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Started making a plinth for my ROK L-34

beatcomber

beatcomber

AK Member
Started making a plinth for my Rek-O-Kut Rondine Jr. L-34

My woodworking skills are fairly rudimentary, but after reviewing various plinth building threads on AK and elsewhere, I decided to attempt making one for the Rek-O-Kut Rondine Jr. L-34 that I am restoring (for mono duty).

It arrived with a fairly attractive plinth, probably handmade, in a hollow plywood box veneered with mahogany. As with most idler-drive tables with powerful motors, it's begging for a high-mass plinth, to tame rumble and tighten the bass.



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I bought a sheet of 4' x 8' birch 3/4" plywood at Home Depot for about $50. They cut the wood into 20" square boards for me at no additional cost. There will be enough room on the plinth to accommodate a second tonearm down the road.

Tracing the main cut-out was easy; I just flipped over the old plinth and traced it with a pencil. I first drilled the rounded part of the cut-outs with an electric drill and cut the rest with an electric saw. I then used the first cut layer to trace the cut-outs on the remaining layers.

It was not necessary to be super-precise with the cut-outs; the top plate of the ROK covers it up. There just needs to be enough clearance for the parts to move freely without interference.



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Checking that everything fits... it does!

You can see where I marked the placement of the tonearm. I measured 11" from the center of the main bearing well, per Rek-O-Kut's spec for the Model 160 tonearm.





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The next step is gluing. Using Titebond, I glued and clamped layers 2 & 3 and 4 & 5, and will let it set until tonight (24 hours). (The top layer is visible in the background, leaning against my guitar amp.)



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More to follow...
 
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Looks good. I knew you could do it. It will be a lot better with a solid plinth. What about finish?:thmbsp:
 
Looking really nice.
That's a good size. I wish I had the sense to make mine with such a normal sized footprint.
Looking forward to seeing the progress.
 
bob06 said:
Looks good. I knew you could do it. It will be a lot better with a solid plinth. What about finish?:thmbsp:
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Thanks, Bob!

Make no mistake, this was a very intimidating project for me to attempt (I've never done anything like this before), but it's coming together perfectly so far, and it is not at all difficult.

I haven't decided on a finish yet - I'm not ready to attempt veneering (although I might become more ambitious by the time it's assembled). I don't dislike the exposed layers, so I might just give it a clear coat finish.

Brett a said:
Looking really nice.
That's a good size. I wish I had the sense to make mine with such a normal sized footprint.
Looking forward to seeing the progress.
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Thanks, Brett. Your ROK rebuild/re-plinth thread was a major inspiration and source of info!

I chose the 20" x 20" size because it will fit nicely on an Ikea Lack endtable (21.5" square), and it will have plenty of room for a second arm.
 
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Congrats! It looks really nice.
There is nothing wrong with the look of the edges of the stacked ply leaves. I've used the HD birch ply on numerous projects now, and its a nice finished plywood. Its main drawback is that it doesn't have a nice round mouthful of a catchy name like a certain other birch ply.
 
Very nice!!

I have a stack of some of that ply in the garage. This spring I should do the same thing you are doing and get one built for my Garrard.

You can always build trim pieces for the side out of a nice hard wood that would offset the finished birch. Or even just veneer the sides only. I bet even neophytes like us could do that..,,,

Regards
Mister Pig
 
I'm not ready to attempt veneering (although I might become more ambitious by the time it's assembled). I don't dislike the exposed layers, so I might just give it a clear coat finish.
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I was thinking about doing mine the same way, BC. Keep up the good work!
 
People think it's a tough job to build a plinth. But it's really not. Take your time and always think ahead and you will be a Bob Vila before you know it. :D
 
Thanks for the words of encouragement, everyone. :thmbsp:

bob06 said:
People think it's a tough job to build a plinth. But it's really not. Take your time and always think ahead and you will be a Bob Vila before you know it. :D
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Bob is absolutely right. If I can do it, anyone can do it. :yes:

Just remember this rule: Measure twice, cut once.
 
Here's something you can do also if you don't like the look of all plywood. After it was all sanded I masked of 3/4" off on the top and bottom then painted it. After it dried wet sand and clear coat. Many things you can do. :thmbsp:
 

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Looking good Beat. I don't suppose you (or anyone else here) might have plans/template to build a Plinth for a (Belt Drive) ROK K-34-H by chance ?
I "passed" on JW's beautiful AR-XA in hopes that I too can get my ROK set up
as a "dedicated" Mono Table.

Regards,
SixCats!
 
I wonder how much room is needed for those hefty motors to breathe? I suspect ventilation isn't in consequential. Looks on the right path to me.
 
fiddlefye said:
I wonder how much room is needed for those hefty motors to breathe? I suspect ventilation isn't in consequential. Looks on the right path to me.
Click to expand...

The motor definitely produces some heat, which is why I drilled out the plinth all the way down to the bottom layer. I'm going to put some fairly tall feet on it, so that some cool air can get up into the cavity.

The slot for the 'gear shift' on the top of the unit apparently also serves as a vent.

Grbluen said:
Nice job! Keep up the good work.
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Many thanks!
 
Brett a said:
I just figure all that warmth helps soften the drive wheel and get the main bearing oil to optimum operating temperature. It makes everything cozy and warm.
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That occurred to me as well. Both the ROK and my fully-serviced TD-124 take especially long to get up to 100% pitch during the cold winter months.

I've also noticed that the platter spin-down time on the ROK is considerably longer after it's been running for a while vs. turning it on and off while still cold. Once properly warmed up, it averages about 45-50 seconds to completely spin down. (The bearing has been polished and it has a new ball at the bottom of the well).
 
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