Garrard SL-72b restore/rebuild

[JoshKamp988]

Hi, I recently signed up on this forum and also audiokarma. I wanted to start a thread on restoring my first turntable that I purchased when I was 16 and was given my moms/aunts/uncles record collections when my grandpa was cleaning out his house. This thing worked fantastic for a first table and though it had it's quirks it never let me down no matter how many times I moved it or did things I shouldn't have done, due to ignorance. I would like to restore this table to the best of it's potential while upgrading things here and there when possible, then in turn have this as my main table for another many years. The table is 100% complete, maybe not in the best shape, but definitely restorable. It's was used since purchased up until about a year ago when I swapped for a belt drive unit. I pulled it out of the closet about a month ago and started researching on different forums and feel competent enough to go for the gold.

my list of goals I suppose:
-full cleaning/greasing of every moving part
-replace/upgrade worn out/crummy looking wires
-resurface idler wheel
-explore possible tone arm/headshell upgrades if any available/possible
-fabricate rad birch plinth
-fabricate equally rad dust cover

I am making this thread to document the project for myself and to possibly help future garrard owners who may head down the same road I am. AND because of the countless times that I will be dumbfounded and seek your guys help

Also to no avail I've been searching (audiokarma and vinylengine) for documented/descriptive threads on garrard fixes/rebuilds. I suppose any idler drive overhauls would help by any means, but if you guys happen to know where I could find any of those feel free to shoot the link my way. It is nice to be here and thank you for the future help!
-Josh

[JoshKamp988]

reserved

[JoshKamp988]

last reserved

[aardvarkash10]

guess that's it then.

FYI, a quick search using the forum's search feature turns up a stack of Garrards SL series turntable rebuilds and refurbs.

[josephazannieri]

Yo JoshKamp988:

If you look up in right top corner of this page, you will see a search block. It's just to right of HFE. Just type in "Garrard SL72" or "Garrard SL" and all sorts of threads will come up. with specialized info that you may find helpful. Check topic list in Garrard forum for topics related to your unit.

Also, Garrard SL72B manual comes up here:

http://www.vinylengine.com/library/garrard/sl-72b.shtml

Should help you get started. You will need to go underneath and remove all the old grease which is referred to as Garrard Gorilla Snot. I replace it with automotive wheel bearing grease, but there are others who use white lithium grease or other similar greases. Also, you will need to put a drop of 3 in 1 electric motor oil in the top motor bearing, just under pulley, and you will have to take bottom off motor and clean out bottom bearing and lubricate it with the same oil. You may want to clean and lubricate the ball bearing that lies under the turntable to quiet it down, and clean and lubricate the cam gear that is turned and moves the changer mechanism. All this stuff should be done, and if you take your time and work carefully, you will have a good result.

You will need to check idler wheel to be sure that it is smooth and round, with no dents or gouges, and that rubber has not hardened or gotten slippery. If you disassemble, do it carefully, and record it by taking pictures. be careful of C-clips and clamps on ends of shafts. DON'T just do guesswork, or you won't be able to get it back together again. The longer you take to do the work, the more difficult it will be to remember how to put the thing back together again.

And good luck from that slippery, greasy old guy, who doesn't remember how anything goes together,

Joe Z.

[aardvarkash10]

Joe - you give too much!

Good basic round up. There is an article on truing idler wheels in the Idler forum. Sometimes its easier just to buy a new one - check out www.thevoiceofmusic.com for well priced exchange idlers.

And don't put grease on any plastic parts....

[JoshKamp988]

Thanks for the advice. Surprisingly I couldn't find much info on the 72b. I did find good articles on the 95b and also the service manual for the zero 100 came in handy as well. Much appreciated guys.

