I had a good query on another forum which I thought might be worth sharing here, so here it is with my response.
Hi SUPATRAC - would you be able to post a close up picture of your string solution please? Thanks
Sure, here are some pictures of two ways to attach a cuing tress to my dusty, fallow, but mechanically superb Ekos 2. You can see that the tress can be bent over
while the record is playing so that it doesn't interfere with any lid, and you can also see in picture 7 why I think this is a good way to avoid excessive downwards pressure on a cartridge. In the penultimate picture you can see that I turned the hoop of a slip knot into a double loop to improve its grip on the arm tube. Obviously there are many knots and many ways to do this to any arm, and the length and flexibility of the string can be selected to taste. I like to put a bit of heat-shrink on the tress to make grip a bit easier to sense, as well as obstructing fray. If your eyes aren't perfect, why not use red heat shrink or funky string?
When it comes to use, I recommend holding the tress near the end for maximum flexibility and gentleness. If the tress is the right flexibility and length you really can hold it while the record is playing which means you can...
- ensure it's engaged with the groove at the beginning,
- get a sure grip before lifting at the end,
- bend down the tress before lowering the lid,
- grip it between thumb and forefinger
with your palm facing downwards, left hand or right which
can be a great deal more comfortable than the usual contortions.
HTH.