Vintage well tempered turntable...

[ryan1938]

So I'm looking for an american made turntable... long story... and this popped up on craigslist:

I know these pics are terrible... Anyone know what model this is and what it might be worth?

 

[classic carl]

Don't be surprised if this thread gets moved to Dollars and Sense where all questions of value belong.
Well regarded TT. What are they asking for it?

 

[ryan1938]

Doah. My bad. I should have known better.

He's asking 1300 with the cartridge.

 

[Mister Pig]

Use the CL metasearch engine Tempest. A ship is advertising a 1.5 year old Simplex with a Cadenza Red for $1595. Far better buy than the $1350 they are asking for the table you posted. Hopefully they would ship.

Regards
Mister Pig

 

[soundmig]

It certainly looks to be a WT Classic. It has the smaller clamp probably indicating that it was the second version of the classic instead of the earliest version. Or maybe it has a WTRP clamp? Like Mister Pig says above the newer one with a Cadenza is a bit better deal. Anyway, these are nice tables, I have one and it sounds really good when properly set-up. The tonearm is highly adjustable (but takes some getting used to) and with the built-in damping you can use a large range of cartridges. I can't really tell, but the tonearm seems to only have one counterweight on it. Mine has two (one heavier and one lighter) which makes rough and fine tracking force adjustments a bit easier. I don't know if they originally came with both counterweights (I bought mine slightly used way back in 1996). The Dynavector is a good cartridge. Given TT prices today, I think you'll be hard pressed to find a better sounding TT in that price range. Depends on condition of course.
BTW - don't worry if you go look at it and the platter seems wobbly when not spinning. That is part of the three point spindle (non-bearing) design. If it runs smoothly when its turning under power, then it should be OK. Note that shipping these is difficult due to having to remove (and then reinstall) the damping liquid from the tonearm and the spindle. If you can go pick it up and keep it fairly level in transit - things will be much "easier".

 

[JBStemp]

Yep, Well Tempered classic... great sounding table.

 

[perchdog]

Yep, Well Tempered classic... great sounding table.

Hmm, i was just checking one of those out on facebook. I sent a friend request but doubt the guy will accept even though my account is an alias