I too have had a similar experience, I had a very poor kept SP10 Mk II purchased for a very cheap price, which was sent in to a UK individual known for their skill set with such a TT Model.
A Swap was done for the Chassis, which left me with a similar condition Chassis to take away to have improved aesthetically.
I visited a Custom Car Paint Shop not too far from my home and fell for the Coating being applied to Vehicle being worked on.
For the princely sum of £85 I was returned a 'mini me' version of the Vehicles Paint Job which was approx' 12 Coats of Paint inclusive of six coats of Lacquer.
Another very reasonable sum had myself a fully functioning TT with the Technicians bespoke Mod's for this model of TT included.
I have never looked back, I have been so impressed, I invested further to have a Stainless Steel Platter purchased. After prudent purchasing, I am not much over £600 all in, on TT > Exchange Platter > Panzerholz Plinth.
With a Bespoke produced Tonearm added, I am close to £2K.
With the Bespoke Built LOMC Cart' I am not much more than £2.65K.
This set up has been used in other systems and easily bettered TT Fronted Ends costing 10 x more.
In a few cases the end impact on others receiving demo's, has been they sold their TT set ups and produced mimics of my own one.
One other individual was convinced it was time to part with a Belt Drive TT that they had substantially invested in and search out something that would be a betterment. Experimenting with other Drive Types as part of the newly prompted journey of creating new experiences to be had.
