Sl1200/10 GR - How far should you pull the lock lever?

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Znerk, Jun 12, 2019.

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  1. Big Blue

    Big Blue Forum Resident

    Location:
    Wisconsin
    I was also trying to follow the manual to the letter, I just couldn’t make it happen. I tried it again just now, and eventually I did get it all the way to the right. I did not notice anything stabilizaing or calibrating into position, but at least I proved to myself the thing is able to move all the way.

    I wish they had given us more to grab onto, as the main issue I had getting it switched the rest of the way just now was how hard it was on my fingers. I had to get a cloth out to give myself a little buffer. I guess having it protrude any higher may have introduced some possible interference with the tonearm movement. I wonder if this lever gets any easier to move if you unlock and lock it many times?
     
  2. recstar24

    recstar24 Senior Member

    Location:
    Glen Ellyn, IL
    I hear you! For whatever reason it wasn’t overly hard for me, it did require force as per the manual but was able to do it firmly with one finger. As for loosening it up by unlocking and locking it many times, I would advise against that :D I’m not a cart roller by any stretch so I just leave it the way it is.
     
  3. TarnishedEars

    TarnishedEars Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Seattle area
    I would really stop trying to do this if I were you. Small plastic pieces have a tendency to break when lots of torque is placed on them... If you really feel the need to be locking your arm's height, then just push it until it resists, but don't go any further. However my personal feeling is that unless you are using this for DJ use, there is probably no advantage to locking the arm into position.
     
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  4. Davey

    Davey NP: Hania Rani/Dobrawa Czocher ~ Inner Symphonies

    Location:
    SF Bay Area, USA
    Put a bubble level on top of the pivot assembly and you may even see the disadvantage to locking it, at least on the old models, the new models may have tighter tolerance on the threads.
     
    Last edited: Jun 15, 2019
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  5. Big Blue

    Big Blue Forum Resident

    Location:
    Wisconsin
    Oh, I certainly wasn’t suggesting I was going to lock and unlock it just to lossen it! Just musing whether this was something that would get easier after multiple VTA adjustments, or if it’s always that hard to lock.
     
  6. TarnishedEars

    TarnishedEars Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Seattle area
    It might well get looser. It also might break. So why chance it?
     
  7. Big Blue

    Big Blue Forum Resident

    Location:
    Wisconsin
    I guess the reason I thought it was worth trying to fully lock was the idea that it may not be as rigid as it was meant to be unless it was locked down. Had I felt like the plastic was in danger, I would have stopped. Now that it’s locked, though, I’m not likely to unlock it until I actually do have another cartridge to set up.

    Technics says it’s supposed to lock, so while I wouldn’t want to break it, I’m certainly covered under warranty at this point. I wasn’t worried, it was just kind of hard to get it locked.
     
  8. Big Blue

    Big Blue Forum Resident

    Location:
    Wisconsin
    I mean, it’s under warranty, and the manual says to lock it that far. If it breaks, I should be covered. I don’t want it to come to that, but if it’s going to perform better locked, I’d like to try to get that from it.
     
  9. TarnishedEars

    TarnishedEars Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Seattle area
    You really want to send it back to Japan to get it fixed? That is not my idea of fun... Plus, if you fatigue the parts now, and then it breaks outside of warranty as a result, then you will be out of luck.
     
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  10. Big Blue

    Big Blue Forum Resident

    Location:
    Wisconsin
    No, but I do want to get the intended performance out of it. Like I said, I initially stopped trying to get it to move further because it seemed like it was not going. I carefully applied force and got it to move all the way, but I absolutely was willing to give up and even just leave it unlocked entirely upon any further VTA adjustments. I don’t disagree with your caution, I just think if I’m going to risk breaking it, now is the time? And, it didn’t break, so I think it will be fine to lock it going forward.
     
  11. TarnishedEars

    TarnishedEars Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Seattle area
    Fair enough. I can't hear a difference on mine when I have pushed it in that direction. But I felt like I was applying a lot of force, so I never pushed it as far as you did.

    Hopefully that part is stronger than it feels.
     
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  12. recstar24

    recstar24 Senior Member

    Location:
    Glen Ellyn, IL
    On mine it’s definitely very robust feeling.
     
  13. joeym3

    joeym3 Forum Resident

    Location:
    USA
    Mine won't go past 12:00. I'm concerned about pushing it any further. And when I turn it to the left, it goes to about 11:00 or 10:30. And I can adjust the VTA at both extremes - the 12:00 and 11:00/10:30 position. Does anyone else have the same experience?

    I bought mine from Guitar Center. Now I'm wondering what the phone number or email is for Technics. I'm sure many of us would like to confirm if there is a performance advantage to setting it to locked position, and if it's safe to pull/push it into the recommended position.
     
