Is it a good TT? How does it compare to the 1219 and 1229?

They told me it was stored for the past 30 some odd years.

Looking for help anyone with experience.

Thanks very much!

 

[Poinzy]

Hello everyone. I'm a newbie to this site and to the world of turntables. I'm looking for your expertise and hoping to fix my problem.

I bought a dual 1218 and I knew the tonearm has issues as it was demo in front me. However i still wanted it in the hopes to successfully fix the issue.

Basically the TT works perfectly except for the tonearm not really responding to the stop/switch. The tonearm goes up and down on its own, it randomly goes up in the middle of the song then back down. Not adjusted correctly when playing the record from the start. Safe to say the tonearm needs adjustments but is that the only thing it needs?

Also, the start stop switch is kinda stuff but still moves.

It's in mint condition very clean. Is it a good TT? How does it compare to the 1219 and 1229?

They told me it was stored for the past 30 some odd years.

Looking for help anyone with experience.

Thanks very much!

It sounds like your turntable needs a complete cleaning and lubing job. Some of the little plastic bits might need replacing too. They can simply dry out over time. The deck should get a thorough going over by an experienced tech.

 

[bohhey]

You have a mechanical piece of equipment that is approaching 45 years old. Anything mechanical after that period of time needs a complete tune up. Dual used grease which hardens over time, and causes all of the mechanisms to be sluggish. A full disassembly, cleaning and LIGHT re-lubing with a fine machine oil is required upon reassembly. The base machine and its components were very well built. We also run into an issue with the original VTA adjustment knob on the side of the removable headshell (the part that holds the cartridge). As you pivot the adjuster knob, there is a plastic shaft that moves the plate that holds the cart for the correct VTA for single play or stacking records. That shaft has been under spring tension for all of this time, and can either deflect or simply break in half - then the VTA is way off. We rebuild those headshells with a metal shaft and they will not fail again.