stgtr
New Member
Hello! I'm new to the forum but have been browsing for some time fixing up my parents old audio systems. I've come up with a fix for something I finally feel is worth mentioning.
The old school Pioneer PL-200 turntables from the late 70's/early 80's are evidently notorious for having the spring isolators fail on them and having totally worn out suspension. I noticed it on the one I've recently acquired, but I didn't realize just how bad it was until I cracked it open to see about repairing the auto-return mechanism. The rubber(?) isolators had totally failed and crumpled apart. They had actually caused the issue with the auto-return. A piece had lodged itself in the mechanism. I tried to run it without any isolators just to see if it would return. Something I learned though, is that the isolators also aid with stiffness in the springs, adding height. The main motor/armature board sits low enough that the platter rubs against the base of the turntable when it is turned on. So I did the next best thing, and grabbed one of my wife's Vogue magazines (I didn't even know they still sent magazines) and slid it underneath the unit. It held it up just enough not to rub, however, this eliminated the suspension completely. Now anytime my 2 year-old falls while she's dancing to my Hypnotize-SOAD LP, which is surprisingly often, it skips.
Anyways, on to the fix. these things are non-existent, and the ones I found are original from parts units (I'm sure they'll also fail soon) or are E-Bay ones that are over $30 USD to be had (a bit much for a cheaper unit to begin with). So, I searched around my workshop for stretchy, rubbery (or vinyl) mendable items to use. Maybe something an electrical guy like me may have. I came up with heat shrink, or electrical tape. I wrapped the springs in electrical tape, 3M Super 33+™ to be exact, and the suspension on the unit seems to be immaculate now! I did about 3 wraps over the entire body of each spring and even used a Hobo Freight plastic caliper to make sure the springs sat at the same height unloaded. They were a little tight going in (tee-hee) but they went in (tee-hee) and they hold the platter up enough not to rub at all even if I punch my entertainment center with the power of a sleep deprived automotive tech at 2 in the morning to see if it will skip (don't worry I'm not just punching random things in my house, it was for testing). I don't have any photos unfortunately but I may get some when I go to solder on new Phono Jacks and/or add an internal riaa preamp. I do suppose the heat shrink may be a better idea if you manage to find single wall 3:1 in a 1-1/4" or 1-1/2" size. I wouldn't want to use double wall though cause that may be a bit too thick.
Another option is to create something like what MNPCtech made for these. Smart idea. I definitely can't machine something like this out, and like the E-bay items are a bit steep at $75. But I am pretty well versed in Fusion360 and have a 3D printer. Seems like a pretty straightforward idea. Just create spacers that the feet could slide into that would offset around the right height for the motor board to rest on, with some form of decoupling in between. It could just be two pieces PLA and use a thick rubber O-ring or some other material that is also good for decoupling like CC foam. Maybe both. IDK I'll mess with it and see what I can come up with.
Hope someone can use that to help in restoring an old Pioneer Turntable and avoid my headaches in the future. Now, on to fixing the old Pioneer SX-780 with blown STKs.
Cheers!
The old school Pioneer PL-200 turntables from the late 70's/early 80's are evidently notorious for having the spring isolators fail on them and having totally worn out suspension. I noticed it on the one I've recently acquired, but I didn't realize just how bad it was until I cracked it open to see about repairing the auto-return mechanism. The rubber(?) isolators had totally failed and crumpled apart. They had actually caused the issue with the auto-return. A piece had lodged itself in the mechanism. I tried to run it without any isolators just to see if it would return. Something I learned though, is that the isolators also aid with stiffness in the springs, adding height. The main motor/armature board sits low enough that the platter rubs against the base of the turntable when it is turned on. So I did the next best thing, and grabbed one of my wife's Vogue magazines (I didn't even know they still sent magazines) and slid it underneath the unit. It held it up just enough not to rub, however, this eliminated the suspension completely. Now anytime my 2 year-old falls while she's dancing to my Hypnotize-SOAD LP, which is surprisingly often, it skips.
Anyways, on to the fix. these things are non-existent, and the ones I found are original from parts units (I'm sure they'll also fail soon) or are E-Bay ones that are over $30 USD to be had (a bit much for a cheaper unit to begin with). So, I searched around my workshop for stretchy, rubbery (or vinyl) mendable items to use. Maybe something an electrical guy like me may have. I came up with heat shrink, or electrical tape. I wrapped the springs in electrical tape, 3M Super 33+™ to be exact, and the suspension on the unit seems to be immaculate now! I did about 3 wraps over the entire body of each spring and even used a Hobo Freight plastic caliper to make sure the springs sat at the same height unloaded. They were a little tight going in (tee-hee) but they went in (tee-hee) and they hold the platter up enough not to rub at all even if I punch my entertainment center with the power of a sleep deprived automotive tech at 2 in the morning to see if it will skip (don't worry I'm not just punching random things in my house, it was for testing). I don't have any photos unfortunately but I may get some when I go to solder on new Phono Jacks and/or add an internal riaa preamp. I do suppose the heat shrink may be a better idea if you manage to find single wall 3:1 in a 1-1/4" or 1-1/2" size. I wouldn't want to use double wall though cause that may be a bit too thick.
Another option is to create something like what MNPCtech made for these. Smart idea. I definitely can't machine something like this out, and like the E-bay items are a bit steep at $75. But I am pretty well versed in Fusion360 and have a 3D printer. Seems like a pretty straightforward idea. Just create spacers that the feet could slide into that would offset around the right height for the motor board to rest on, with some form of decoupling in between. It could just be two pieces PLA and use a thick rubber O-ring or some other material that is also good for decoupling like CC foam. Maybe both. IDK I'll mess with it and see what I can come up with.
Hope someone can use that to help in restoring an old Pioneer Turntable and avoid my headaches in the future. Now, on to fixing the old Pioneer SX-780 with blown STKs.
Cheers!
