Reviving Ariston RD11s
Well after first starting this project back in October 2007 at the start of this post i've just about finished reviving my old/new Ariston RD11s.
What started out as a few tweaks has ended up costing me about $3000.What i've ended up with is an excellent sounding turntable,but at a relatively high price.
Like a lot of projects one thing led to another until i found myself with only the main bearing and top plate remaining from my original turntable.
I found a guy by the name of Rod Childs who is a wood working craftsman, and i commissioned him to make me a new plinth out of a piece of New Guinea Rosewood.I always liked the fluted design on the Linn so i asked Rod to router that design into the plinth.
The end result is just beautiful,unfortunately i'm not good enough at taking photos and so the ones i've posted in the gallery dont do it justice as it looks absolutely stunning in the flesh.
Earlier i had bought a Hercules power suppy,similiar to the Linn Valhalla and had fitted it under the Ariston in the same position as on the Linn LP12.
Since then i have now purchased the external power supply unit(called a MOSE) that allows the Hercules to be housed in a external box similiar to the Lingo along with its own discrete power module.An amazing improvement,and an absolute bargain.The workmanship and quality of componentry in these units has to be seen to be appreciated.
Next i bought a new Linn replacement motor from those very helpful people at SRM who fitted it with an adjustable bearing end cap and extensive vibration absorbing rubber dampers. I replaced the steel ball bearing in this end cap with a ceramic ball i purchased from a hobby supplies shop.Did it make a difference?Who knows..perhaps not by itself.
I had already fitted a ceramic pad which drops down into the bearing well for the spindle to ride on, which i again got from SRM.This is a very worthwhile improvement.
Of course the obligatory Linn springs and bushes were fitted as well and these made an enormous difference to the ease of setting up the suspension.
It was time for some improvements to my tonearm.First up was a new armboard made from smoky grey acrylic...looks good.
I had read about the benefits of the Origin counterweight modification,but then i read a review of the Michell Technoweight and so ordered one of these as the idea of the lower centre of gravity appealed to the old mechanic in me.It was a great choice.Bass was immediately a quantum leap better.
It always annoyed me that you couldnt adjust the VTA on the standard Rega.When i saw Pete Riggles adjustable VTAF i immediately ordered one and he worked with me via email and photos to modify one so that it would fit on to the Ariston RD11s.This is fantastic being able to adjust the VTA on the fly.Had some other audible benefits too.
There was one thing that was still bugging me....the pressed steel flexible subchassis.
I decided to bite the bullet and set about making a Linn Keel copy.This is not as easy as it first seems.The Keel is actually a aluminium casting and i was working with 8mm thick sheet aluminium.
I had two aims for the new subchassis.
1) To make it stiffer and less prone to resonances
2) To make it better balanced about the main bearing when the arm was attached.The steel version is so heavily biased near the arm that the springs have to be wound up too much particularly on one side to get the armboard level.The bounce was always a bit 'dodgy'.
First problem surfaced when i went to get the honeycomb pattern like the the keel, machined out of the 8mm sheet of soild aluminium.When material is removed only from one side the metal is relieved and starts to bend up on the side where the material is removed.Back to the drawing board.
A compromise was all i could do without trying to get a new sub chassis cast.
I decided to make weight measurements of the old and new subchassis and determined that without removing any material from the new aluminium subchassis it weighed almost exactly the same as the old pressed steel unit. This was good as it meant that i could now lighten the subchassis and achieve a better balance at the tonearm end.
After drilling 5 x 32mm holes in the subchassis at the arm end i set up the arm on the subchassis sitting on its springs and bushes on the workbench and outside of the plinth.Now the weight of the arm didnt tip over the subchassis as it had done when attached to the steel subchassis.These holes also presented the opportunity to deaden the new subchassis by allowing me to pop in tight fitting rubber bungs,which works a treat.
The next thing that had irritated me since day one (in 1985)was the
poor quality Rega RB300 tonearm cabling, and a persistent earth hum problem when touching the arm and the top plate at the same time.I also didnt fancy the black finish on the arm either.
