2020 update : JC Verdier La Platine

My direct drive turntable which I put together many years ago; can be seen on my virtual system and here..

https://photos.app.goo.gl/vY1f2RWRWPbMFzxEA

is never at 33.33

It is always above or below. Such is the nature of that drive system.

I'm sorry, but why do you think it's a "nature of that drive system" ? 

You can watch @halcro 's  video with his Victor TT-101 with timeline mark.

here: https://youtu.be/rrFzOPaE6bs 
or another one: https://youtu.be/RE52bsIh_ZA 

As you can see it's spot on, this is one of the best Direct Drive motor and it demonstrate absolute speed stability, his unit has been calibrated, maybe you have to do the same with your old Technics?    

In one version of theory, the motor pulley should be as close as possible to the platter so as to minimize (but not eliminate) belt creep.  Belt creep occurs because the tension on the belt (string or other) is always greater on the "pulling" side and lesser on the opposite length of free belt space between motor and platter.  This causes the belt to "creep".  A noncompliant string belt does help to eliminate the problem, I would agree, but not entirely. It seems to me that the very small improvement in transmission of noise to the platter from the motor that is achieved by placing the motor at a greater distance from the platter is not worth the increase in belt creep.  You want the belt to contact the platter diameter as much as possible, which means get the pulley close up to it.  The other aspect of the Verdier that does not appeal to me is its top heaviness with spongy feet.  The motor would tend to pull the whole shebang off perpendicular to the deck.  Besides other problems with that, that construction would also tend to be a cause of speed irregularity, as stylus drag waxes and wanes over the course of an LP..I would put solid inflexible footers on a Verdier, if later models don't already feature such.

Chris, I have a thing for speed. :)

It must have been a video like the one linked by @chakster that got me hooked. I had always assumed that it was plus & minus 33.3, until I saw otherwise. Please allow my indulgence. 

But all kidding aside, with the thread drive as is, there is no drift in playback from strings or piano. I am relaxed. The on/off and plucking tests have all been confirmed. Initially, I was quite skeptical about leaving the thread loose. But having implemented it at your suggestion, it works! On more than one occasion, the platter would not move when I turn on the motor. I looked around only to find that the thread had slipped. Whether it was due to humidity or temperature or both, it showed that the thread was barely hanging on. 

This is, indeed, not a plug 'n play devise.  All the variables you mentioned are integral to the workings of the 'table which I have come to realize and appreciate.

Cool looking SP-10 MK II mod. I have been following a NZ forum with a step by step documentation of a SP10 MKII mod:
https://darklanternforowen.wordpress.com/2020/01/04/technics-sp-10mkii-turntable-pt-4-what-weve-learnt-so-far/. 
A direct drive will definitely be a future 'thing' for me.  BTW, I am contemplating a ET arm, maybe for next year. I'll be seeking advice from you then.

@chakster Thanks for the link. I remember using the strobe when my wife came into the room enquiring what I was up to. I explained. And her first reaction was ' Why isn't it dead on? '. The only thing I could come up with was, ' It's the French, they are not German.' It's a terrible stereotype, I know. But I really cannot imagine a German, or Swiss, 'table, with so many variables. 

@lewm You have a good point about contact surface. However, as I understand it, we  want a small  contact surface for the least amount on pull while maintaining consistent speed. This would be the opposite of what you are suggesting?

The top heavy 'table with wobbly bottom analogy is well taken. How do I defeat the suspension? By simply adding solid footers as you suggest? I believe @ct0517 commenting on this issue on one of the other threads. Chris, did I remember correctly? 

Albert
You need to see a $50 vintage dd turntable defeat the Gizmo then you will believe me. Blinking lights don't impress me. What I hear with my ears does. My turntable outperforms my Studer now, and the tape deck would need to be hot rodded. If someone wants blinking lights, nothing beats a tape deck.

The Music Lover uses this turntable to go through their collection, enjoying every minute, never giving it a second thought.
The Audiophile. ..... hmmm......variables.... 

@chakster 
You never answered my question in the other thread.
This one

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/verdier-platine-or-nottingham-analogue-hyperspace/post?postid...

If Chakster provides the answer to us, he will have also explained to Lewm why his post based on theory, does not work.

Cheers 

Ct, Your remark, to follow, makes no sense. "If Chakster provides the answer to us, he will have also explained to Lewm why his post based on theory, does not work. "
If you want to say that despite its flaws you dearly love your Verdier, that's great.  Every turntable has flaws in its design, sometimes great, sometimes small.  I have heard the Verdier many times, and I cannot say I hear any major problem that I could attribute to the turntable.  But "belt creep" is a fact of life. When I prefaced my remark by "in theory", I meant that according to the facts of belt creep, I would expect the Verdier to exhibit some measurable manifestation of it, based on the custom of placing the motor very far away from the platter.  Because I have never made any measurements of the speed constancy of a Verdier, my thoughts on it in relation to belt creep are "theoretical". I think we went around on this issue once before; you, or whoever was the protagonist, were indignant that I assumed the motor to platter distance is great.  (I assume it because every home or show demonstration of the Verdier I have ever attended over a period of 30 years was set up that way.) What would mitigate belt creep is that most strings used for turntable drive are relatively noncompliant. That does help.  To further minimize belt creep, you would want the motor closer to the platter.  As to the top heaviness of the design, that is just another fact, along with the spongy feet. Do you agree it would be better to use noncompliant feet?  And why do you think I don't love music just as much as you do?