Back in the summer I posted about my terrible experience purchasing a Thorens TD125 MkII on eBay. It was simply put into a box and styrofoam peanuts dumped in around it. Needless to say it was a complete mess - about everything that could be broken, was. A couple photos are included. I learned my lesson about careful packing of turntables (items of different mass - e.g. platter and dustcover - don't mix well if unsecured.
After much hassling with the seller we settled on a nominal amount because I didn't want to go through the hassle of packing it and sending it back. Luckily the motor shaft wasn't broken and I thought I could sell it and break even. Then I decided to give it a try and refurbish it.
The plinth was broken into several pieces. I was able to glue it back together and add proper bracing. The front panel needed to be re-veneered with walnut. Then I refinished the entire plinth to remove the remaining scratches and give it a uniform finish. I chose a darker color to give it a new look. The plinth bottom was broken so it got a new one.
I painted the bearing platform with hammered-finish paint and polished the edge of the platter. I also repainted the armboard. The bearing was thoroughly cleaned and lubed.
The SME 3009 arm was ruined so I replaced it with a a Thorens arm (TP16) from another TD125 that I bought to replace the damaged one. The newer TD125 will get a SME 3009 purchased from a good AK member. I replaced the phono cable but didn't rewire the arm (maybe a next project??). Is the TP16 worth re-wiring?
The motor control printed circuit board was broken in many places. I was able to repair the broken traces by carefully scraping the green coating from the trace, tinning the trace and then soldering a small gauge wire onto the trace (excess from capacitors used in recapping - pays to save junk). I also recapped the board completely while it was out (not many caps on it). I then adjusted the board according to the service manual.
New belt and voila' - back from the dead. It runs well and maintains good constant speed. Fortunately the motor shaft wasn't bent.
This table had an Audio Technica AT26 mounted but the stylus was trashed. I understand that this cart uses the AT12 stylus but I'm not sure if it's worth replacing the stylus or just using a different cart altogether.
I didn't replace the dustcover. Now I just need to mount and align a cart and see how it sounds, but I have high hopes. I suppose if it works properly, it will go on the block.
So perhaps a happy ending.
After much hassling with the seller we settled on a nominal amount because I didn't want to go through the hassle of packing it and sending it back. Luckily the motor shaft wasn't broken and I thought I could sell it and break even. Then I decided to give it a try and refurbish it.
The plinth was broken into several pieces. I was able to glue it back together and add proper bracing. The front panel needed to be re-veneered with walnut. Then I refinished the entire plinth to remove the remaining scratches and give it a uniform finish. I chose a darker color to give it a new look. The plinth bottom was broken so it got a new one.
I painted the bearing platform with hammered-finish paint and polished the edge of the platter. I also repainted the armboard. The bearing was thoroughly cleaned and lubed.
The SME 3009 arm was ruined so I replaced it with a a Thorens arm (TP16) from another TD125 that I bought to replace the damaged one. The newer TD125 will get a SME 3009 purchased from a good AK member. I replaced the phono cable but didn't rewire the arm (maybe a next project??). Is the TP16 worth re-wiring?
The motor control printed circuit board was broken in many places. I was able to repair the broken traces by carefully scraping the green coating from the trace, tinning the trace and then soldering a small gauge wire onto the trace (excess from capacitors used in recapping - pays to save junk). I also recapped the board completely while it was out (not many caps on it). I then adjusted the board according to the service manual.
New belt and voila' - back from the dead. It runs well and maintains good constant speed. Fortunately the motor shaft wasn't bent.
This table had an Audio Technica AT26 mounted but the stylus was trashed. I understand that this cart uses the AT12 stylus but I'm not sure if it's worth replacing the stylus or just using a different cart altogether.
I didn't replace the dustcover. Now I just need to mount and align a cart and see how it sounds, but I have high hopes. I suppose if it works properly, it will go on the block.
So perhaps a happy ending.
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