I went ahead and cleaned and re greased/oiled the speed selector, motor, spindle bearing, cam gear, idler wheel, and all the parts required to get to these parts. Man these things are like puzzles. I used 95% isopropyl alcohol to clean and moly-lithium grease for all sliding pieces and gun oil for the bearings. My idler wheel seems to be up to par. The rubber is still flexible and doesn't have any gouges or chunks missing. I imagine it could still use a resurfacing but that's farther down the road. I cleaned the wheel, motor and inner platter and there was so much gunk on the rag when I was done it was ridiculous haha. I can't believe it even got traction before.

I have a question though. The tt did this before as well but I thought re greasing would have solved it. When auto start is initiated the platter will spin maybe 6-10 rotations and then the arm and platter will get stuck. Not a horrible stuck, it all frees up pretty easily with just a bump from a finger or sometimes a tap on the plinth. My first guess was the cam gear was sticking but there is fresh grease on it and a fair amount of it. It seems to get stuck right where the path for the rod starts moving further from the spindle. I can take a picture if that's not very descriptive. Or do you think it could be in all the pieces connected to the tone arm because they haven't been properly cleaned and re greased yet? I'm kind of nervous about taking all the tone arm plates apart. There's a lot of stuff in there, but I imagine it does need it.

[JoshKamp988]

Ok I found this post but can't make too much sense of it tonight. The guy was having the same problem as me which is awesome but I can't conclude whether it was the cam gear, idler wheel, or magic that fixed it. I will get some sleep and then reread tomorrow

viewtopic.php?f=23&t=39337&hilit=platter+mat

[aardvarkash10]

itsd the pawl on the camwheel. The cam wheel is the grey metal wheel with all the teeth around the outside. It has a pawl on it - a metal tongue that should swivel slightly on a steel pin that is fixed to the camwheel. On yours, the pawl will be tight - it doesn't swivel on the pin. Spray lots of WD40 or CRC or whatever is your fancy on it and wiggle the pawl furiously until it loosens up. Sometimes a bit of heat helps - a soldering iron left sitting on the pin for a few minutes usually does it. Don't try wiggling it straight after heating - you'll burn your fingers...

[JoshKamp988]

very nice! I'll try that this evening and get back to you

[MIKROWAVE]

Just finished up bringing my 72B back to life and it was basically the same story. Strip all of that hardened grease gunk out with solvent and WD-40 carefully. Move everything back and forth, clean everything being careful to wipe (anything) off the plastic parts and then re-lubricate with clear lith grease. Mine had been retired around 1992 and stored in a bad place in the basement and had cracked plastic from stuff falling on it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qhTHoc9sSbY

[MIKROWAVE]

The plastic pawl parts were both frozen as were several other cams. The tonearm return rod was bent and had to be straightened in order to get the end return trip to happen. The speed control section was a really seized up. It took one night to get manual play on one speed. A second night of work to get the three speeds and auto and a third night to get the return and shutoff to work. The tonearm cartridge slide was a corroded mess and I had to sand the contacts with 600 grit and use contact cleaner as well as re-solder two of the wires on the slide assembly in order to to get good sound with no hum.

[JoshKamp988]

Man, I'm sure I'm going to have a lot of questions for you! I haven't had time to work on the Garrard lately. I'm moving this week then the next two weeks I will be out of state visiting for the holidays. So it probably won't see the light of day for a couple weeks. I will be back though! I'm sure I'll be on the forum lurking around haha

[pogo]

Josh, I just finished an SL-95B. Listening to it as we speak. Aside from sludgy lube, the pivoting parts suffer from corrosion as well. Every frozen pivot I've ever taken apart was corroded. (The good news is that it's light and easily cleaned.) The bad news is that if you really want to clean it properly you'll have to tear it down to piece parts and clean them all. (MHO only) These automatics all suffer from a "hard" place at the point where the tonearm sets down. Anything that adds a little stiction can stop the table. The moving parts need to move freely. Pivots should spin like a button on an outhouse door
Several of the pivots on the SL95B were so badly corroded that I had to drive them out with a pin after soaking them in penetrating oil. I actually had to drill the rivets out of two posts in order to free the pivot, then drill and tap the post to reinstall it using 4-40 screws. It's a rewarding project, but tedious. Good luck.