I determined that i was going to tackle these issues next so i contacted J7 at Audioorigami to ask his advice on polishing the arm.Fortunately he talked me out of trying to do it myself and i sent my arm over to Scotland for him to work his magic on.Upon inspection he found that(not only was it a very early model RB300) but that all the earth connections inside the arm had virtually turned to green dust, so corroded were they.
J7 polished the arm,foam filled the arm tube ,adjusted the bearings,modified and replaced all the earthing and added good quality cabling and plugs.It looks fantastic.Sounds great.
While i was waiting for the arm to come back i decide to work on the top plate.Earlier i had a little accident where i dropped the platter across the top plate and scratched the black decal that ran under the arm similiar to the look of the long armboard on a Linn.I pulled the decal off and decided to get the stainless steel top plate polished to a mirror finish.This looks awesome with my gold edged platter.
I previously had an acrylic bottom plate made up to suit my old plinth ,but as my new plinth is considerably bigger i had to get another acrylic bottom plate made.All that needs doing now is my new turntable top cover in clear 4mm perspex.That is being made as i write.
Yes it cost me way too much money and No i would not do it again.But the DIYer in me just loved this little project.It kept my little mind occupied for over a year, and part of me is sad its over.
In retrospect,I should have just spent the $3000 on that lovely shiny new Thorens TD2030 i was lusting after,but it wouldnt have been anywhere near as much fun.
How does it sound?After several hours its sounding better.
What i have to get used to is the now lack of colouration in the midrange the Ariston previously exhibited.Its now a much more analytical turntable...lots of detail especially obvious on complex rock tracks where many instruments are playing at the same time.The table has the ability to pick out each instrument in space. Bass is still awesome but a little better now at picking out the various levels of bass.
To be honest i miss some of the warmth this original table was famous for,but when i pick out all those details i had not heard before on my albums i tell myself its a worthwhile tradeoff.
Its still early days in terms of listening and i dont know if what happens is one gets used to the sound of ones equipment and hence grows to like it OR the system settles in and the system starts to find its groove.
Its been a hellva ride with all the little problems coming up and the search for solutions that were acceptable sonically and aesethically.The experience has been invaluable especially as i have done it gradually and heard the results of each step.
Now back to that lousy sounding CD player.
Well after first starting this project back in October 2007 at the start of this post i've just about finished reviving my old/new Ariston RD11s.
What started out as a few tweaks has ended up costing me about $3000.What i've ended up with is an excellent sounding turntable,but at a relatively high price.
Like a lot of projects one thing led to another until i found myself with only the main bearing and top plate remaining from my original turntable.
I found a guy by the name of Rod Childs who is a wood working craftsman, and i commissioned him to make me a new plinth out of a piece of New Guinea Rosewood.I always liked the fluted design on the Linn so i asked Rod to router that design into the plinth.
The end result is just beautiful,unfortunately i'm not good enough at taking photos and so the ones i've posted in the gallery dont do it justice as it looks absolutely stunning in the flesh.
Earlier i had bought a Hercules power suppy,similiar to the Linn Valhalla and had fitted it under the Ariston in the same position as on the Linn LP12.
Since then i have now purchased the external power supply unit(called a MOSE) that allows the Hercules to be housed in a external box similiar to the Lingo along with its own discrete power module.An amazing improvement,and an absolute bargain.The workmanship and quality of componentry in these units has to be seen to be appreciated.
Next i bought a new Linn replacement motor from those very helpful people at SRM who fitted it with an adjustable bearing end cap and extensive vibration absorbing rubber dampers. I replaced the steel ball bearing in this end cap with a ceramic ball i purchased from a hobby supplies shop.Did it make a difference?Who knows..perhaps not by itself.
I had already fitted a ceramic pad which drops down into the bearing well for the spindle to ride on, which i again got from SRM.This is a very worthwhile improvement.
Of course the obligatory Linn springs and bushes were fitted as well and these made an enormous difference to the ease of setting up the suspension.
It was time for some improvements to my tonearm.First up was a new armboard made from smoky grey acrylic...looks good.
I had read about the benefits of the Origin counterweight modification,but then i read a review of the Michell Technoweight and so ordered one of these as the idea of the lower centre of gravity appealed to the old mechanic in me.It was a great choice.Bass was immediately a quantum leap better.
