Built a Plinth - Garrard 401

the_nines

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PART 1:

So this past summer I got myself a Garrard 401 and decided I would make my own plinth.

For the material, I decided on Russian (Baltic) birch ply, 1" thick. I bought three sheets which I had the store cut into pieces of 20"x25". The three sheets would yield a total of nine pieces, I would need five. The remaining four pieces I will keep as spares in case a mistake occurs during the cutting/drilling process. The final dimensions of the five sheets I would use ended up being 20"x22" (I eventually trimmed off three inches from the side of the plinth). I wanted to make the plinth tall enough so as to have a solid bottom layer. Thus, I would need a plinth 5" tall to be able to house the bottom of the motor (and its transport bracket) with a bit of clearance to spare.

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Sheets being cut as I wait, and placed in the trunk for the ride home:

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I marked them from 1 to 5, with level 1 being the top piece. This helped during the cutting process because in the beginning all the sheets look the same. It helped quite a bit when trying to figure out which piece belongs where and which direction should it be facing. Simple, but effective.
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The 401 came with its original manual as well as an original paper template. Laid out the template and proceeded to mark the four bolt holes and spindle mark:

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So as not to cut or damage the paper template, I used a safety pin to punch tiny holes into the wood:

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making an arc (according to spec on template) from spindle mark for the upper part of the chassis:

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and joining the dots:
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I cut the hole as close to the pencil markings as possible (do not go outside the pencil border). I lightly sanded for a smooth cut:

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Level 1 complete along with mark for tone-arm hole:
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......
 
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PART 2:

Initially I was going to hard-mount the tone-arm on the plinth, but this would limit me to basically one arm. So I figured why not make a cavity with enough room to accommodate other arms. I cut out a square hole at the location where I had previously marked the tone arm location. Drilled four holes and screwed into the holes of level 1 four bolt inserts, 1/2" tall (making sure the holes were drilled at a 90 degree angle and the inserts, once installed, held the bolts at 90 degrees) and making sure the inserts were rock solid once inserted. When drilling the holes for the inserts, I followed the instructions for correct drill bit size, this being extremely important for a very snug and tight fit. Once bolted down, the arm-board should not move at all.

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When I drilled the four insert holes in level 1, I had also clamped a piece of walnut together underneath the plywood. So when I drilled the four holes in the plywood, I would drill the walnut at the same time and in the exact same location. Plinth and arm-board holes would fall in-line.

For the "prototype" arm-board, I used a piece of 3/4" walnut and cut it 4"x7":

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Time to mount the tone-arm and check if successful or not:

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Yes!!



Level 2:

Making sure the two transport bolts for the motor were tightened so the motor is locked and cannot move, I flipped the table over. Placed level 1 (which had already been cut) in position and using a flat straight edge (steel ruler in this case), I ran the ruler along the underside of level 1 and with pieces of tape, marked the points where the ruler would come across an obstacle (metal, wire, spring, etc).

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I removed level 1 with the strips of green tape in place and placed this on top of level 2 and marked with pencil the hole to be cut in level 2. Also, I marked the four spots to be drilled for access to the chassis bolts. These holes will be bigger for easy access from underneath and will be drilled in the exact same location in levels 2, 3, 4 and 5:

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Level 2 done:
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......
 
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PART 3:

Using the same procedure I did with the steel ruler for marking what size hole to cut in level 2, I did the same thing for levels 3 & 4.


Level 3 & 4 done:

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Time to stack the four levels and see our progress:

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For level 5, I used the router to get rid of 1/2" of wood right below the motor:

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Placed level 5 in its place:

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So far, so good. Now time to cut a cavity for the tone-arm, which will be done on levels 2, 3, and 4.

On level 1 I had marked a border so I can visualize what needed to be cut on levels 2, 3 and 4 for the tone arm cavity:

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So I cut the same size tone arm cavity in levels 2, 3, and 4. For level 3, I cut two slots; one slot for AC wires to the motor, the other slot for tone-arm cables. I also carved a canal between motor and tone-arm cavities which will enable the passing of any wiring between the two (if any such need ever arises):

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Time for the gluing, but before I do this I thought it would be a good idea to stack the five levels properly and place the 401 and tone-arm in place for a trial run. Once this thing is glued, it's too late for any corrections/adjustments. Hooked everything up, and gave it a spin.

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All is good. :thumbsup:



Before gluing, I stacked and properly aligned the five levels. I clamped them and using a drill bit long enough to reach 4 3/4" deep, I drilled three pilot holes which were just barely wide enough to fit a four inch nail. I took two nails, sawed their heads off, and will use them as pegs during the gluing. The glued layers may slip and slide just enough to cause a real headache so these pegs should help avoid this as much as possible.

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I used Titebond Liquid Hide glue (no affiliation) as recommended by my local wood supply store. The glue was applied and evenly spread out over the entire wood surface using a plastic spatula. I glued and clamped levels 5, 4 and 3 together on the first shot. On the next day, I glued and clamped levels 2 and 1:

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I allowed a good week for the glue to dry.


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PART 4:

Removed the clamps:
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Solid!

Since I was planning on using wood veneer on the plinth, the entire surface area where the veneer would be applied had to be dead-flat and smooth. I didn't have the machinery for this so I found a local wood shop that would do this for me. And the nice part about this is that I made a friend in the process, Gratien (the owner) was heavily into turntables and was only too happy to do this. He didn't want to charge me anything because I had gone to this length in building something he knew so much about and had a passion for. Here he is doing what needs to be done. When the job was finished, I insisted on paying him. He tells me ..... "Just give me $20 and we're good". Nice!
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For the veneer, I chose a Maple Burl (paper backed) and decided to use contact cement (solvent based) as the adhesive. Tricky part with contact cement is that you really cannot make a mistake. Once it makes contact with the substrate, that's it. You can't undo it. By the way, I have NEVER worked with veneer before. EVER! This will be my first time.

