A R Sugden Connoisseur BD101 turntable

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K

k3ys3r_soz3

Member
Joined 2004
well i took the plunge and ended up with a rather pleasant surprise - an sme3009 ii improved tonearm attached to it :)

the tt looks to be reasonable - will get a cart fitted and try some tweaking.

its not a standard sus-sub chassis - the 4 legs are suspended instead.... so not sure how great the tt itself will be - time will tell as they say
 
H

harwoodspark

Member
Joined 2005
With a decent cartridge and mat I'll bet it sounds quite nice. Does it have a decent mat? If it has the usual ribbed rubber mat try a Linn type felt mat.Good Hifi sells them on ebay for about £8.I have one on my Linn and it sounds fine.By the way, Origin Live make a rather expensive turntable with a suspended sub chassis and the motor is fitted to the suspended sub chassis.It is very highly rated. I'm sure you'll enjoy your turntable. Si.
 
martin clark

martin clark

Member
Joined 2003
acoustica.org.uk
I've no experience with these turntables, but while sorting some old mags recently I found an article on tweaking the related BD1 - you might find it of interest, or just plain hilarious ;)
Scans here, about 230k/page:

http://www.acoustica.org.uk/misc/ARSugden/BD1-1.jpg
http://www.acoustica.org.uk/misc/ARSugden/BD1-2.jpg
http://www.acoustica.org.uk/misc/ARSugden/BD1-3.jpg
http://www.acoustica.org.uk/misc/ARSugden/BD1-4.jpg
http://www.acoustica.org.uk/misc/ARSugden/BD1-5.jpg
http://www.acoustica.org.uk/misc/ARSugden/BD1-6.jpg
http://www.acoustica.org.uk/misc/ARSugden/BD1-7.jpg
http://www.acoustica.org.uk/misc/ARSugden/BD1-8.jpg
http://www.acoustica.org.uk/misc/ARSugden/BD1-9.jpg

BTW these tables were produced by AR Sugden & Co, which was not related to J Sugdens the amplifier people.
 
Rjones5296

Rjones5296

Member
Joined 2002
Sugden Idler drive turntable

Hello
I have just gotten a Sugden idler drive turntable, it is dated 1957 silver hammer paint.
The platter has a record mat that has strobe markings.
I cant find a model number it is called a Sugden Connisseur.
Can anyone shed any light on this table ???
It needs new motor mounts.

bob
 
Rjones5296

Rjones5296

Member
Joined 2002
Sugden

Im thinking along the same lines, the table I have is actually pretty nice, you cannot hear the motor run.
It is an idler drive, and the idler is also isolated, using the same mounts as the motor.
What I did was just switch the mounts, now the motor is suspended as it should be.
I am having no luck finding replacement mounts, so it looks like I will have to fabricate.
On my table the finnish is gone, so I am going to respray in silver hammer paint, as original.
So far I have been cleaning and lubricating each assembly.
Id like to see this table back to original condition.



bob
 
F

fredex

Member
Joined 2005
I had a BD1 I think. It was a fine sounding turntable. It was delightfully quirky, the motor was suspended from normal household rubber bands stretched across a plastic frame. The on/off switch had a rubber finger that gave the platter a start up spin when rotated to turn the unit on. The platter was 10 inches so LPs hung out over the edge.......wish I'd kept it.
 
B

bootwb

Member
Joined 2010
This is my first post on this forum.

I'm in the process of repairing a Connoisseur BD-1, and have obtained the replacement motor mount kit from Signals UK. This comes as a rubber web, plastic mount (which I already have from the original) and TWO rubber tensioning bands.

Unfortunately the motor was already de-mounted when I obtained the turntable, and the mount kit came with no instructions, so I do not have a template to work to and for the life of me I cannot figure out how to mount the motor with this kit.

There are three holes in the plastic part with bars across them, corresponding to the three arms of the rubber web, however there is no way on earth those rubber arms will fit through those holes in the plastic. Had there been three rubber bands, I would have used these as a link between the holes and the arms, however the supply of two rubber bands is just confusing.

I would be most grateful if anyone has one of these, if they could send me a picture of the mounting arrangement, or describe how the rubber web attaches to the plastic mount.
 