It always annoyed me that you couldnt adjust the VTA on the standard Rega.When i saw Pete Riggles adjustable VTAF i immediately ordered one and he worked with me via email and photos to modify one so that it would fit on to the Ariston RD11s.This is fantastic being able to adjust the VTA on the fly.Had some other audible benefits too.
There was one thing that was still bugging me....the pressed steel flexible subchassis.
I decided to bite the bullet and set about making a Linn Keel copy.This is not as easy as it first seems.The Keel is actually a aluminium casting and i was working with 8mm thick sheet aluminium.
I had two aims for the new subchassis.
1) To make it stiffer and less prone to resonances
2) To make it better balanced about the main bearing when the arm was attached.The steel version is so heavily biased near the arm that the springs have to be wound up too much particularly on one side to get the armboard level.The bounce was always a bit 'dodgy'.
First problem surfaced when i went to get the honeycomb pattern like the the keel, machined out of the 8mm sheet of soild aluminium.When material is removed only from one side the metal is relieved and starts to bend up on the side where the material is removed.Back to the drawing board.
A compromise was all i could do without trying to get a new sub chassis cast.
I decided to make weight measurements of the old and new subchassis and determined that without removing any material from the new aluminium subchassis it weighed almost exactly the same as the old pressed steel unit. This was good as it meant that i could now lighten the subchassis and achieve a better balance at the tonearm end.
After drilling 5 x 32mm holes in the subchassis at the arm end i set up the arm on the subchassis sitting on its springs and bushes on the workbench and outside of the plinth.Now the weight of the arm didnt tip over the subchassis as it had done when attached to the steel subchassis.These holes also presented the opportunity to deaden the new subchassis by allowing me to pop in tight fitting rubber bungs,which works a treat.
The next thing that had irritated me since day one (in 1985)was the
poor quality Rega RB300 tonearm cabling, and a persistent earth hum problem when touching the arm and the top plate at the same time.I also didnt fancy the black finish on the arm either.
I determined that i was going to tackle these issues next so i contacted J7 at Audioorigami to ask his advice on polishing the arm.Fortunately he talked me out of trying to do it myself and i sent my arm over to Scotland for him to work his magic on.Upon inspection he found that(not only was it a very early model RB300) but that all the earth connections inside the arm had virtually turned to green dust, so corroded were they.
J7 polished the arm,foam filled the arm tube ,adjusted the bearings,modified and replaced all the earthing and added good quality cabling and plugs.It looks fantastic.Sounds great.
While i was waiting for the arm to come back i decide to work on the top plate.Earlier i had a little accident where i dropped the platter across the top plate and scratched the black decal that ran under the arm similiar to the look of the long armboard on a Linn.I pulled the decal off and decided to get the stainless steel top plate polished to a mirror finish.This looks awesome with my gold edged platter.
I previously had an acrylic bottom plate made up to suit my old plinth ,but as my new plinth is considerably bigger i had to get another acrylic bottom plate made.All that needs doing now is my new turntable top cover in clear 4mm perspex.That is being made as i write.
Yes it cost me way too much money and No i would not do it again.But the DIYer in me just loved this little project.It kept my little mind occupied for over a year, and part of me is sad its over.
In retrospect,I should have just spent the $3000 on that lovely shiny new Thorens TD2030 i was lusting after,but it wouldnt have been anywhere near as much fun.
How does it sound?After several hours its sounding better.
What i have to get used to is the now lack of colouration in the midrange the Ariston previously exhibited.Its now a much more analytical turntable...lots of detail especially obvious on complex rock tracks where many instruments are playing at the same time.The table has the ability to pick out each instrument in space. Bass is still awesome but a little better now at picking out the various levels of bass.
To be honest i miss some of the warmth this original table was famous for,but when i pick out all those details i had not heard before on my albums i tell myself its a worthwhile tradeoff.
Its still early days in terms of listening and i dont know if what happens is one gets used to the sound of ones equipment and hence grows to like it OR the system settles in and the system starts to find its groove.
Its been a hellva ride with all the little problems coming up and the search for solutions that were acceptable sonically and aesethically.The experience has been invaluable especially as i have done it gradually and heard the results of each step.
Now back to that lousy sounding CD player.
Attachments
Congratulations...!!!
It looks wonderfull.
I recently added a Geddon PSU on my RD80 and it sounds quite amazing.
I did buy the PTFE pad from SRM along with the black oil, but did not fit it due to the small size of the pad.
I would like to know more about your PSU.... please post some pics.
Keep up the good work.
Regards
Ricardo
It looks wonderfull.
I recently added a Geddon PSU on my RD80 and it sounds quite amazing.
I did buy the PTFE pad from SRM along with the black oil, but did not fit it due to the small size of the pad.
I would like to know more about your PSU.... please post some pics.
Keep up the good work.
Regards
Ricardo
Have at look at this thread on VinylEngine.You can deal directly with the manufacturer(Edmond)as i did.His service and products are first class.He will even custom make or modify his gear to fit a range of turntables.
http://www.vinylengine.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=9906&start=120
http://www.vinylengine.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=9906&start=120
Congratulations Atavid,
You have done a ton of work and the results looks really great. I can't imagine how much the sound quality has improved.
It is really great to see how much you can still wring out of some of these older gems.
I have had my own mods on hold, but after seeing your work I am once again inspired to start.
Happy listening,
Drofo
You have done a ton of work and the results looks really great. I can't imagine how much the sound quality has improved.
It is really great to see how much you can still wring out of some of these older gems.
I have had my own mods on hold, but after seeing your work I am once again inspired to start.
Happy listening,
Drofo
Thanks Drofo, it was a long time in the doing and at times i was really hanging out to play some music and so wanted to rush the job along, but for once i managed to be patient and just took my time.I'm pretty happy with the result.I want to be able to hand this TT down to my son as a sort of a family heirloom in the future,so i wanted all the work to be best quality.If you're interested you can see more shots of the insides of the turntable at the following link.
http://www.vinylengine.com/phpBB2/album.php?user_id=30217
Cheers
http://www.vinylengine.com/phpBB2/album.php?user_id=30217
Cheers
new to this thread ...
a friend asked for a little help with a retired RD11, and I looked up "improvements," and so here I am.
It seems to me that many have spent large sums of cash getting these old girls upto "modern" standards and improving them. When considered against various Linn upgrades, still a bargain, though.
A couple of things are worth mentioning and a couple of questions. First, the questions:
1) what is the "bolt mod"?
2) has anyone done chassis mods?
3) anyone moved the motor to the 7 o'clock position as per the FunkFirm or Pink Triangle?
This particular table is an early production and has been screwed around with quite a bit. It is a beautiful table, with a custom rosewood armboard, a Sumiko MMT (a great arm for the $$$), and a Koetsu Black MC cartridge (I know, too much cartridge for the table....).
The bearing was nackered, and I had it re-machined, and a true Teflon mad made. I also created a cover for the bottom of the bearing well. Is the factory "orange" stuff epoxy? I couldn't get epoxy to cure so "created" a plastic cap that I glued on. The motor is on the weak side I think, if an affordable one is not available, then perhaps DC or rebuilding the existing one (by a electric motor specialist). I'd like to either create an AC drive to feed the motor or convert to DC , any thoughts?
thanks to any an all who respond. I did read the complete thread, but there's a lot of posts, and I may have missed something.
stew
a friend asked for a little help with a retired RD11, and I looked up "improvements," and so here I am.
It seems to me that many have spent large sums of cash getting these old girls upto "modern" standards and improving them. When considered against various Linn upgrades, still a bargain, though.
A couple of things are worth mentioning and a couple of questions. First, the questions:
1) what is the "bolt mod"?
2) has anyone done chassis mods?
3) anyone moved the motor to the 7 o'clock position as per the FunkFirm or Pink Triangle?
This particular table is an early production and has been screwed around with quite a bit. It is a beautiful table, with a custom rosewood armboard, a Sumiko MMT (a great arm for the $$$), and a Koetsu Black MC cartridge (I know, too much cartridge for the table....).
The bearing was nackered, and I had it re-machined, and a true Teflon mad made. I also created a cover for the bottom of the bearing well. Is the factory "orange" stuff epoxy? I couldn't get epoxy to cure so "created" a plastic cap that I glued on. The motor is on the weak side I think, if an affordable one is not available, then perhaps DC or rebuilding the existing one (by a electric motor specialist). I'd like to either create an AC drive to feed the motor or convert to DC , any thoughts?
thanks to any an all who respond. I did read the complete thread, but there's a lot of posts, and I may have missed something.
stew
Hi Nanook,i have shown that film to my students many times over the years.
To answer your questions.
The bolt mod is where a bolt(or bolts in my case)is/are fitted to the underside of the top plate and then passed through the triangular shaped corner braces fitted to the underside of the plinth.These bolts help to securely hold down the top plate on the left side where it has no form of securing it tightly to the plinth.Linn bought out the mod to secure the top plate near where the motor is mounted.In my case i actually fitted another bolt as well not only holding down the top plate near the motor but also holding the plate down at the front as well.
I did a chassis mod by having a lazer cut piece of 8mm aluminium cut out in a slightly different shape to the original chassis to lighten it.The mod was successful,but i have actually refitted my original chassis to compare the differences again between the two.My impression is that it made the table much more accurate,more resolution,but with a slight loss of the warmth the table has with the pressed steel chassis.However i think i need more time to better judge yet.
Have not bothered to try and move the motor to the 7 o'clock position.I have replaced my original motor though with a brand new Linn replacement motor from SRM Tech that has had some mods done to it.I then bought the Hercules Mose external PSU from Edmond in Honk Kong and fitted this to the table, and its probably the best value for money mod and greatest sonic improvement i did on the turntable.
I have a number of 10mm acrylic armboards made up that i use,and these work very well.
As for the bottom of the bearing well i scrapped off the crappy looking plastic paint,polished the bottom plug and then resealed it with clear epoxy.Have a close look at the images in the link i posted just previous to this to see the mods im talking about.(dont think i had done the bearing mod when i posted the pics though)If you want to see more pics have a look at my gallery in the Vinyl Engine forum. Cheers.
To answer your questions.
The bolt mod is where a bolt(or bolts in my case)is/are fitted to the underside of the top plate and then passed through the triangular shaped corner braces fitted to the underside of the plinth.These bolts help to securely hold down the top plate on the left side where it has no form of securing it tightly to the plinth.Linn bought out the mod to secure the top plate near where the motor is mounted.In my case i actually fitted another bolt as well not only holding down the top plate near the motor but also holding the plate down at the front as well.
I did a chassis mod by having a lazer cut piece of 8mm aluminium cut out in a slightly different shape to the original chassis to lighten it.The mod was successful,but i have actually refitted my original chassis to compare the differences again between the two.My impression is that it made the table much more accurate,more resolution,but with a slight loss of the warmth the table has with the pressed steel chassis.However i think i need more time to better judge yet.
Have not bothered to try and move the motor to the 7 o'clock position.I have replaced my original motor though with a brand new Linn replacement motor from SRM Tech that has had some mods done to it.I then bought the Hercules Mose external PSU from Edmond in Honk Kong and fitted this to the table, and its probably the best value for money mod and greatest sonic improvement i did on the turntable.
I have a number of 10mm acrylic armboards made up that i use,and these work very well.
As for the bottom of the bearing well i scrapped off the crappy looking plastic paint,polished the bottom plug and then resealed it with clear epoxy.Have a close look at the images in the link i posted just previous to this to see the mods im talking about.(dont think i had done the bearing mod when i posted the pics though)If you want to see more pics have a look at my gallery in the Vinyl Engine forum. Cheers.
atavid, thanks...
for your help and information. What a beautiful table.
Tonight while butchering the top plate for the motor relocation, I got a shard of stainless in my eyeball (was wearing glasses, but the ******* lil'bugger got past them).
2 hours in emerge, and off to an ophthalmologist tomorrow morning. My wife, the nurse, is pissed at me...
