Platter mats (and an extra long spindle)

[basplin]

Hi all - looking for some guidance here on my restoration project. I have a 16" ROK turntable that was partially restored by someone who installed an extra long spindle - it's 1" tall now (it's usually about 1/4" isn't it?). It's a blessing and a curse in that I now have the opportunity to install a super thick platter mat, but it has to be at least 3/4" thick otherwise my overhead won't fit on top of the spindle.

I was initially thinking I'd put down a few layers of cork and rubber and that would do a great job of dampening the platter, but then I was worried that might not make for a very flat cutting surface. I also had the idea of getting a 1/2" thick piece of aluminum machined to add some mass to the platter, but then I thought that maybe that would be too heavy for the motor and the weight might keep it from spinning as freely. So now I'm wondering if it's worth having the extra long spindle at all and I should just cut it down to size.

What would YOU do?

[SONARC]

Hi basplin -

I don't have an answer for your question, but it looks like no one ever got back to you on this; so I'm kind of bumping this thread to see if it gets on anyone's radar these days, since I'm kind of curious about the cork + rubber combo myself. Meanwhile, what did you decided to go with?

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Hi all - looking for some guidance here on my restoration project. I have a 16" ROK turntable that was partially restored by someone who installed an extra long spindle - it's 1" tall now (it's usually about 1/4" isn't it?). It's a blessing and a curse in that I now have the opportunity to install a super thick platter mat, but it has to be at least 3/4" thick otherwise my overhead won't fit on top of the spindle.

I was initially thinking I'd put down a few layers of cork and rubber and that would do a great job of dampening the platter, but then I was worried that might not make for a very flat cutting surface. I also had the idea of getting a 1/2" thick piece of aluminum machined to add some mass to the platter, but then I thought that maybe that would be too heavy for the motor and the weight might keep it from spinning as freely. So now I'm wondering if it's worth having the extra long spindle at all and I should just cut it down to size.

What would YOU do?

[jjwharris]

I ended up using 1.5mm neoprene for my mats - there's an old old thread where it's mentioned. I just spray glued to my steel platter, it works, and it's pretty flat