Vintage DD turntables. Are we living dangerously?

I shouldn't have written that "no one really knows" the nature of the Krebs mod.  Obviously, Richard and Bill do know.  But they ain't talkin'.

My experience agrees with what Richard wrote about "run in".  As I wrote earlier, the differences were at first subtle and now obvious-er and obvious-er.

I will listen for improvements as I run in the Krebs mods, lewm. I will post my impressions in a month or so. One of the things one gets with the Krebs mod is, in essence, a servicing of a 30+ year-old motor. Additionally, the worn bearing thrust plate is replaced. I had caps replaced by Dave Cawley when I purchased my table from a UK seller 5 years ago, and Bill has now replaced those that Dave didn't. So I have serviced pretty much what can be, and I consider this essential maintenance for the table. Add in a fresh gloss black automotive painting of the deck to match a new plinth, and I have the table looking as good as it plays.

JB, I have a feeling that the results with the Mk2 might be more profoundly positive than even what I am hearing from the Mk3, if only because I think I could hear a low level gray-ish coloration with the Mk2 that is likely to have been fixed by Krebs-izing.  With the Mk3, I did not hear that coloration a priori, but the mod has resulted in a greater sense of fluidity and open-ness, less of a clinical sound, if that metaphor works.

Flieb,
I like your idea of a lead platter mat, but as you've found...I don't know how to maintain a constant thickness with sheet lead?
It is so malleable that you can depress it with your fingertip.....
The only solution I can imagine, would be to laminate it between two sheets of glass or acrylic but then you lose the critical benefit of the lead/platter/vinyl interface...👀

Have you listened to the TT-81 before recapping?

Regards