TT-101 turntables…or any DD decks

Hi Henry

Who will you be getting to service your Victor DD table?

Reason for my question is that my Pioneer Exclusive P10 has been playing up intermittently over the past month or so.
It seems to lose the sync lock on the speed and will speed up or slow down with no rhyme or reason. Seems to be linked with hot days?
Then the other night worked fine off and on all night when playing DJ on NYE.

Btw, do you think there are any problems with the table running for 3-4 days straight with the bearing etc?

I understand, Lew. Some audiophiles treats the whole DD genre like alien products so there's no need to scare them even further. We need better education and awareness to dispel nonsense (and personal pet peeves) such as DD has speed hunting and has more vibration because the platter is attached to a motor, etc, etc, ad nauseam!

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Hi Shane,
I won't be taking the Victor for repair unless something else happens....:-(
But if it does....I would take it to Chris Kymil.
He does all the amplifier and speaker repairs for Len Wallis and is very good.
I don't know if he can work on these complex turntables....but last time I was out there....I remember seeing a turntable or two sitting in his workroom.

Btw, do you think there are any problems with the table running for 3-4 days straight with the bearing etc?

This has yet to be tested on our old 'beauties'?......but I can't see anything intrinsically problematic about running them non-stop?
From my experiences so far.......the more and longer they are used....the better and more stable they appear to become?

I am hearing a noise from my TT101, but only at 45 rpm. It is silent at 33 rpm. It's an irregular regular pulsation that could be bearing friction, and in the absence of any other good ideas, I assume it IS bearing friction. I am planning to unscrew that plug at the bottom of the bearing well, to see what's going on, to clean up the bearing, and to re-lube. Has anyone had a similar problem or heard a similar noise? If anyone has done a re-lube, what did you use for lubricant? Any other issues re removing that plug? I know that someone mentioned it also controls platter height. This noise did not appear until after Bill Thalmann had run the tt for days on end, in order to prove to himself that the speed was stable after servicing it. The bearing is supposed to not need maintenance, but I have to think JVC Victor were not contemplating a 30+ year lifespan.

I doubt it's the bearing, Lew. I once heard a noise roughly of the kind you describe (it didn't sound like a pulsation, but I could hear it every 2nd or 3rd rotation). The noise was due to the platter scraping against the cover to the control panel. This had two different causes. First, the cover wasn't sufficiently screwed down tight enough. Second, after I messed with the bearing well, I evidently didn't reseat the platter to the same height (yes, the bearing screw at the bottom of the unit controls platter height). It sat too low and scraped against the control panel cover.

I relubed with Mobil 1 20w-50 motorcycle oil. There's no consensus on what to use, so I just used that almost at random. Prior to replacement, the existing bearing oil was quite dirty. Aigenga, another owner of the tt 101, did some experiments IIRC with different ball bearings, so you might pm him to get his insights prior to tackling it.

Since the bearing screw controls platter height, it is essential that you mark the screw's current position and count the number of rotations it takes to take it off. Some cement type compound was used to lock the screw in position. You'll need to deal with that and possibly consider a replacement after you're done. I didn't bother myself, but I know how exacting you are :).

Good luck. Am looking forward to hearing about how the Victor compares to the other direct drive giants that you own. I assume you have a giant plinth planned for it? Or are you, gasp, going to go nude?