Dandy
Addicted Member
How badly does it wobble? Unless it wobbles a lot, don't worry about it.
Latest Thorens to the stable -TD125
- Thread starter ehoove
- Start date
How badly does it wobble? Unless it wobbles a lot, don't worry about it.
Because of the clutch mechanism in the pulley, they all tend to look strange. Can you see under the pulley to see if the motor spindle shaft is bent? This usually happens when a novice tries to ship a Thorens table without removing the outer platter. I slips off the inner platter and bends the motor shaft. :^(
Regards,
Jim
tube-a-lou
Addicted Member
Love that system(s) you have, that Yamaha receiver that's tops in my
book of great receivers. So what tube amps are you using and what
did you use to polish that platter?
Tube
a find Flavio!
Maybe this is the trick - ya grouse on line about what a pain they are to work on and a rare and beautiful example falls into your lap! Congratulations ! I' ve just a bout finished replacing the springs on my 125 and re-installing a series 3 arm - I think you're going like this combo a lot if you've never mated the two before. This base must be pretty uncommon (at least in the US of A) . Does your arm have the dampening trough ?
Maybe this is the trick - ya grouse on line about what a pain they are to work on and a rare and beautiful example falls into your lap! Congratulations ! I' ve just a bout finished replacing the springs on my 125 and re-installing a series 3 arm - I think you're going like this combo a lot if you've never mated the two before. This base must be pretty uncommon (at least in the US of A) . Does your arm have the dampening trough ?
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The tube mono blocks are Wurlitzer 6431 chassis 6L6 PP amps. I used the buffer and auto finish buffing compounds at the dealership. I clamped each one in a vise covered by towel, and used the buffer using medium cut then followed up with Clear Coat polish and a fine wheel for the final finish. Worked like a champ and took around 10-15 min a platter.
Regards,
Jim
flavio81
Turntable technician
Yes Jim, the motor spindle shaft is bent, and as a consequence, i'm getting audible flutter (audible using a 3KHz test tone and with piano music).
I want to straighten it out but don't wanna break it. I was thinking applying heat with a torch but the coils could be broken by doing this!!
flavio81
Turntable technician
Yes, they are a pain in the ***. DAMN YOU THORENS ENGINEERS, DAMN YOU!! Lencos are easy to work on. Garrards are easy to work on. Technics-es are generally easy to work on... But THORENS... the least manteinance-friendly turntables there are.
Pressed-in bearing ? Yuck
Pressed-in bearing spindle (pressed into the inner platter)? Yuck
Stroboscope glued inside the inner platter (instead of machined into it as any other serious manufacturer would do)? Yuck
Able to take out the top plate without having to put the turntable upside down (and draining the bearings as a consequence). NO! !"/#&!"#/!"#
But i recognize there's no reason the deck couldn't be modified into a perfect vinyl spinner.
Yes, i do have the FD200 damper
Now i need silicone fluid, but i guess i can use motor oil "stop leak" additive. It is highly viscous.
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Dandy
Addicted Member
To be honest, I've not heard of any sure-fire ways to straighten out these motor shafts.
It is possible to replace the motor completely. If you go that way you can use a DC motor and separate speed control. E.g. Origin Live offers kits.
http://www.turntable-power-supply.com/range.htm You could just buy the DC motor and build your own speed control box.
It is possible to replace the motor completely. If you go that way you can use a DC motor and separate speed control. E.g. Origin Live offers kits.
http://www.turntable-power-supply.com/range.htm You could just buy the DC motor and build your own speed control box.
SME dampening fluid
For what it's worth -while it appears that the original dampening fluid with SME 3's was 200000 cs ( is anyone SURE about this ?) - e-mail from SME reports that the dampening fluid they sell today is 60000 cs - happens to be the same viscosity as what Kevin at KAB sells in a convenient syringe - I've used this in my series 3 and it works fine (dampening action observed on o'scope).
For what it's worth -while it appears that the original dampening fluid with SME 3's was 200000 cs ( is anyone SURE about this ?) - e-mail from SME reports that the dampening fluid they sell today is 60000 cs - happens to be the same viscosity as what Kevin at KAB sells in a convenient syringe - I've used this in my series 3 and it works fine (dampening action observed on o'scope).
flavio81
Turntable technician
The manual says 200,000 cSt (two hundred thousand centistokes)
tube-a-lou
Addicted Member
Yes, they are a pain in the ***. DAMN YOU THORENS ENGINEERS, DAMN YOU!! Lencos are easy to work on. Garrards are easy to work on. Technics-es are generally easy to work on... But THORENS... the least manteinance-friendly turntables there are.
Pressed-in bearing ? Yuck
Pressed-in bearing spindle (pressed into the inner platter)? Yuck
Stroboscope glued inside the inner platter (instead of machined into it as any other serious manufacturer would do)? Yuck
Able to take out the top plate without having to put the turntable upside down (and draining the bearings as a consequence). NO! !"/#&!"#/!"#
But i recognize there's no reason the deck couldn't be modified into a perfect vinyl spinner.
Yes, i do have the FD200 damper
Now i need silicone fluid, but i guess i can use motor oil "stop leak" additive. It is highly viscous.
I always thought Linn LP-12 were the least maintenance friendly
turntable, my Thorens TD-125 I just set it up and that was it.
Tube
flavio81
Turntable technician
I repaired the wobbly spindle and not by bending! Let me explain.
First, let's state the nomenclature. We have the motor spindle, then pressed-in is a brass spindle where the two-piece upper and lower plastic spindles go, with a powerful spring in between. At the bottom of the brass spindle is a felt washer, at the top another felt washer goes and is held in place by a fastener.
The brass spindle was bent only on the top part, which is the part where the upper felt washer attaches. This upper felt washer keeps the upper plastic spindle in place and sets its azimuth. Since the brass spindle was bent on top, the upper washer wobbled, and thus the upper plastic spindle wobbled.
What i did was simply to:
(1) discard the idiotic spring
(2) discard the top felt washer
and
(3) glue the upper plastic spindle to the brass spindle using hot silicone glue (which is easy to remove later.)
Sadly i didn't have my camera with me.
This means the azimuth of the upper plastic spindle will not depend on the top felt washer, which was misaligned (because the top part of the brass spindle was misaligned).
Next experiment will be to put the plastic spindle parts upside down so the belt engages in the lower part of the brass spindle, which is where it is more true.
First, let's state the nomenclature. We have the motor spindle, then pressed-in is a brass spindle where the two-piece upper and lower plastic spindles go, with a powerful spring in between. At the bottom of the brass spindle is a felt washer, at the top another felt washer goes and is held in place by a fastener.
The brass spindle was bent only on the top part, which is the part where the upper felt washer attaches. This upper felt washer keeps the upper plastic spindle in place and sets its azimuth. Since the brass spindle was bent on top, the upper washer wobbled, and thus the upper plastic spindle wobbled.
What i did was simply to:
(1) discard the idiotic spring
(2) discard the top felt washer
and
(3) glue the upper plastic spindle to the brass spindle using hot silicone glue (which is easy to remove later.)
Sadly i didn't have my camera with me.
This means the azimuth of the upper plastic spindle will not depend on the top felt washer, which was misaligned (because the top part of the brass spindle was misaligned).
Next experiment will be to put the plastic spindle parts upside down so the belt engages in the lower part of the brass spindle, which is where it is more true.