Thanks all for the thread. My LX500 is again working great. I'd lube it through the years, but it degraded from stuck-head to frozen-head. The fix involved:
1a. Cleaning old lube from the guide rail and the head drive gear and worm gears.
1b. Re-lubing with some lithium grease
It kind of worked better, but still stuck frequently. The DC motor drive belt _looked_ ok, but even cleaning it didn't help. When I couldn't find belts at Frys or RShack I started looking for a new table and had narrowed it down to 2 possible turntables (new and not cheap, but nice). In a last ditch effort I found:
http://www.vintage-electronics.net
and:
2. Ordered a new "tone arm belt". About $4 + $5 shipping (and he takes paypal). Showed up in a couple days.
I can't believe how stretched the old one was compared to the new one. Replaced and running great now.
Thanks.
1a. Cleaning old lube from the guide rail and the head drive gear and worm gears.
1b. Re-lubing with some lithium grease
It kind of worked better, but still stuck frequently. The DC motor drive belt _looked_ ok, but even cleaning it didn't help. When I couldn't find belts at Frys or RShack I started looking for a new table and had narrowed it down to 2 possible turntables (new and not cheap, but nice). In a last ditch effort I found:
http://www.vintage-electronics.net
and:
2. Ordered a new "tone arm belt". About $4 + $5 shipping (and he takes paypal). Showed up in a couple days.
I can't believe how stretched the old one was compared to the new one. Replaced and running great now.
Thanks.
I have a Sony PS-LX520 that I've had sticking issues for the past month, sine I pulled it out of mothballs.
I tried several suggestions, from various forums, and have finally found the solution.
I've cleaned the worm gears and arm track with toothbrushes etc. and tried various lubes after cleaning. White lithium spray, silicone spray and teflon spray.
Teflon was actually the worst, silicone did nothing, lithium would either dry out, or dust up, after a week or two.
Frustrated, I remembered that a few people had mentioned that the service manual never mentioned lubrication at all. I bought some 99% isopropyl alcohol, some q-tips and went to town on the rod, gears and even the greased spring that keeps the tone arm wiring out of the way. It took a while to strip all the goo away, but the final result was flawless. It has never tracked so well. The only place I used lube was white lithium spray under the platter where the tone arm wiring rubs, and on the tone arm wiring spring.
One other thing. The rubber belt, from the motor to the worm gear, can appear to be snug enough when it's actually loose enough to slip under a little resistance. make sure it's plenty tight or replace it.
Good luck!
I tried several suggestions, from various forums, and have finally found the solution.
I've cleaned the worm gears and arm track with toothbrushes etc. and tried various lubes after cleaning. White lithium spray, silicone spray and teflon spray.
Teflon was actually the worst, silicone did nothing, lithium would either dry out, or dust up, after a week or two.
Frustrated, I remembered that a few people had mentioned that the service manual never mentioned lubrication at all. I bought some 99% isopropyl alcohol, some q-tips and went to town on the rod, gears and even the greased spring that keeps the tone arm wiring out of the way. It took a while to strip all the goo away, but the final result was flawless. It has never tracked so well. The only place I used lube was white lithium spray under the platter where the tone arm wiring rubs, and on the tone arm wiring spring.
One other thing. The rubber belt, from the motor to the worm gear, can appear to be snug enough when it's actually loose enough to slip under a little resistance. make sure it's plenty tight or replace it.
Good luck!
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