Post by jerm on May 21, 2021 21:13:29 GMT 12
Since jon was tempting me with all those DL-103R mods and this cart ideally needing a bit more height to work well on a SL-1210MK2, I decided to give this one a try. I’m taking the “cap” approach, alluminium. I really like the look of this cart, the angles, black with gold colour scheme, sharp edges etc. The aim was to try and compliment this styling. Below is the design I settled on, the front face is split, slightly angled and features a centre groove which matches the original cartridge. I have cut the sides away so that the original text is still visible and the cutout angle matches the surface at the bottom of the cartridge.    After finishing with the CAD/CAM I started with a block out of the scrap bin. Mounted in one of the 5-axis milling machines at work..  I forgot to take a picture of the part after the first operation in the CNC machine. By the time I realised I had already cut it free from the block. I placed it back on top just for this photo, hopefully you get the idea. The first operation in the mill does the majority of the work, outer profile and inner details.  In order to clean up the top-face which is currently a rough bandsawn finish I had to figure out how to hold it in the machine. My solution was to machine a boss which was a very close fit to the inside of the cap. I placed the cap on and then used a small clamp to apply pressure to the sides and hold it in place.  Decked off and finished.  Test fitting. My tool-paths weren't perfect and I had some light gouge marks on the side faces, tidied them up with some sand paper and then finished with abrasive pad for a brushed look.    All cleaned up and mounted on the head-shell. I had planned to maybe make a few of these and have them annodised black next time someone at work had a batch done but the brushed aluminium look is growing on me.      I've only had a brief listen tonight but it definitely seems to be an improvement. I immediately noticed a lot more presence in the mid and lower ranges and better imaging. The added weight on the arm (I’ve read that this cart likes a bit of weight), the reinforcement of the plastic body and the increased height are all variables which have changed due to this mod. Hard to say which has had the most effect but I guess it’s likely a combination of them all? Does anyone here have experience with cartridge alignment on an SL-1200/1210? I've read online that they usually come with an alignment gauge which you can mount the head-shell on and then set the overhang (52 mm). I don't have this as my TTs were purchased second hand over a decade ago. I downloaded a protractor which had "the same null points as setting with the factory gauge" but when I align using the protractor the cart is sitting very far forward and doesn't seem to match the 52 mm overhang when measured roughly with a ruler.
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Post by Citroen on May 22, 2021 6:25:18 GMT 12
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Post by Citroen on May 22, 2021 6:39:21 GMT 12
Ah, I see that 52mm is from the plug/back of headshell to stylus distance. Not familiar with using that sort of measurement to set overhang but on a given table it does make sense.
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Post by jon on May 22, 2021 6:49:15 GMT 12
Very smart!
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Pundit
Post by paulsaints on May 22, 2021 9:13:29 GMT 12
Well, if you end up selling some, I'm in! You make it look so easy - well done.
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Post by michaelw on May 22, 2021 11:26:32 GMT 12
When I had a 1200 it came with the little plastic jig, it provides a quick and easy setup. You can buy these cheaply from various online Technics specialists or hit up your local DJ shop, they may have one. Alignment (stock headshell and arm) without the jig is easy - set stylus for 52mm overhang then get your cartridge square in the headshell. IIRC Technics' alignment was bespoke, slightly different from Stevenson et al. What methodology does your protractor follow ? I compared the Technics method against my usual DB Systems and preferred the Technics with the cartridges I tried in the SL1200 (Shure M44, Denon DL-A100, Dynavector DV20X2L).
If you still want a custom SL1200 protractor
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Post by rmc001 on May 22, 2021 11:37:55 GMT 12
Please put me down for one too. If you are selling the cap. For my dl-103 / sme s2 / sl-120. Cheers. Rob.
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Post by Citroen on May 22, 2021 16:25:21 GMT 12
When I had a 1200 it came with the little plastic jig, it provides a quick and easy setup. You can buy these cheaply from various online Technics specialists or hit up your local DJ shop, they may have one. Alignment (stock headshell and arm) without the jig is easy - set stylus for 52mm overhang then get your cartridge square in the headshell. IIRC Technics' alignment was bespoke, slightly different from Stevenson et al. What methodology does your protractor follow ? I compared the Technics method against my usual DB Systems and preferred the Technics with the cartridges I tried in the SL1200 (Shure M44, Denon DL-A100, Dynavector DV20X2L).
If you still want a custom SL1200 protractor
It may be customary but its damn close to Lofgren A alignment. That's a nifty looking tool. jerm I'd be interested in one of those caps too!
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Post by cartridgeguyonline on May 22, 2021 17:56:57 GMT 12
I havent got a cart yet but put me down for one of those caps too. And that 52mm measurement is the same one I use: measure from stylus tip to outside of rubber spacer on headshell. Simple but accurate I have found.
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Post by jerm on May 22, 2021 21:46:22 GMT 12
Ah, I see that 52mm is from the plug/back of headshell to stylus distance. Not familiar with using that sort of measurement to set overhang but on a given table it does make sense. Yeah sorry I should have clarified what I meant!
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Post by jerm on May 22, 2021 21:52:23 GMT 12
When I had a 1200 it came with the little plastic jig, it provides a quick and easy setup. You can buy these cheaply from various online Technics specialists or hit up your local DJ shop, they may have one. Alignment (stock headshell and arm) without the jig is easy - set stylus for 52mm overhang then get your cartridge square in the headshell. IIRC Technics' alignment was bespoke, slightly different from Stevenson et al. What methodology does your protractor follow ? I compared the Technics method against my usual DB Systems and preferred the Technics with the cartridges I tried in the SL1200 (Shure M44, Denon DL-A100, Dynavector DV20X2L).
