What is the fascination?


I have to ask what is the fascination with these older turntables?  I recently listened to an older SP 10 MKII with a Jelco and Older SME arm with Koetsu and Stanton cartridges.  The sound was very good I will admit but I cannot say it was better than the 1200G or even a 1200GR for that matter.  Heck even the Rega RP 8 is really an amazing sounding turntable for the money and they are brand new.   These tables are coming up on 40 plus years old.  One forum contributor said a turntable should not have any sound at all.  I agree and the newer tables get closer to that "no sound" than many of these colored (smooth,  warm) sounding turntables   I recently purchased a Pickering ESV 3000 MM cartridge that arrived in the mail yesterday and I had to ask myself, "what am I doing?"  So with that being said, why the fascination?  If one want to change the sound of the table, start with the cartridge, they all do sound different.  Nowadays the tables and arms are so good and engineered based on the earlier designs and bettered.  Also, when you buy say an older used arm, how do you know its been cared for?  Arms bearings can be screwed up pretty bad when one tries to tighten cartridges with the headshell attached to the tonearm or the tonearm mounted on the table and many people do not even know they are destroying their arms bearings so I mean you really have to know who you are getting the arm from and check the bearings etc.  There is a lot of risk with turntables, much more than with any components because of so many moving parts that do get old and break.  Why the fascination? 
tzh21y
To an extent, I can understand the appeal of the best of the older turntables. But buying a used pickup arm or phono cartridge is something I’d never consider, and for the exact reasons you state. You just don’t know what you’re getting and it’s too late by the time you figure it out. I guess it’s fun for those who like to fiddle about with their setups, but I’d rather listen to music than play with old phono cartridges and experiment with delicate devices that have an uncertain past.
Imo, $$$. The whole craze started when a post went viral about making a great TT for$100 spent at Home Despot. One yr later a 50 dollar TT sold for$4-500. Now that$100 is selling for many thousands of dollars. So it must be good... Right?
First it was idlers. Now direct drive
 Put the word"vintage" on it and it jumps in value. The market always need something new. Plus the new TT that are really great cost a second mortgage. So it has become a perfect storm for the rise of the vintage market. More is involved IMO. But I'll leave it there.
I do not  want to sound like I am dissing older models.  Some are very good and the original owners know what they have.  Again, if you know what you have and if you know someone who is selling a table and you trust him and know him well and that he took care it thats different.
Nor am I dissing older models. I've had many of them in my sixty years of spinning vinyl. But I've been here a long time and remember the turning point. If someone is willing to do the refurb on an older table then they will save some money
artemus_5
The whole craze started when a post went viral about making a great TT for$100 spent at Home Despot.
What post was that? I have no recollection of it.