INNER GROOVE DISTORTION

I'm with millercarbon.  If the distortion is "global" (i.e., in both channels), then I doubt it's due to a lack of anti-skate per se.  Also, if you had a pronounced lack or excess of anti-skating force, you would hear the effect at the outer grooves as well as at the inner grooves. As millercarbon mentioned, too little anti-skate affects the R channel predominantly, and you would hear R channel distortion from the first second the needle hits the LP.  Too much anti-skate will do the same in the L channel.  My guess is that the movement of the tonearm is impeded by something (wiring, maybe?), as the tonearm travels toward the spindle.  That said, I do agree with others that the lack of any provision for anti-skate typical of older VPI tonearms is egregious. Check also to see whether the cue-ing device is fouling the arm wand, as the arm pivots toward the spindle.  Likewise for the counter-wt.

Yeah, I'm a Neanderthal but my inner groove distortion bugaboos magically disappeared when I started avoiding spherical & elliptical styluses in favor of the more sophisticated profiles. Even though my line contact(?) Lyra Delos stylus is seeing its age, it'll track anything.  Even my hottest 45 rpm singles.

I use a 12" unipivot arm with no anti-skate adjustment, and I have zero audible inner groove distortion.

I am using a vintage NOS Fidelity Research MC with a line contact stylus.

Do not use the wire twist method...unreliable at best. I’m just wondering if antiscate is theoretical. I hear no difference with/without. I use a very minimum....just in case. I hear no inner groove issue ...although the beginning of the record always sounds better than the end

Wow! So many responses, much obliged friends. I am not going with the fatboy because of my problem! I did watch Peter Lederman and experimented with adding some anti-skating with some good results. When the tech from Overture Audio { who have been great } comes to swap out arms I won't let him leave until I am completely satisfied. I have too large an investment in this not to have great sound from the entire record. It's better but not like it should be. Really grateful to have access to so much knowledge Agoners.