If you still want a custom SL1200 protractor
It may be customary but its damn close to Lofgren A alignment. That's a nifty looking tool. jerm I'd be interested in one of those caps too! Yes that's the one I mentioned, but don't have. I did some more digging and figured out what was going on and ended up finding the one below which is the Technics proprietary alignment in protractor form. I used it for my alignment and then confirmed that the head-shell mount to stylus distance ended up being 52 mm. It all worked out. www.jkwynn.co.uk/Pics/Technics%20Alignment%20Protractor.pdfYes the Technics alignment gauge does seem like a very convenient method. I guess that's the beauty of an S-shaped arm, no need to dial in the cart angle. Seems to be running all good now though. The only issue is that the stylus guard no longer fits! This wouldn't usually be an issue when the cart is fitted to the TT but I have a Hana EH on the way so there may be some cart swapping going on, would be nice to be able to protect the stylus. Maybe I will have to come up with a solution to go along with these caps?? I initially ordered the Hana when I was hesitant to hook the Denon up and start messing with MC carts/SUTs etc. As the Hana was backordered I ended up going down that rabbit hole anyway  I will see if I can get a bunch of these done in the next few weeks, unsure of whether I will be able to get them anodised but I will at least give them a hand-finished brushed look.
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Post by Citroen on May 24, 2021 16:54:49 GMT 12
jerm How much do you think they will cost?
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Post by jerm on May 24, 2021 17:12:07 GMT 12
jerm How much do you think they will cost? Not much 
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Post by michaelw on May 24, 2021 18:10:17 GMT 12
Hmmm I wonder if I should get one for my DL-A100 ?
how heavy are these J ?
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Post by jerm on May 24, 2021 20:16:27 GMT 12
Hmmm I wonder if I should get one for my DL-A100 ? how heavy are these J ? That's a good question, I meant to weigh it at work but was in a hurry and forgot. I didn't want to un-mount it but I weighed it in comparison with my spare head-shell and assuming the cart is to spec at 8,5 g and the hardware is around 1.25 g, I think the cap is roughly 3.3 g. 
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Post by Citroen on Jul 29, 2021 13:48:02 GMT 12
Cap weight 3.73 g
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Post by jerm on Jul 29, 2021 14:01:47 GMT 12
I'll meet you half-way, seems to be 3.54 g on these scales I have at work.  
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Post by Citroen on Jul 29, 2021 14:24:06 GMT 12
Tried another scale and got 3.74!
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Post by jerm on Jul 29, 2021 14:51:37 GMT 12
Tried another scale and got 3.74! Very interesting… It seems we are both right 😊 I weighed the dozen or so parts that I have made and most of them were around 3.7-3.74 g but a few of them were significantly lighter. It turns out that they mustn’t have been seated completely flat on the fixture when I faced the top off, I actually took more material than expected leaving the top slightly angled. They will go into the reject bin even though technically they would function, just a slight VTA adjustment needed to compensate.
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Post by Citroen on Jul 29, 2021 15:04:03 GMT 12
Phew. I dodged a lightweight one!
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Post by Citroen on Jul 29, 2021 15:10:03 GMT 12
I have a 10.5 g wooden headshell that I haven't used yet (c/o Neil at Turned On Audio) which with the added weight of the cap, should in theory work well with my Dynavector DV505 arm and the Denon. Will have to use without cap for a few days to get a feel for it, and then see what changes it makes after that. Report to follow...
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Pundit
Post by nakmad on Aug 3, 2021 21:20:46 GMT 12
Always late to the party, but count me in for one too, please... .. next production run..
Never play Leapfrog with a Unicorn.
Cassette Fetishist
219 posts
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Post by jerm on Aug 3, 2021 23:06:12 GMT 12
Always late to the party, but count me in for one too, please... .. next production run.. I have the first bunch sitting here which need some light deburing and cleaning up, which will happen in the next couple of weeks. There should be plenty for everyone
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Post by jon on Aug 4, 2021 8:24:59 GMT 12
Now for your next trick, you should make a headshell to replace the plastic completely.
So, nude the 103, implant into the new headshell...
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Post by jerm on Aug 4, 2021 11:24:47 GMT 12
Now for your next trick, you should make a headshell to replace the plastic completely. So, nude the 103, implant into the new headshell... Yeah I guess that's possible, not a bad idea. Not much use to anyone except those using an arm with detachable head-shells though. One thing with my cap is that the original stylus protector no longer fits, I was thinking of moulding some new ones to fix this issue.
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Post by jon on Aug 4, 2021 14:50:36 GMT 12
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Post by jon on Aug 4, 2021 14:55:32 GMT 12
I forgot, it is a step up sound-wise on the cap. However you have to extract the body from the shell... I've not broken one yet, but others have. Not for the faint of heart!
Your cap, like the others of this type, make life a lot easier and without the nervousness involved.
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Post by michaelw on Aug 4, 2021 15:03:06 GMT 12
I'll leave the surgery to you guys, my DL-A100 is staying stock !
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Post by jerm on Aug 4, 2021 15:07:33 GMT 12
Yes I have seen a lot of these re-body mods online and I can see how it would (in theory) be a step up from the cap mod. In fact I was quite dubious of the cap mod. They claim that it reinforces the plastic body of the cart, for that to be the case I would think it needs to be a fairly snug fit, I'm not sure how they achieve that consistently, surely there is some manufacturing tolerance on those plastic bodies with all the different variations which are around. I was pleasantly surprised with the improvement I experienced, but that could in part be due effects of the added weight or height which the cap also introduces. I am very interested in everyone else's findings, when I finally get around to distributing them.
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Post by Citroen on Aug 4, 2021 15:15:22 GMT 12
The height change should be accommodated for by altering the arm pillar height/VTA.
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