I've made an adaptor that can be screwed or bolted to the pressed steel chassis to mount the motor on. If a success, I'll post some images. It could be the basis for a poor man's "Cetech" sub-chassis. vinylkid58 sent me a nice cad drawing of the stock Linn sub-chassis. I need to compare it to what I have for the Ariston. I may then take a stab at a new sub-chassis.
"Nanook of the North" is a powerful film (documentary). But , sadly as my signature states, about 8 mos after filming was completed, Nanook and most of his family died of starvation.
stew
for your help and information. What a beautiful table.
Tonight while butchering the top plate for the motor relocation, I got a shard of stainless in my eyeball (was wearing glasses, but the ******* lil'bugger got past them).
2 hours in emerge, and off to an ophthalmologist tomorrow morning. My wife, the nurse, is pissed at me...
I've made an adaptor that can be screwed or bolted to the pressed steel chassis to mount the motor on. If a success, I'll post some images. It could be the basis for a poor man's "Cetech" sub-chassis. vinylkid58 sent me a nice cad drawing of the stock Linn sub-chassis. I need to compare it to what I have for the Ariston. I may then take a stab at a new sub-chassis.
"Nanook of the North" is a powerful film (documentary). But , sadly as my signature states, about 8 mos after filming was completed, Nanook and most of his family died of starvation.
stew
Geeez,thats bad luck,and very painful.Ive had a similiar injury to one of my eyes in the past.It took 12 months to really heal fully.Every night when my eyes would dry out and i would blink when i woke up i would tear the small scar tissue that was forming to heal the eye and the pain would start all over again .Then the Doc got me to put some eye lubricant in each night for for a few months.Eventually it healed.
Good luck with your mods.The motor mod sounds interesting.Post some pics when you can.
Take care.
Good luck with your mods.The motor mod sounds interesting.Post some pics when you can.
Take care.
so far the eye ball is surviving...
...I see the ophthalmologist (again) in the morning.
The Ariston appears it may respond to the motor "reclock"... my bracket will work, but it is far from perfect (and is really fugly to boot). I may end up creating something a little more elegant as a final solution.
no Bday Empire table for me
Also the bolt mod... does it require drilling of the top plate? Do you drill under the platter so it is not visible?
Hopefully give the Ariston a spin tonight to see how it sounds...
stew
...I see the ophthalmologist (again) in the morning.
The Ariston appears it may respond to the motor "reclock"... my bracket will work, but it is far from perfect (and is really fugly to boot). I may end up creating something a little more elegant as a final solution.
no Bday Empire table for me Also the bolt mod... does it require drilling of the top plate? Do you drill under the platter so it is not visible?
Hopefully give the Ariston a spin tonight to see how it sounds...
stew
Jeff, et al...
if the motor isn't mounted to the top plate does it still benefit from this mod?
My motor bracket needs to be altered, as it is not as strong as I think it should be.
The 208 went , and I decided to reconcile my existing collection into "keepers" and "losers", then make a personal decision or two. I guess I can always make my own, but that still may be a few $$$ to do.
stew
if the motor isn't mounted to the top plate does it still benefit from this mod?
My motor bracket needs to be altered, as it is not as strong as I think it should be.
The 208 went , and I decided to reconcile my existing collection into "keepers" and "losers", then make a personal decision or two. I guess I can always make my own, but that still may be a few $$$ to do.
stew
Nanook,yes i believe the bolt mod is beneficial regardless of any motor mods.The bolt mod is to hold down the top plate at the corners to stop any chance of vibration.Otherwise the only bolts holding down the top plate are those two passing through the mid section of the top plate which leaves the left end of the plate literally free to vibrate up and down as it pleases.You and i may not see that movement but that very sensitive stylus will.
And no,you dont drill holes in the plate to attach the bolts.Buy some flat head stainless steel bolts the same size as the two used at the mid section,then use some very strong metal bonding glue and leave to set upside down for 24hours.You dont have to tighten the bolts up very tightly to achieve the result.As for positioning the bolts, do a web search for the Linn plinth corner braces and bolt mod, to see what you should be aiming for.There are plenty of images around of these.
Of course you will have to fashion up the corner braces and glue them in place,just be careful you sit them high enough to clear the motor and low enough to get a nut and large flat washer on the bolt.Again, have a close look at shots of the inside of my plinth to see what i mean if you're not sure.
