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Goldring Lenco GL-75

The correct mounting distance for the RB250/300 is 222mm but they can be mounted at 219mm and you have to skew the cartridge slightly in the headshell and align it using Baewald geometry. It's all there on the VE forum and it's said to reduce overall tracing distortion across the record. That does make it slightly easier only having to move the hole back 5mm. You'll still have the arm height to deal with though. Now I'm not sure if the Rega arm will sit in a hole in the deck because of the anti skate and lift lower machinism but I can dig out my old 78 and try my spare Rega in the hole if you like. On the other hand if you're not bothered by aesthetics and don't mind some work then you could always put the deck in a better plinth and turn it 90 degrees clockwise and put the Rega arm on the plinth. I think Bryan mentioned this a few posts back. This accomplishes the same as putting it in a hole in the deck in that it gets the arm off the top plate and it reduces the height of the arm relative to the platter.
 
From a cosmetic POV I would rather leave the top plate in the current plinth the correct way round which leaves the hole in the top plate idea the most practical for mounting a Rega arm. I have an additional logistical problem when it comes to turning the top plate 90° in that the shelf unit I am currently using to accommodate my hifi is only 400 mm deep so a large plinth is not an option.
Would still like to explore other potential arm options other than Rega hence the plan to put a wanted ad in the classifieds so nothing is set in stone just yet.
TS
 
Yes that's fair enough Tony. I think the Rega is probably the best tonearm you'll find around your price range.
 
Of course even if I buy a fairly budget RB250/300 once a Rega mounting is in place that opens up an upgrade path to other arms that use Rega geometry of which there are many.
TS
 
TonyScarlett said:
Already had a discussion about the AS-212 upthread, absolutely no chance of picking one up anywhere near £200. Yes the Linn arms are available quite cheap but most reviews are not very complimentary about them. I'm reluctant to spend any money without being certain it's going to be an upgrade over the stock arm. Safest bet at £200 seems to be an RB300 & take a hacksaw to the deck. May put a wanted ad in the classifieds, see what it throws up.
TS
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Nooo - to stop you hacking the top plate, you can have my AS-212 for £200! Think I paid a member here £115 about 5 Or 8 years ago, comes with accessories and spanner.

Agree on the Linn arms, but I’d love to try an early LV-V on a Lenco, wished I’d never sold mine!
 
Dowser said:
Nooo - to stop you hacking the top plate, you can have my AS-212 for £200! Think I paid a member here £115 about 5 Or 8 years ago, comes with accessories and spanner.

Agree on the Linn arms, but I’d love to try an early LV-V on a Lenco, wished I’d never sold mine!
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PM sent
 
Picked up the deck I won on Fleabay yesterday, it's a really early one, probably c1968/9, the arm is junk but I could tell that from the pics, otherwise it is in really nice original condition, never been messed with. The Shure M75EJ even has the correct Shure stylus that looks like it has plenty of mileage left in it.
The plan is to fit the arm from my existing deck to make a really nice early original deck then fit a new arm onto my existing deck & upgrade it as far as I can while keeping the original top plate & plinth.
TS
 
No, definitely an early GL-75, if I had a PC or laptop I could post some pics for you. I've dated it using the info on the LencoHeaven forum. According to them the L-75 was released in 1967. Mine has the earlier L70 motor, bakelite switches, plain aluminium trim plate, no plastic cover for the junction box, plastic idler wheel and the top plate painted grey all over rather than left bare underneath the platter. On the other hand the arm does have the rubber v-blocks (which completely disintegrated when I tried to remove one). These were apparently not fitted to the earliest L-75s. It's fitted in a chunky (possibly home made?) unsuspended plinth, not seen one like it in all the pics I've seen of these decks on Fleabay. Once I've tidied this plinth up I may use it for the deck with the better arm.
One issue I have found is the bearing in this deck has some play so will need replacing. Already ordered a new tyre for the idler wheel, the old one had gone hard & out of shape. This combined with the worn bearing is probably why the speed was wavering between 32.9 & 33.1 using the app on my phone.
 
Yes I'd like to see a pic of it Tony, top and bottom. It may be an inbetween model if you know what I mean, when they were moving on from the 70 to the 75. I bought new oilite bushings for two of my decks from The Bearing Boys.
 
If you pm me your email address I could send you a couple of pics tomorrow. The trim plate says Goldring Lenco GL-75 but the font is different to the later versions with the brushed aluminium trim plate.
 
Chops54 said:
Heres another one I built for a good friend.





I've never shown anyone how I build my decks before but here you go. I machine a round plate to take the bearing and fit it straight into the plinth. The motor needs some mods to clear the bearing. Top plate is machined out. Only the motor and idler are left on the top plate which sits on the plinth on an arrangement of O rings. The top plate doesn't touch the plinth.
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This is such an impressive way to retain the top plate whilst eliminating its greatest weakness. Absolutely brilliant.
 
Thank you so much Nic. It took me a long time to work it out. I had to modify the motor so it would fit in a slightly smaller hole so that there was enough plywood left to bolt the bearing housing into. The bearing housing is fully enclosed within the plinth so is structurally solid and fully supported. It was difficult to achieve. I'm just about to put the other Lenco back together so I'll post some pics of the rebuild later today with a bit of luck. The pics will show the modified motor, bearing housing and top plate mounting.
 
I do remember you building that turntable. I like the way the platter hangs over the arm section. I was amazed when you sold it too.
 
Chops54 said:
I do remember you building that turntable. I like the way the platter hangs over the arm section. I was amazed when you sold it too.
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Just an example of life not standing still, I guess. I still have the 401 but my main deck is far more prosaic: a Technics 1210GR. It just does the job I need it to. I'm sure one day I'll return to Lencos and I still have one hanging around...long gone are the days when I used to find a mint 59 on ebay for £30. Had 2 of those!
 
By the way, I'm terrible at record keeping and have lost track of where that slate Lenco ended up. I wonder if it has appeared anywhere?
 
I do love my Lenco GL75. I've had lots of fun with it over the last few years, slowly adding extra tweaks and learning what works/doesn't.

The plinth/stacked platter have been the constant.
Arms started with a Linn Akito, which was nice, dropped straight in and worked well. Then I went to a Roksan Nima. Again, this dropped in fairly easily (Rega geometry) and was a definite step up from the Linn. I have since sold the Nima and built a DIY Well Tempered arm, a copy of the Amadeus arm, the one featuring a golf ball :) This is in a different league altogether and (happily, given the effort!) sounds stunning.

I have also added a Joly-on bearing, braced to the plinth below, plus recently added extra bracing to the top plate around the bearing and also an Audio Silente idler wheel. Each of these made a small, but noticeable incremental improvement to the solidity, bass response and lowered the noise floor. Biggest impact was the bearing - well worth looking at a better one, there quite a few out there. There is a good Lenco restoration facebook group that I go on alongside the Lencoheaven forum.

It's starting to show it's age in terms of finish so I plan to completely strip and repaint/refinish it at some point...

Here it is :)

IMG-1590.jpg
 
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