Overhang Gauge - Do I have mine setup correctly (pix)

How do u use this exactly in getting the overhang right? Can u tell me where exactly u got this. And out of curiosity what do u guys think of this method.

 

I’m sure it’s a nice method to check, but I think you’re going to get equally good results by just using a flat object against the edge of the protractor. There’s really no reason you can’t do this with the gauge and a household object. A flat razor or index card / business card should do the trick. Remember this is a bonded elliptical stylus and a bit more forgiving of alignment.

 

The picture that @Drewan77 included is worth a thousand words --- the depth gauge I use is the same concept but slightly different tool. I also use the combo square when my measurement is to the end of the tool (like in the pic provided with the combo square) but the reason I also employ the depth gauge is because I use the same gauge for other distance alignments other than the 52mm -- for instance this gauge has a mark for 50mm on the side also (See the pic below) which is the depth for my Yamaha GT-2000 --- and the depth gauge allows me to sight alignment from the side where it is not possible or cumbersome with the combo square. I also have another gauge with 49mm for Pioneer.

 

For some of us, combo squares and depth gauges ARE household objects!!!!!!!! (well maybe "shop"hold items as one part of my house is a woodshop!)

OT - Here is a pic of just SOME of the squares I own (sans the depth gauge already pictured):

 

Haha, yes, I have a square, and bigger collection of commercial art / drafting squares and t-squares myself. No combination square or depth gauge though.

I just don’t think OP needs to make a trip to Lowe’s or Blick to complete this alignment if they don’t already own these type of tools. There’s no reason they shouldn’t be up and running their TT by now.

 

hey guys

thank you all for all the replies so far! ive been having computer trouble lately so i haven't been around as much. anyway i will try the flat object lined next to the gauge tip. im just overwhelmed at the fact that they have to be deadon accurate the stylus and the indent on the overhang guage. but then again i felt overwhelmed at trying to get the tonearm balanced correctly and now i can do it with confidence and its no longer a problem for me. im a visual learner so ive also been looking at videos on youtube about setting up this. but i just don't wanna damage my records cause i consider it a investment. its bad enough recently ive noticed some of my records are getting ringwear. but i bought new outer sleeves and left more breathing room between them and so far so good. i will post more images after my next attempt.

 

If youre getting lots of ringwear I recommend storing the records outside the cover. Still inside an inner sleeve of course and still inside the outer plastic sleeve you have, but behind the cover jacket.

Like here:

 

Hey Leon

Yea I do that too.i recently started using resealable outer sleeves and they haven’t given me trouble. It’s been awhile and still no issues. Anyway I first learned about this on a blog I found. I do what’s in the video but I also move the opening of the mobile fidelity inner sleeve facing left so that it prevents dirt or whatever getting in the opening. Sometimes the resealable bag has too much of a tight fit with the record so I just put in a outer sleeve that i got from sleeve city that’s good too. But rarely does this happen for me. I did however put the unsolved mysteries 3 lp set in a separate outer sleeve cause the jacket was way too thick. I think the reason I got ringwear before buying the new sleeves was I used to really pack a lot of records into one cube. It seems pitch black or pure white have the most problem for ringwear.

 

I believe I have technics screws and headshell. My tt is audio technica lp120. Could that work for me?

 

Wait nevermind I’m using a ortofon 2m red

 

Btw does my cartridge in the pictures i posted look bent? It doesn’t look like it’s laying flat.

 

How do you mean?

 

Like the very first pic I posted. The ortofon cartridge looks like it’s not evenly sitting on the overhang below. I thought I had posted a pic that showed this better.

 

Yeah, not possible to work with 2m series at all. Although it is easier to align that type of headshell with the Technics gauge, the Ortofon headshell your cart came on will suit your purposes fine.

Unfortunately we're never going to be able to tell alignment down to a millimeter from a picture. There's wayyy too much distortion, compression and angle issues at play. Even with a professional product photography setup, it's a fools errand to try to use photography for accurate measurements. That said, the second set of images does look less obviously wrong than the first.

Take a look at this guide from the new Technics 1200GR manual. I think it illustrates how to use the jig a little better than the old 70s and 80s manuals.



As you can see you're really only aligning the cart at 90º and making sure the tip of the diamond is aligned to the tip of the gauge. As suggested in earlier posts, you can use an XACTO, credit card, or some sort of measuring / t-square to check the placement of the stylus. All of these methods are going to be superior accuracy to taking a picture and posting it here. Remember, this alignment method was designed for ease of use in the 70s, before there were smartphone cameras and audio forums. It's supposed to be quick, easy and painless!

 

I threw this together for those who may still be confused to the method of final check. Hopefully this is more helpful than the KAB documentation. I used a flat credit card to show up better in the photos, but obviously any flat object can be used. I usually prefer an XACTO for its thinness.

 

Lovely work.

 

That's the worst dang overhang gauge I've ever seen.. too much distance between the gauge the the stylus. I like the suggestion by @Drewan77 use an adjustable square to get a better measurement on the stylus, but be careful. Setting by the overhang gauge is the simplest setup method, and assumes the correct offset angle provided the cartridge aligned parallel to the headshell.

 

The most surprising thing for me was the discovery that Technics alignment and the gauge itself can produce extremely good results if used carefully.

I've always used Mint, Dr Feickert & various arc protractors but it was only after reading about QC issues with the new Grado Prestige 2 range a couple of years ago that prompted me to try this gauge (why you may ask...).

I split my time between homes in the UK & USA & an email reply from Grado had told me that if purchased in America (lowest cost) I couldn't return a cart once back in Europe, even if faulty. So I decided to try out one of these while I was in Idaho, testing it on another forum members' SL1700 turntable to check channel balance & make sure it played OK. A headshell, the gauge & various tools in my luggage were going to give me a 'quick & dirty' setup & if everything was Ok, I would re-align once back in the UK.

....all was well so I kept it.

Back with my own Technics turntable I decided to give it a play on a couple of albums & it sounded good so I played a few more, then a couple of LPs with known distortion or sibilance..... but hardly any this time! That's when I thought to get a combination square from my garage to check if I'd got the overhang spot on - it wasn't by a small fraction so I re-set it & carefully squared it up*. Parts of those albums now played as well with the bonded elliptical as any cartridge I own, including microlines, Gygers, shibatas etc, even Audio Note. Impressive.

Gradually since, I've re-aligned 8 other Technics headshells away from Baerwald to the Technics setup & in every case I genuinely prefer what I hear. It may be a simple piece of plastic, Technics turntables & alignment may be looked down on by some in this hobby but, in my own experience it seems that once again... manufacturers do actually know more than we so-called forum experts give them credit for!

It's simple, effective and if aligned with care & precision, as good a sound as any other method I have tried - but without the OCD levels of magnification, lighting & adjustment that everything else requires.

(*in squaring up, make sure it's the cantilever, not just body as some cartridges are not perfectly set)

 

This is my experience as well, that the overhang gauge can be preferable to a protractor alignment. On top of that, it’s certainly less of a headache, especially since most of us don’t have the metal protractors designed for ease of use.

Of course as @The FRiNgE points out the gauge could be better designed to negate the need for a flat object or square by reducing the gap. It could also be made from clear plastic to get a better view of the cantilever angle, and have an actually useful guideline on it. Still for the $10, they’re very effective and easy to use for the decks that are compatible.

I do like the idea of a square, but the XACTO / flat object tip from KAB works very well in my experience as the gauge itself has enough thickness to hold the object perpendicular.