I scratched my new turntable dustcover! Now what?

Azriel

Azriel

Active Member
Hey all,
So for Christmas I got a Fluance RT82 turntable. Today, tt was dusty, so I went to wipe it off. Didn't realize it, but it was something more abrasive than dust. Anyway, I scratched the living crap out of the dustcover. Overall, the turntable is reasonably well made, but the dustcover is absolute crap. Breathe on it the wrong way and it scratches.

Is there anything I can do or do I have to throw the dustcover in the garbage and get a new one, then never touch the turntable at all so I don't scratch it?

Unrelated, but the turntable sounds really bad too. Super bright and distorted. Tracking force and angle are all adjusted right. It's the kind of thing that reveals every little surface imperfection, so you have to play absolutely flawless records, and even then there's a lot of hiss and noise.

So, what do I do?
 
Register to hide this ad
Dont know the table, but I do know the lower model OM5 cartridge. It's a decent cartridge, so the OM10 should be decent also. Maybe just a bad cartridge for that table. Not sure of the cost on the Fluance table, but a lower end Music Hall would work very nicely IMHO. Just my 2 cents. As to the dust cover, if it's really that bad of a cover, then I wonder about the table also. I don't own any company, but if I did, and if I put a product out, I would make sure it at least did what it was supposed to do. Again, IMHO.
 
This table was $300!
I see Fluance sells replacement dust covers for $50.00, so that is an option. However, I'd hate to have to buy a new one every time I touch the turntable. At that rate, I could buy a real turntable pretty quickly.

Is it strange that I prefer my old Elac TT instead? It just does everything I want it to. It may not be as detailed, but to my ears it just sounds better. Funny how that is.
 
Last edited:
Azriel said:
Unrelated, but the turntable sounds really bad too.
Click to expand...

I have heard 3 of these and just ordered one for my daughter. That is not a description I would use for the 3 I have heard (thats why I ordered one). I think you have something else going on. As for the scratches, kind of like the first scratch on your new car.
 
Try using Pledge furniture polish with a old T shirt made of cotton. My college roommates girl friend had me over for dinner one night. I noticed how clean their dust cover was on their turntable. Asked what she used. Been using this for the last 40 plus years. Also have a ratty dust cover on a Garrard Zero 92. Had nothing to loose. Tried car rubbing compound then car wax. Gently applied it. Then used Pledge. The results weren’t bad. Good luck.

Eric
 
Dust cover scratches happen. Most of my turntables are older, and they all have gotten a little hazy, with light scratches. It's not just a Fluance problem... Just kind of the nature of acrylic. They can be buffed and polished.

Usually, I try to just touch the dustcover at the bottom edges when opening and closing to avoid getting fingerprints on it. That way, I can just use a swiffer duster to remove surface dust. I try to avoid wiping when I can. Never use paper towels to wipe or cleaners like windex, and don't set objects on top of the dustcover. If you must wipe, a soft, damp microfiber towel is the way to go. Do it only after you have removed the surface dust.
 
Well this is curious. I originally had the TT hooked up to my downstairs system with Bozak B4000s, and it sounded bright and revealing of surface noise. When I got the Elac going, it replaced the Fluance. On a lark, I decided to take the Fluance upstairs to my theater room with my Frieds. Up there, it seems to sound just fine. I'm listening to a Supertramp record (known to be bright) and it sounds just fine. Maybe it was just a bad combo between the TT and the speakers?

The interesting thing is the Elac sounds just fine downstairs. Guess it's good I have both of them after all. I'm going to keep listening to a variety of records. So far, this is the first one I've played upstairs.
 
Azriel said:
Anyway, I scratched the living crap out of the dustcover.
Click to expand...
A bit of an exaggeration but we understand. There are dustcovers on tables around ak that one can't see through the scratches. Hopefully, you will get some compound that you can use on a regular basis to make the cover like new again, if that remains a necessity.

Azriel said:
At that rate, I could buy a real turntable pretty quickly.
Click to expand...
But it probably has a dust cover that will scratch, too. Time to look at the new tables that don't have dust covers. Of course, you need to be careful because if you cover them with a nice Hermès scarf it may catch the stylus when you remove it. Or the table gets all dusty and you need to do your detailing on that.

Might be time for a vintage stereo stand that has a top section with a glass lid designed to keep a tt in nice shape.

Glad you found some synergy with the fluance and the upstairs rig. Might be just a cartridge sound and how it works with the speakers or the phono preamp.
 
The headlight resto polishes can work well.

Start out very lightly applying, and don't favor any one particular place on the Dustcover.
Go from there with repeat applications, and observing the results you are getting with the polish. Yes, you can probably finish with a product like Lemon Pledge, or a decent car sealant-wax.

After, I'll suggest covering the Dustcover with a towel of some sort to help keep dusts off. That's what I did for years until I bought a custom fitted Naugahyde Cover.
 
The pledge probably works by filling the ever so slight scratches with oil or whatever and thus reflecting the light differently.

I have never seen it mentioned, but I would imagine a film like they use on car tint or something like a screen protector for a cell phone could protect quite well. So basically a film applied with water and a squeegie.
 
The glass company here in town does plastics also and I have used some of their cleaner polish. compounds quite successfully. Way back in the past when a hinge broke the plexiglass. I had them repair it. They used a fine blade on a small table saw. cut out the back piece and hot melted and glued in a new piece and drilled out and re attached the hinges. The plexiglass was twice as thick and last forever as far as I know cause I sold the TT 10 years later. When I needed a dust cover for my TD 121 the Glass company also made one for me. It was a lot thicker and tougher that the soft factory one. The ones for my Dual 129 and Mircord 50H were cheap and flimsy also. I am going to need one for my new TT. so I guess its back to the glass company when they re-open. Went to college with the owner, I hope he doesn't shut the business down because of this pandemic.
 
I always keep a cover over the dustcover a old t-shirt is in use right now. Keeps sun off also.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom