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Rek-O-Kut Turntables - ROK

Hey all,

I recently picked up a turntable made by McCurdy model CH 12 that was used for broadcast purposes in the CBC local station up here in the Vancouver area. Does anybody know if McCurdy was the Canadian equivalent sister company of Rek-o-cut? It does have the same motor as one of the first pics in this thread and the table does look mighty similar to the cut's.

It also includes a rek-o-cut tonearm and headshell, (mono, but could be easily be converted and wired for stereo I'm sure) called the micropoise.

I will try and post some pics later when I have a chance if interested. It is a really nice looking table and built like a tank to take the abuse of being in the local national broadcasting radio station. I understand from the guy that I got it from is that it was used not as the main airplay table, but the secondary table used for mostly adding sound effects and other sound clips of the like. It is in amazing shape for what it is and he also had the little dohicky that the tonarm would rest on and lock down into place when not in use. The idler wheel is in really great shape and not cracked or dry at all.

I am not sure whether this is the place to ask for this info, considering it is a sticky, but I would put my money that McCurdy is the Canadian version of Rek-O-Cut and should be mentioned. If there is interest, I will follow up here, if not then I may create a new thread.

I happened to find a link to a pic of the same table I have here http://www.tamminen.ca/mccurdy/ , however tonearm is obviously different. Thoughts?

Cheers
 
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Nl-33h

Hi all: I looked through the entire thread and even downloaded some of the catalog PDF files. I did not see any of the newer turntables of the 60's in them.

Mine was an NL-33H (rectangular base instead of square) belt drive turntable with, to me, the infamous Rek-O-Thane belt. These belts stretched quite easily and regularly; and, I might have gotten two years out of them at the most.

Then, I forget when, Rek-O-Kut was sold to a larger outfit. Instantly the belts went from $3.15 to $7.85. A couple of years later another sale and now the damn belts are $15 plus :thumbsdn:. The Rek-O-Kut was moved to my museum of obsolete equipment (an unused closet) and that is where it sits today still gathering dust.

A pic when I can find my digital from a recent move (I can't find which box it's in). Next I tried a Thorens and for the next 3 decades I fought the problem of the idler wheels hardening and getting flat spots on them.

Now I have a lightweight Sony direct drive unit.

good thread, Harry
 
Well I had been thinking about adding a second tonearm to my ROK lately, when on a whim I stopped into a GW and found my new toy.

Yet another Pickering arm, along with a mono ROK arm. Power cable is frayed and basically everything needs to be rewired, but I think I got a decent deal, so I won't b*tch. I'm always hesitant to use the "s" word, but this is pretty damn close.
 

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Nice thread. Anyone ever find a ROK under a different name brand? I snagged one a few years ago. A K33H branded as "Olson". Absolutely identical to my ROK K33H. That's a Stromberg Carlson unipivot arm mounted on the "Olson" table.
 
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My most recent ROK is a B12H. Pictured as found, and with a light cleanup. Fairchild 281a transcription tonearm.
 
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inperson said:
Is that a K-33H. Do you have design plans for that base? Is it hollow or is it solid? Picture of the bottom?
Click to expand...

I just picked one of these up off Boston CL for $30. I'm currently looking at ideas for plinths since I don't need as much mass as on my L-34. Found a bet from Turntable Basics for $14 shipped.
 
Awesome!!!

Awesome job!!! Just beautiful.

I'm glad you have the RB300 arm on there. Using the old metal arms, no matter what the tracking weight is set at, destroys records. The designers just didnt know what we know today.
 
dmag- could you say more about the tables, your methods of construction, etc, and also the other gear on the racks...and, oh, yeah, the speakers, are they BIB's? seriously nice stuff all the way around
 
Both table are Rek-O-Kuts, the one on the left is an idler drive and the right a belt drive. I was inspired by the JE Labs page on Rok's and the plinth construction was per his instructions. Lowe's sells the birch ply and they will cut it to size for you if you go there in the middle of the day when they are not busy. I had them cut the sheet to 8 peices 24" square and then I cut them to size on my table saw. I used a jigsaw to cut the openings and a drill for the tonearm holes. Lots of glue and clamped overnight to dry. The finish is just plain old Linseed Oil.
As for the gear, my main preamp and power amp are at Conrad Johnson for power supply failures within a week of each other, $$$, so the NAD amp and one Advent Pre are borrowed. The Advent preamp section is shamefully good, especially the phono section.
Yes those are Bib's with Fostex FE-166's. They sound MUCH better than you could imagine and I have received nothing but praise on their performance.
 
May i join you?

Just posted in the Dollars and Sense Forum on my good fortune. Picked up ROK Rodine Deluxe for $25.00. Came with two Fairchild tone arms, one a transcription piece. The unit appears to be in incredibly good condition.

I am now seeking the learned guidance of those of you who know these units. I see some of the incredible work that many of you have done in crafting a plinth. I can handle tools but I'm not at all comfortable trying to craft something that will be a suitable base for a unit of this quality. Is there a possible source for a suitable plinth?

Obviously the Farichilds are not appropriate for continued use; they are simply too massive. What would you folks recommend for a tonearm and a source to get it?

Is there someone in my area (southeastern Connecticut) who you would recommend to assemble all of these components correctly.

Lots of questions I know but this is one beautiful piece of gear and I wish to accord it the respect that it deserves.

Any and all input gratefully accepted. Thanks.
 
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