NOS Grace F9E question


A friend of mine gave me a Grace F9E to try on my 1200G.  He thinks it may be a good fit.  It appears to be brand new and never used.  It has a plastic protector that covers practically the entire cartridge.  I cannot get it off as it is on there very tight.  Is there any special way to get it of and not damage the cartridge?

Any suggestions would be appreciated.
tzh21y
@lewm some people on this forum believes that changind a short leadwires in the headshell makes hude difference in sound quality (certainly not me).

I believe that LC-OFC version of the coils and pins makes more different, but diamond shape and cantilever materials are even more important. Also i’m sure that Grace engineers knew how to upgrade their popular cartridges to another level. Most of my favorite MM cartridges from the 80s are better than carts from the same manufacturers made earlier in the 70s.

I have no reason to use new SoundSmith styli for Grace or to send any Grace to SoundSmith for refurbishing, because i have perfect original samples of Grace (some NOS etc) and i don't use F9 series anymore.  

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So, at the present moment, which Grace cartridge do you think is the very best one to own?  If I am going after a rare Grace, I may as well pursue their best.  Thanks.
Dear @lewm : """  is that the proof of the pudding is in the listening. """

could be but this depends of the quality level performance of your room/audio system and your main music/sounds priorities. What for you can sounds great for me or other person can sounds " terrible ".

R.
Dear @tzh21y @knollbrent : The F9E will perform with better quality performance levels if is loaded at 100kohm and remember that capacitance load has " something to say " with MM cartridges.

R.