tone arm for presto 6N

[JayDC]

I'm currently in the market for a tone arm to fit the original mounting holes in the 6N's frame.. I am not sure what the length of the tone arm needs to be (guessing 12").. i'm more interested in a modern design that can use a modern cartridge.. Not really looking for an Astatic, Gray or Audax tone arm unless i have no other options.. any help?

[tragwag]

I'm in the process of fitting a modern cartridge to the Audax arm that came with my 6N.
it's a little difficult getting everything physically right, but it's possible.
The length of the tonearm has to be 16" I believe, or else it won't play all the way through a side, with the correct angle.
From what I've seen, modern production 16" tonearms are pricey.

[opcode66]

Jelco makes good arms. They have a 12". I don't think they make a 16" arm though.

[JayDC]

i'm pretty sure a 16" arm would be to large.. you only need <8" to play a 16" disc, since you only read off of half of it..


tragwag: can you measure the tone arm from the base to the end to give me a better approximation?


those audax arms look heavy, and to be honest I'd like something more in line with the newer rek-o-cut arms..
I don't want to ruin my plates the first time i play them..

[opcode66]

I know you don't want to listen to me... But, here it is. This would work for you.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/HI-END-JELCO-SA-750LB-12-TONEARM-WITH-HEAVIER-AND-STANDARD-COUNTER-WEIGHT-/290788749714?pt=US_Record_Player_Turntable_Parts&hash=item43b45c3192



This is what I installed on my VMS. Works great!

[tragwag]

I have this one:
the audax KT-16
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iFI6X2CDuaE/T_7F67zitmI/AAAAAAAABCo/3t4k9_BzX6w/s1600/Audax%2BKt-16%2BTonearm.jpg

it does in fact measure 16in from end to end.

[JayDC]

I know you don't want to listen to me... But, here it is. This would work for you.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/HI-END-JELCO-SA-750LB-12-TONEARM-WITH-HEAVIER-AND-STANDARD-COUNTER-WEIGHT-/290788749714?pt=US_Record_Player_Turntable_Parts&hash=item43b45c3192



This is what I installed on my VMS. Works great!

Lol.. that looks like what I'm looking for.. very similar to the rek-o-cut arms, but you said before that it didn't fit right.. thanks homie..

[opcode66]

I never said that. What I said was it didn't have an sme mount which is what my Neumann uses. So, removed the mount it comes with and had one custom made. The three hole mount this comes with should be exactly the type you're looking for, however.

I can post a pic of it mounted on my neumann.

[JayDC]

thanks a lot buddy i don't think i've seen your vms, so sure post a pic or 5,000

[opcode66]

Here is the Jelco with a custom mounting adapter bracket.

[13yo]

I'm listening to you, thanks, thats gonna probably be my new tonearm

_m

[Stevie342000]

hello I have just listed one of those SME 3009 Spacers on ebay http://www.ebay.com/itm/161039205819

The picture above reminded me that I had one of these so I fished it out and now it is up for sale, its made of aluminium hope it is of use to one of you guys if you are the lucky winner.

[Steve E.]

I'm in the process of fitting a modern cartridge to the Audax arm that came with my 6N.
it's a little difficult getting everything physically right, but it's possible.
The length of the tonearm has to be 16" I believe, or else it won't play all the way through a side, with the correct angle.
From what I've seen, modern production 16" tonearms are pricey.

A 12" arm works just fine. As JayDC points out, the arm only needs to stretch over half the diameter (plus, a little extra). Mine, as i've mentioned in some other recent threads, was a homemade jobbie created from a length of light copper tubing, made by the prior owner. It may lack the finesse of a professional arm, but it works well enough.

The arms from the 1940s may look cool, and some of them may BE cool, but there's no practical reason to avoid using a more modern arm. From what I hear, even the best of the arms from back then are a real pain to calibrate.

[Steve E.]

Here's an old thread on 12" tonearms:

https://www.lathetrolls.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=927

An interesting and kind of affordable alternative mentioned in that thread, is this:

http://tonearmaudio.com/
Pricing:
http://tonearmaudio.com/id3.html

Not much adjustment possible, and the cherry _could_ theoretically warp over time. But Cuttercollector bought one and gave it an initial thumbs-up. (what thinks you, now, Cc?)

By the way: I don't actually recommend mounting the tonearm where Presto meant for it to go. It does not allow monitoring while cutting. The best place I've found is on the FRONT of the lathe, at roughly the 7:00 or 7:30 position. (That is, between the frontmost part of the turntable and the front left corner.)

(Then, the question is, where to mount a microscope? Currently I have mine where the tonearm is supposed to go, but I am running into the same "real-time monitoring" problem. Again, it would be better on the front. Presto had them in the front left corner.)