M

markinuk

Member
Joined 2008
bootwb said:
This is my first post on this forum.

I'm in the process of repairing a Connoisseur BD-1, and have obtained the replacement motor mount kit from Signals UK. This comes as a rubber web, plastic mount (which I already have from the original) and TWO rubber tensioning bands.

Unfortunately the motor was already de-mounted when I obtained the turntable, and the mount kit came with no instructions, so I do not have a template to work to and for the life of me I cannot figure out how to mount the motor with this kit.

There are three holes in the plastic part with bars across them, corresponding to the three arms of the rubber web, however there is no way on earth those rubber arms will fit through those holes in the plastic. Had there been three rubber bands, I would have used these as a link between the holes and the arms, however the supply of two rubber bands is just confusing.

I would be most grateful if anyone has one of these, if they could send me a picture of the mounting arrangement, or describe how the rubber web attaches to the plastic mount.
Click to expand...

Hi,

Long ago, when I had my BD1, I bought the upgrade motor suspension kit. There should be a 3-legged black plastic piece that snaps into the three holes in the plastic part of the motor. However, the instructions told you to remove the bar across each hole first, using a pair of thin pliers. It's advisable to keep the motor tilted downwards so the bars don't fall into the motor. Originally, the long rubber bands that suspended the motor were threaded through the bars, which is why they were there.

With the upgrade, the rubber web is then placed on top of the motor, and the black plastic part snaps into place, trapping it. The three 'legs' of the web can then be hooked over the mounts on the turntable chassis.

About the supplied rubber bands: these are intended to brace the motor against the pull of the drive belt. There is a hook at the side of the motor, and one band was slipped over this and another hook on the chassis. The second band must be a spare!

HTH,

Mark
 
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B

bootwb

Member
Joined 2010
@mark

markinuk said:
Hi,

Long ago, when I had my BD1, I bought the upgrade motor suspension kit. There should be a 3-legged black plastic piece that snaps into the three holes in the plastic part of the motor.
Click to expand...

Hi Mark,

Thanks, that is a great help. It looks like I've bought a replacement web mount, when I shold have bought a conversion kit. Looks like I'll have to manufacture an alternative to this part to get the job done.

Thanks again, as a Mech Engineer, it was somewhat frustrating to be looking at these parts and unable to figure out how they assemble! I'd pretty much come tot he conclusion that I probably had a part missing, but it's good to have that confirmed.

All the best

Rich
 
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D

Der Hecht

Member
Joined 2022
I have just finished refurbishing my own BD 101, which I was given in 1979. It had been stored for the last 20 years and needed a bit of TLC. Initially, I had difficulty in finding a suitable belt. The first one I found on the internet didn't allow the tt to start up and was the wrong thickness, but Williams Sonics came up with the goodies and practical advice too. It needed quite a bit of work, but I am more than pleased with the result, as good as new. Very basic, but the important elements are there. It has the original SME 2009 series 2 arm and a Shure V15 type V cartridge, to which I have fitted a Jico SAS stylus. Motor is silent, speed accurate and totally constant (having applied the correct oil to the spindle!). The arm needed work too, the fluid in the drop damper had gone. Interestingly, the manual stated that this could only be replaced by sending it back to the works, which is a bit difficult now and it wasn't actually a problem. The 4 legs referred to above were standard, not unusual or non-standard and are excellent in isolating any vibrations from whatever the player is standing on. The restoration work was fun and I think the final result would be hard to beat.
 
planet10

planet10

frugal-phile™
Joined 2001
planet10-hifi.com
Paid Member
k3ys3r_soz3 said:
well i took the plunge and ended up with a rather pleasant surprise - an sme3009 ii improved tonearm attached to it
Click to expand...
We sold 100s o BD1s (and a few BD2 which is a BD1 on a factory plinth with their tonearm.

Mostly we put Grace 707s on them. This was the one i built.

coniseurBD1-grace-triangle.jpg


I’ve owned at least a dozen 3009/3012, and i don’’t think they perform nearly as “high” as they fetch used. A good one could be $750-1000. Sell it, get a better arm, and pocket some cash.

I am no fan of the V15 either.

dave
 
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