And no,you dont drill holes in the plate to attach the bolts.Buy some flat head stainless steel bolts the same size as the two used at the mid section,then use some very strong metal bonding glue and leave to set upside down for 24hours.You dont have to tighten the bolts up very tightly to achieve the result.As for positioning the bolts, do a web search for the Linn plinth corner braces and bolt mod, to see what you should be aiming for.There are plenty of images around of these.
Of course you will have to fashion up the corner braces and glue them in place,just be careful you sit them high enough to clear the motor and low enough to get a nut and large flat washer on the bolt.Again, have a close look at shots of the inside of my plinth to see what i mean if you're not sure.
Yes i did Nanook,it was the felt washer(well possibly).
I made another one up from some very very soft thin leather,and that seems to be working ok.Ive found that the whole clutch assembly is quite erratic and touchy in its operation until it settles in for a while.For example initially i couldnt get my platter to start turning by itself,i had to give it a little nudge.One day some weeks after putting on the new clutch material the motor began to turn the platter without any help from me.It growls for a few seconds then spins straight up to speed now.I also think it has something to do with the amount of drag on the spindle main bearing after removing and then replacing the inner platter.Not sure what happens there,but it is happening every time i change something or remove the inner platter.
I made another one up from some very very soft thin leather,and that seems to be working ok.Ive found that the whole clutch assembly is quite erratic and touchy in its operation until it settles in for a while.For example initially i couldnt get my platter to start turning by itself,i had to give it a little nudge.One day some weeks after putting on the new clutch material the motor began to turn the platter without any help from me.It growls for a few seconds then spins straight up to speed now.I also think it has something to do with the amount of drag on the spindle main bearing after removing and then replacing the inner platter.Not sure what happens there,but it is happening every time i change something or remove the inner platter.
platter removal...
basically that's what has happened. The "brass pulley" on this one is actually aluminium (aluminum), and appears as those posted on thevinylengine manual download for the RD-40, I think.
now it would be easy enough to defeat the clutch completely, just super-glue the pulley to the shaft. One thing going for the Aristons is that they are already set up to run at 72 Volts, something that Linn never really did (AFAIK) , to minimize vibration of the motor.
I had the bearing re-machined (actually polished up the shaft and replaced the internal bushings, and end-plate. It does drag like a real ugger, and thus far I haven't been able to get the motor to turn the platter. Let me know if you have any ideas.
thanks.
stew
basically that's what has happened. The "brass pulley" on this one is actually aluminium (aluminum), and appears as those posted on thevinylengine manual download for the RD-40, I think.
now it would be easy enough to defeat the clutch completely, just super-glue the pulley to the shaft. One thing going for the Aristons is that they are already set up to run at 72 Volts, something that Linn never really did (AFAIK) , to minimize vibration of the motor.
I had the bearing re-machined (actually polished up the shaft and replaced the internal bushings, and end-plate. It does drag like a real ugger, and thus far I haven't been able to get the motor to turn the platter. Let me know if you have any ideas.
thanks.
stew
Nanook,what ever you do DONT glue the pulley to the motor shaft.I dont know why, but it wont work.Ive tried it twice now.Once with my old motor and again when i bought a new motor thinking that it would have more initial torque to start the platter....it doesnt ,and its very difficult to get the pulley back off again without risk to the motor.I dont understand how this clutch quite works,but i think it slips and just applies the smallest amount of torque to the platter a bit at a time until the inertia of the platter takes over.
Did you get the nylon type bushes replaced inside your bearing housing? What type of material did you replace them with?
Will the motor turn the platter if you spin it up by hand first?
Not sure what you mean by 'end plate'?
Are you using very light machine oil in the bearing well?
Mabye you need to let the turntable run continuously for a few days to bed it all in.
Did you get the nylon type bushes replaced inside your bearing housing? What type of material did you replace them with?
Will the motor turn the platter if you spin it up by hand first?
Not sure what you mean by 'end plate'?
Are you using very light machine oil in the bearing well?
Mabye you need to let the turntable run continuously for a few days to bed it all in.