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The top piece of veneer I marked and drilled out the holes for the four chassis bolts and the four arm-board bolts. I placed "pegs" as guides on the plinth, applied contact cement to the veneer back and plinth, placed some wooden rods and spare wood pieces on the glued plinth so that I can have the opportunity to align the holes in the veneer sheet with the pegs. This way, I may stand a fighting chance. Remember ...... no room for error here. If any of the glued parts makes the slightest contact with another glued piece by mistake, you're toast!

I did it in this fashion for the four sides and top, but I only managed to snap a pic on the last application (being the plinth top):
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PART 5:

Being as straight and in-line as I could possibly get it, I started removing the rods from the middle out and applying pressure, first from middle to left side and then from middle to right side. After allowing the glue to dry (as per instructions on the can, I also add a day), I used a router with a flush trim bit to trim the excess veneer on the sides and cut out the hole for the turntable and tone-arm:
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Not bad at all.



Next, damping material for the belly (underside) of the plinth:
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The Maple burl veneer was stunning. I wanted to make the beautiful grain patterns and burls "pop" out. I lightly wet-sanded with some 120 and then 150 grit sandpaper, applied some Watco Danish oil (medium walnut color), let it sit for about 10 seconds and wiped it right away so as not to allow too much to soak into the veneer. I wanted a very light coat:

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I let this dry for a good week and prepared the plinth for the final finish. I considered a variety of finishes and did quite a bit of reading on the net and in the end I chose a glossy lacquer finish. Watco Spray Lacquer (Gloss). Did I also mention that I have NEVER EVER used lacquer before?


Now the other scary part ..... lacquer. Looks intimidating, no? Well it does for me.
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Before applying the lacquer, I lightly wet-sanded the veneer with 400 grit, wiped it clean with a wet lint-free cloth and then passed a tack cloth over that. I did a ton of reading and research on the net for the lacquer application and watched a number of videos on YouTube. Lastly, I made sure to read and follow the instructions on the can. I applied a total of twelve light coats of lacquer over a span of three weeks. I wet-sanded only one time, after the sixth coat had fully dried, using 800 and 1200 grit paper. When I had finished spraying the last coat, I let the plinth sit for two weeks just to make sure the curing process had finished. Apparently if you can no longer smell the lacquer, it's cured.
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After the curing had finished, I wet-sanded with 600, 1200 and 2000 grit to a silky smooth finish. Wiped the plinth clean and then rubbed with Meguiar's car compound and finally Meguiar's car paint polish.

I let it sit for a couple of days.

During this time, I took the opportunity to make a couple of arm-boards based on the measurements of the prototype walnut piece I had done. I tried to pick woods with neutral tonal properties, so given the selection at my local wood store, I selected Morado (Bolivian rosewood), Bubinga, and Macacauba (Amazon rosewood):
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The plinth measures 20" x 22" x 5" and weighs 45 pounds (without the turntable) and sits level as is:
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I placed the 401 inside the plinth and connected the AC socket:
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Finished .... (for now). :D


The fruits of my labor:
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It took four months for me to do this, working on it only on weekends. I think I skipped a weekend or two. During every step of this project, I learned a tremendous amount.

The Garrard 401 is working like a charm. I will eventually create a different thread showing what I did, from simple cleaning and cosmetics to changing the strobe for the 50Hz platter. I will link the thread here.

Thanks for viewing.

Edit:
Here is the thread I created showing the turntable and what small things I did to bring it up to par: http://audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=679094
 
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Great work and stunning result...fantastic photo documentation too...awesome job overall... enjoy it!
 
What an amazing thread!!! Thanks so much for sharing all the details of your learning process. The results are superb, congratulations!!!
 
Wow amazing work, very inspiring build! I'll be tackling a (much simpler) lorcraft style build soon for my 401 and this post has got me drooling. Thanks for the great pics and thorough documentation!
 
Wow Nines!!!

Thats a grate plinth and awesome documentation that others will use for many many years dowsn the road.

I like how you dumped it all at once so as not to have comments distracting the job at hand, all on one page will help others.
 
Beautiful.
As a fellow plinth builder, I understand what went into this. Your work is top notch.
 
That is spectacular! Your patience and meticulousness is remarkable.

Thank you so much for taking the time to document your progress, which will undoubtedly be helpful to many others down the road.

I'm curious about the Chinese newspapers seen in some of the shots... Besides English and French, do you also understand Chinese, or is that just something you grabbed for your workshop?
 
Dude - your work and eye for detail is impeccable. I thought I was good at this type of work, but I am :ntwrthy:. Plus it's a 401!
 
Outstanding. I'm am just stunned! On a personal note, I could have used a little more detail on how you handled the edges of the veneer. Absolutely beautiful!
 
Thanks everyone.

The Chinese newspapers are thanks to a local Chinese grocery store. Free!:D

I figured why not document what I did and show it for anyone who is interested. It was quite a job (more in reading and planning than the actual physical part of it all). But, well worth the effort. It's really gratifying for me seeing the final result. What's equally gratifying is listening to it. Sounds real sweet.
 
Outstanding. I'm am just stunned! On a personal note, I could have used a little more detail on how you handled the edges of the veneer. Absolutely beautiful!

Thanks.

All the edges were trimmed with the router, and very lightly sanded by hand ..... very lightly, no pressure at all on the sanding block. 800 grit (wet-sanding). That's it. The lacquer did the rest.
 
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