Garrard SP 25 mk iii

[mariusf]

I have a problem with my Garrard sp 25 iii.
When I play it the arm won't go all the way to the middle. It stops in the middle of the last song.

Anyone have any suggestions to how I can fix this?

Marius

[josephazannieri]

Yo mariusf:

Go here to get manual for your SP-25:
http://www.vinylengine.com/library/garrard/sp-25.shtml.

I believe that your unit is afflicted with Garrard Gorilla Snot, which is what that old English grease becomes after 45 or 50 years exposure to air and other stuff. The old lubricant can freeze all sorts of mechanical apparatus that should move freely tighter than a drum.

Take a look at diagram 11 on Page 11 of the manual, and you will see how to remove the C-clamp at center of turntable. Once you do this, you should be able to lift turntable off. Now take stylus(needle) out of cartridge. This will keep it from being damaged while you work on unit. Now pick the arm up and move it slowly and gently across the turntable until you reach the hangup point. Arm should not hang up until it gets within about an inch and a quarter from spindle. If it hangs up in an area where a record would have playing surface, you need to see what is interfering.

Make sure that trip pawl on the geared wheel under the turntable moves VERY easily. It might be the cause of your problem. You will see that pawl on the page that shows the picture with turntable removed. On Page 14 it shows the areas that should be lubricated with fresh grease after you clean off the old residue. I use automotive wheel bearing grease for this application becasue it stays put and is pretty slippery, but some like that spray-on white lithium grease. I have used both.

You might find that arm has rotated out of position, but this is rare, unless the arm has been twisted forcibly. I believe that there is a clamp on the underside of arm, and you may be able to loosen it and rotate arm back to proper position.

And good luck from that slippery (some might say snotty) old greaser,

Joe Z.

[aardvarkash10]

we really should do a sticky or a wiki on this subject...

[paul401]

Hi,

we really should do a sticky or a wiki on this subject...

given how often this subject crops up that's a very good idea.

But then again, isn't that why we're here? The personal reply, so often missing in the modern world!
Imagine; Press 1, for stuck arm. Press 2 for turntable not turning. Press 3 for speed issues. Press 4 for arm lifting before end of play. Press 5 .............. and on and on and on.

Paul

[aardvarkash10]

lol - "your post is important to us - please hold while we forward your post to the relevant subject expert"

[DSJR]

I agree, but all this typing the same old same old about solidified garrards....... At least the SP25 is easy to service once the platter is removed.

By the way, the trip pawl assembly on the main cam should rattle around like the leaves on a tambourine once cleaned and re-assembled. Although the Garrard recommendation is for a drop of fine oil on the pivot ONLY, I'd almost be inclined to keep the whole thing totally clean and dry. Once you have the arm playing right up to the lead-out grooves on a record, a few cycles of the mechanism should tell you if anything else is mucked up..

[josephazannieri]

Yo all sticky-and-wicki participants:

After reviewing my post, I agree with DSJR. I thought I had conveyed the same idea when I said that the trip pawl should move VERY easily, but his simile conveys the idea way better, and I thank him for it. I would be inclined to shoot a little WD-40 in there, and would also be sure that entire mechanism is REALLY EASY to move. If the arm trip mechanism is resisting or hanging up, it can stop the arm from moving and hang arm up so that it will pop out of groove. Watch the arm and see if stylus gets pulled sideways by stiffness in arm as you get close to trip point. Sideways pull on stylus should not happen at all, unless it's a really high compliance cart that tracks at 2 grams or less. This arm should not be used with a super high compliance cart. 2 grams is probably minimum tracking weight for this unit.

While this is "same old...", and I have recited this advice before, in this case the symptom pointed to the trip pawl, which can be readily seen when you take off the turntable. That is the advantage to posting an answer to the particular question asked by original poster.

And good luck to mariusf and all other posters, from that inadequately expressive old guy,

Joe Z.

[DSJR]

WD40? NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The cam gear needs to be removed - easy once the platter is off and the pawl assembly removed (don't lose the circlips). On my AP76, these bits were all but welded to the cam and needed gently but firm "persuation" to come off. Some solvent cleaner was used to de-grease the hole and pivots, drying off with kitchen towel and careful reassembly.

An AT6 I have was de-greased and reassembled "dry," apart from motor and main bearings and used for 7" singles for some years in this "dry" state with no issues at all, since the loading on most of the parts of the mechanism isn't that great. A smear of light grease on the arm lifting part of the main actuating plate wouldn't hurt and maybe a slight smear in the cam groove wouldn't hurt either..

[josephazannieri]

@DSJR:

Once again, inadequate expression on my part. I was thinking in terms of using the WD-40 as a penetrant to get the parts loose and then wiping the parts off after the WD-40 was used to clean the crud off them. I have found that WD-40 is useful for cleaning off solidified lubricants and breaking loose aluminum parts that have gotten stuck together by that white crud that grows in unfavorable climates.

And good luck from that tongue tied old guy,

Joe Z.

[DSJR]

Typing ain't anywhere near as good as a good yarn over a pint or three of favourite alcoholic beveridge is it??? After a good liquid intake, it ALL sounds great in any case

[Danny Dub]

I have a problem with my Garrard sp 25 iii.
When I play it the arm won't go all the way to the middle. It stops in the middle of the last song.

Anyone have any suggestions to how I can fix this?

Marius

There is a screw on the base of the arm that can be adjusted, one controls the pickup height and the other one controls the lateral position of the arm at rest.
The main adjuster is located underneath the turntable this is the one I would normally adjust. Download the manual and check the schematics to find the adjuster. It looks a bit like a copper strip. I normally disconnect it altogether by removing the plinth and taking off the mechanical switch that is underneath the plinth because you may find that you will constantly be adjusting it. Good turntables the M3 is the best out of all the SP series.
I used to repair and service these back in the day.
The only problem with them is the head shell mounting. They eventually wear out if you like to change the cartridge or remove the head shell from the housing to often causing major problems with the signal. Hope this helps.