I have a Realistic LAB 440 as my main table, and I noticed it occasionally skipping on pristine records, with the same cartridge and tracking settings that always worked before. It got gradually worse, until I stopped using it, and set aside some time to try to figure out what was going on. That started a wild goose chase, with me replacing the stylus, checking the level of the platter, maxing out the tracking, then eventually the trying different cartridges on different headshells. All still resulted in the same problem, on every record. It was happening at the start, middle, and end of each record.
Eventually I noticed that there was friction on the tonearm when moving it laterally, which would explain the skipping. Flipping it over, I took off the bottom, and looked to see if there were any lubrication points (there aren't on this model), and using contact cleaner to clean the bushings.
But then I saw the culprit: the replacement RCA cable that I had put in a while back had shifted, and was slightly rubbing the start/stop pivot pin as it moved along the arc of the tonearm. It has a strain relief bracket, and I had put in a zip tie when I installed it, but it apparently needed more support at its initial bend as it entered the platter to keep it out of the way, so I added more zip ties. The replacement cable is much thicker than the original.
Anyway, just thought this might help anyone else tracking down gremlins in their turntables.
Eventually I noticed that there was friction on the tonearm when moving it laterally, which would explain the skipping. Flipping it over, I took off the bottom, and looked to see if there were any lubrication points (there aren't on this model), and using contact cleaner to clean the bushings.
But then I saw the culprit: the replacement RCA cable that I had put in a while back had shifted, and was slightly rubbing the start/stop pivot pin as it moved along the arc of the tonearm. It has a strain relief bracket, and I had put in a zip tie when I installed it, but it apparently needed more support at its initial bend as it entered the platter to keep it out of the way, so I added more zip ties. The replacement cable is much thicker than the original.
Anyway, just thought this might help anyone else tracking down gremlins in their turntables.
