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Thorens TD124

djdstone

pfm Member
Just got my hands on a nice TD124 and just wondered what was the best way to clean the idler wheel. When the platter is running I can hear some noise. Also what’s the best oil to use on the bearing - there seem to be many different opinions out there. Mind came with a nice Dynavector Karat Ruby and an early SME 2 arm - sounds great to these ears. Think I might be in love.
 
Great to see another 124 thread, I’m sure you’ll enjoy the deck.

I’d remove the platter and listen to the drive mechanism to identify the noise source, though you will never get a 124 to be as quiet as a modern belt drive or direct drive. It has other strengths though! Basically if the noise is a high frequency ticking it is likely the motor, a swooshing or even squealing it is the belt, or a deep rumble the idler, though they are obviously all related to some degree. Getting everything really spotlessly clean is essential. Be very reluctant to use any spirits on the rubber belt or idler, soapy water works fine there (just washing the belt in the sink with hot soapy water works well). Clean the motor pulley, step pulley and platter idler path with Isopropyl alcohol or similar, get any hint of old rubber off them and things should get quieter.

All the boutique oils seem to be light sewing machine or fan grade. Anything suitable for sintered bronze bushings should be fine, though avoid heavy weight stuff. I’d just choose one of the types sold for turntables or tape decks.

Has your motor ever been opened or serviced? This is the first thing you really need to assess as running a dirty clagged up motor won’t do it any good. How long it takes to spin-down without the belt on may give an indication of condition, e.g. if it stops in a couple of seconds it is clearly sticky and not happy.
 
Thanks Tony - I will try what you suggest.

The motor the platter seems to spin quite freely after being stopped. I don’t believe that it has been serviced for some time if ever though. From what you describe it sounds like the idler may be the culprit and causing the noise that I can here. Think I’ve got some TT oil somewhere - just need to track it down.
 
I’m talking about the time the motor spindle with the belt removed (and platter, obviously) takes to stop, not the platter. 54 seconds for that would be exceptionally good, I’d expect a figure of about half that for a decent condition recently cleaned and oiled motor.
 
Joel always used to do oil and cleaning kits, though you had to search EU eBay sites to find them. No idea if he still does, but it would be a good starting point if so.
 
Excellent, he seems a really decent guy, one seeking to help keep these decks running rather than fleece their owners!
 
Excellent, he seems a really decent guy, one seeking to help keep these decks running rather than fleece their owners!
Hi Tony - what's the best way to remove the top and bottom platter whilst leaving the centre spindle in place to the bearing well isn't exposed?

I found this
The easiest option is to undo the three bolts around the spindle and simply remove the platter, leaving the bearing assembly in place. Established dogma states that you should keep the bearing spindle and platter as one unit, since (on the TD-124 Mk2) the platter has to be properly centred, but actually doing this causes just as many problems as centering does. Centering the platter is a simple matter of establishing a reference at the platter edge and tweaking until there is no runout variation - a matter of minutes that requires no exotic tools, although some will insist that an engineer's runout gauge is needed (it's not).
 
Hi Tony - what's the best way to remove the top and bottom platter whilst leaving the centre spindle in place to the bearing well isn't exposed?

I found this
The easiest option is to undo the three bolts around the spindle and simply remove the platter, leaving the bearing assembly in place. Established dogma states that you should keep the bearing spindle and platter as one unit, since (on the TD-124 Mk2) the platter has to be properly centred, but actually doing this causes just as many problems as centering does. Centering the platter is a simple matter of establishing a reference at the platter edge and tweaking until there is no runout variation - a matter of minutes that requires no exotic tools, although some will insist that an engineer's runout gauge is needed (it's not).

I may have written that! Assuming that we are talking about a Mk2 TD-124, it is important to centre the platter correctly on the main bearing spindle. In the factory, 50 years ago or more, that was done using a precision runout gauge, using the inside edge of the platter (eg the surface that the idler wheel runs on) for reference. Thorens never intended the platter and bearing to ever be separated, but it's highly likely that any TD-124 around today has been in pieces, so you can't rely on factory settings still being intact.

The main bearing has two sintered bronze shells fitted to the top and bottom, and sometimes when re-fitting the bearing spindle it's very easy to jam the spindle against the top of the lower bearing, which is why I recommended taking the platter off since it's then much easier to guide the spindle in by hand. You then have to re-centre the platter, but I still think that the machined outer edge of the platter is quite a good reference for measuring runout (one of these days I will compare the inside and outer platter surfaces with a runout gauge). As far as I know, there is only one person who sets these things exactly as the factory did, and that's Jaap at Hanze HiFi in Holland - a true expert who backs up his work with individual measurements to show before and after performance. If your motor does need work, Jaap is the best man, without doubt.
 
Hi Tony - what's the best way to remove the top and bottom platter whilst leaving the centre spindle in place to the bearing well isn't exposed?

Why exactly do you want to? Do not fear the bearing well, you’ll be emptying, cleaning and refilling that at some point anyway. Centring the alloy platter is actually quite fiddly, the iron one I use is an interference fit, but the alloy one needs a lot of very precise ‘nudging’ to get exactly right. Get it wrong and you obviously get wow.
 
I’d leave the platter attached for now assuming you think it is as originally fitted. There is obviously no guarantee it hasn’t previously been disturbed, and if so no guarantee it is properly centred. You will likely hear/see any issue though. I’d certainly leave it unless you think it is wrong.
 
My intention was just the clean and lubricated the bearing well - I’d just noticed in a lot of the TD124 shots I’ve seen that the platter had been removed. Also how does one lubricate the motor without disassembling it? Is that possible?
 
My intention was just the clean and lubricated the bearing well - I’d just noticed in a lot of the TD124 shots I’ve seen that the platter had been removed. Also how does one lubricate the motor without disassembling it? Is that possible?

If you have bought a lubrication kit from Joel, he includes a syringe/needle and instructions on how to do that.
 


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