Pierre Clément lathe

[joss]

Hi everyone!
First post, first time to this site and to the art of vinyl disk cutting.
This interest has come to me later in my music career and only reciently after a friend posted an article on FB about a Presto machine and the "78 Project" which got me so excited.
I have a vintage tape/analog studio over here in Paris, France, so buying a lathe and starting to master and cut vinyl seems like the most natural progression.
I've also immersed myself over the past few days in mastering and lathe technology old and new and now i'm even more keen... This is my new found path without a doubt!
I apologise in advance for all of the mundane questions i'll be throwing into the forum.

Oh... I'm off to view an old Lathe from a famous Parisian manufacturer tomorrow, can't remember the name, but will post an update with photos soon and maybe a few of you can help me decide wether it'll be worth buying?
I've also been looking at "Souri" in Germany.

Joss 'Happy times'

[IRF80]

Hi Joss, cool post some pics.

[joss]

Good evening from Paris,
It's 21:41 here and i've just got back in from viewing the lathe that i'd mentioned in my "HI"

I was told the famous manufacturer is in fact "Pierre Clément", it was made by him for a disk cutting friend of his so is a one off. Its 1950's and the cutter head is mono.
I've attached some poor photos to give you an idea of what i have on offer... oh, the chap wants 5000 euro! he tells me it's fully working also, all of the rubber on wheels looks and feels in great condition and has been stored with them disengaged from the spindles.
He also has for sale 2 decks of his at 3000 euro each
Any feedback will be appreciated.

Appologies again for the quality of pics.

Joss (Happy times)

[IRF80]

Wow, that looks interesting... Very nice. Big cutterhead. I'm sure you could make an attachment to fit a stereo head on there somehow.
Have you parted with the money? Should ask him if anyone else is interested... Might be able to knock him down a bit.

Did/does it come with electronics? That would be a plus.

[joss]

Hi IRf80, what you see in the photos is pretty much all there is.
A cable runs down the back with a bunch of resistors soldered in a bunch to a jack plug which goes into the sound source!

Also there's no one else interested in buying this that i'm aware of. He's actually considering selling it to a museum, and was a bit reluctant to think about parting with it if it was going to be altered in any way.

Is the asking price expensive? i really wouldn't know apart from the fact it's a lot of money. Plus once you add all of the additional pieces to it, it will end up one expensive lathe... Is it really worth it?

Joss

[IRF80]

Hi Joss,
Well, mods are the best when they're reversible. I wouldn't hack it if it meant damaging it but changing heads and adding a few bits shouldn't be a problem (without drilling).
The head should be removable anyway and a boss or mount could be made (if needs be) for a different head - Not a permanent mod.

You'll need amps then not sure what's built in but inverse RIAA? Pitch control? The latter being a bit more difficult to build/source.

I'm using a carver amp I got shipped over from the USA that I read someone on here was using. Always liked brutish US amps, build like their muscle cars. I plan to use a RIAA plug in through my DAW initially and then after I have some respectable results I'll build a hardware version.

I have designed a simple pitch controller based on Flo's found on here somewhere, which might fail but will need a lot of testing and tweeking once I've put it together. Just out of interest do those resistors you mention lead to any switches on the unit?

I'd love to be in a position again to buy a nice lathe and clone/try to improve on it but I'll settle for building one instead for the moment.

If you think its worth it take the plunge... I'm not an expert but if I had the money I probably would (especially if it was built in my home country)

[Steve E.]

I split this off into its own thread. Cool stuff!

[Stevie342000]

Try a google search for Vinyl Engine I am sure they have some Pierre Clement information on there, it may be of use.

It should determine if this is a one off or based on a similar model. I am sure that there is some one else on this list with a Pierre Clement cutting lathe as well.