  14. Sterling1

    Sterling1 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Louisville, KY
    My lock lever will not move to the position shown in the manual's illustration. I initially un-locked the VTA feature, set the VTA to proper position and then moved lever to where it naturally wanted to stop. I did not attempt to force it to the position shown in manual because such force would surely break the mechanism. I do not believe anything is defective. Un-Locked position has hard stop at about 10:30 and Locked position has hard stop at about 12:30. In Locked position the VTA is still adjustable. Maybe I could apply more pressure to get the lever to 3:00 for the VTA to lock but I don't see the need.
     
    Last edited: Jun 15, 2019
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  15. joeym3

    joeym3 Forum Resident

    Location:
    USA
    Thanks Sterling1. I just tried again. I was able to get it to about 12:30, which enables the VTA to lock for me.
     
  16. Sterling1

    Sterling1 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Louisville, KY
    Yeah, good. I just re-adjusted mine for grins and giggles discovering that if I turn lever clockwise to about 12:30 it will indeed lock the VTA. But, the lever must be on the hard stop. If it looses tension the VTA can still be adjusted. I assume that there's some sort of detent the lever fits into but I don't have the courage to force it there.
     
  17. TarnishedEars

    TarnishedEars Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Seattle area
    Just because a plastic lever is stiff, that doesn't necessarily equate to robust in my book.

    Mind you, I'm not saying that it is flimsy. I'm just saying that I am not confident that it is strong-enough to be torqued that hard very often.
     
  18. recstar24

    recstar24 Senior Member

    Location:
    Glen Ellyn, IL
    Gotcha. I’m not a cart roller so I plan on keeping it like this until the cart dies, considering it’s relatively new I’ve got at least another good year or two before messing with it.
     
  19. Sterling1

    Sterling1 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Louisville, KY
    I'm wondering if the mechanism is metal rather than plastic. I'm also wondering if force is required to cause the lever to cam over adjustment ring. At any rate, I do not believe there's any harm just turning the lever clockwise with out force to the hard stop.
     
  20. Big Blue

    Big Blue Forum Resident

    Location:
    Wisconsin
    The lever seems like metal to me, now that you mention it, and surely the internal mechanism is not plastic? That doesn’t eliminate any possibility of something stripping or breaking, but Technics states plainly in print, with a picture, that it’s meant to turn that far (though they also understate the amount of force required, IMO). Whether it makes a difference in performance, though, I can’t tell you, and I wouldn’t go so far as to say everyone needs to start locking it all the way.
     
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  21. TarnishedEars

    TarnishedEars Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Seattle area
    I might have been wrong about the part being plastic. In closer examination it does looks like it might be metal. although it does not feel as cold to the touch as metal usually does to me.

    However there is no moving this lever to all the way clockwise to the hard stop without applying A LOT of force. Mine moves about half way with only a moderate amount of force. But beyond that point, it resists further movement enough that it almost feels like I need to get a screwdriver out and lever the thing hard to get it to rotate it the rest of the way into the hard-stop position. So I'm just not going there.

    So you guys go ahead and knock yourselves out pushing this lever back and forth all you want. But I won't be joining you.
     
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  22. Agitater

    Agitater Forum Resident

    Location:
    Toronto
    It’s a friction lock. Only a very small amount of finger pressure is required. You’re jamming it repeatedly. The cam or assembly will break. Very little pressure is needed because the thread pitch of the vertical height adjustment is very small. Even unlocked, a height setting is unlikely to change over time by itself. Small amount of pressure on the lock lever.
     
  23. Big Blue

    Big Blue Forum Resident

    Location:
    Wisconsin
    So, then, do most of us have defective locks on ours? Because it most certainly requires a very large amount of pressure to lock all the way, as directed.

    I’m not as concerned with whether the height setting will change as I am that the arm is meant to be locked all the way to perform as rigidly as designed.
     
  24. TarnishedEars

    TarnishedEars Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Seattle area
    I don't think that the lock is defective. But I believe that the directions are. This feels like a friction-lock to me as well. And to the best of my understanding and experience this means you only need to rotate until it begins to really resist, then it becomes effectively locked. Beyond that I believe that you are over-torqueing it.

    But do what whatever you want. It is clear that I'm not going to convince you.
     
    Last edited: Jun 16, 2019
  25. Big Blue

    Big Blue Forum Resident

    Location:
    Wisconsin
    I’d buy that. I think you are perceiving more resistance on my part than I am intending. I’ve not said anybody is wrong here, just joining the OP in wondering if there is benefit in following the instructions. By the time you gave your advice to not try locking it down past the point of resistance, I had already locked it down all the way to the right. I’m not doing anything at this point, it’s already done.
     
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