Vinyl Passion Krown platter for LP12
- Thread starter per-Sony-fied
- Start date
Because Linn have never upgraded it people tend not to change them so they are rare on the use market. Even tatty ones can sell for £100 and cleaner ones as much as £150. Which is crazy as until recently they only cost £180 new. When I realized this myself I just bought a new one.
The alternative is to polish it. The laquer comes off easily enough with some brasso or duraglit and you're left with a shiny platter. If you don't put any on it the surface will rapidly get dull but apparently a lick of car wax protects it. Not tried that myself.
per-Sony-fied
Me in another jacket
There's a few on LP12bits. Even the unused ones which are a little cheaper don't look perfect. I was wondering is it possible to return it back to all its glory with a can of laquer? I can't say mine looks dreadful but defiantly has lost its shine over the years.
per-Sony-fied
Me in another jacket
Had a short 15min play last night through headphones can't say I heard any perceptible difference. I guess there would be more on this subject if it were true & part of the set-up guide.
So there is, six. That's a lot, usually there are only a couple listed. Stuff tends to sit a while on there as the prices are high, the cheapest platter is £140 which is expensive. He's selling 'new' ones for £180 but you can still get one from a Linn dealer with a mat for £195.
eBay prices are better. A really good one will cost about £150 and an older one £100. Personally, I don't see the point. For all the difference is just buy a new one. And you get a new mat with it. Both my decks have brand new platters on them and it makes a difference. They look sharp.
I've thought about re-lacquering, I'd like to try it. I don't see why it wouldn't work as that's how it's originally finished. I was going to try it on an old Thorens platter but the metal was too far gone so I ended up painting it. I'll get my hands on a good candidate eventually. After all, if it doesn't work you can just buff it off again.
I wouldn't. I've seen two out of balance LP12 platters in the last year!
I bought a 2018 mechanics kit and the platter was off balance. Front of the armboard bobbed up and down at least a mm maybe two. I added weight to balance it, took about 12g.
I needed another platter for another LP12 build anyway so I ordered a new one from Loud&Clear Glasgow. When I went in to pick it up, I opened the straight from Linn sealed box and put the platter on one of the shop's decks to check it. It too was out of balance! Not by as much but still out enough that I wasn't buying it. Ended up buying one from Cymbiosis who checked it before sending it up and it's perfect.
Contacted Linn about the 2018 one and turned out it was still under warranty so they replaced it. They were very friendly and easy to deal with.
Apparently it's not that unusual. Either poor machining or air bubbles in the casting. This is the first I've seen it but to be fair, I've never been looking for it before. I will be now!
The lacquer also varies. The one I got from Cymbiosis is so perfect you cannot see it tuning but the one from Linn is patchy. Still ok in my opinion but not perfect and I've seen some that were so patchy I'd reject them.
Tony L
Administrator
You don’t need anything more abrasive than Silvo or Brasso wadding and some time and patience. Expect to spend a couple of evenings and you’ll end up with a mirror finish, which I personally don’t like, but I’ve done it in the past so can vouch for this technique. I’d certainly not put a proper abrasive such as wire wool anywhere near it. The time-consuming thing is polishing through the lacquer layer the first time, that done it gets bright and shiny real fast so is easy to maintain. I much prefer the duller finish as supplied by the factory so eventually ended up buying a brand new platter for mine. By saying that ‘mine’ was an ever-changing thing as I’ve actually owned 12-14 LP12s over the years. The final one got a brand new platter!
PS Again I’m genuinely staggered by how cheap a brand new Linn platter is. If my existing one was less than perfect I’d buy one without giving it a second thought, especially given the old one would likely make £60-80 or so. As a comparison the Retrotone upper platter my TD-124 so proudly wears as a hat costs over £400, and that isn’t even the whole platter, its just the light top bit! If you wanted a fancy third party bottom platter from Swissonor you’d be looking at another £8-900!
PS Again I’m genuinely staggered by how cheap a brand new Linn platter is. If my existing one was less than perfect I’d buy one without giving it a second thought, especially given the old one would likely make £60-80 or so. As a comparison the Retrotone upper platter my TD-124 so proudly wears as a hat costs over £400, and that isn’t even the whole platter, its just the light top bit! If you wanted a fancy third party bottom platter from Swissonor you’d be looking at another £8-900!
This site contains affiliate links for which pink fish media may be compensated.
Yes, I really don't see why you'd bother trying to refurb a platter when you consider the cost of a new one. It's weird. I've known people who've dropped thousands on their systems but will polish up their old LP12 platters.
It's never taken me longer than about an hour and it can be half that. The quality of the lacquer varies. I was ok with the mirror finish but I prefer the traditional look of the LP12, it just looks right to me. You also need to be careful as the alloy is quite soft and if you keep polishing it you can end up with a lumpy surface.
per-Sony-fied
Me in another jacket
Well mine is much like the look of John's being from the same era
One of the few parts to survive.
Anyhow been chewing this over after reading all these posts, whilst a new platter isn't exactly on the top of my list at the mo since the gain is just a shiny smarter looking the deck. I've therefore decided to buy a new platter (try & sell the old one) or perhaps go for the Krown with trade in as I do like the look of that too. That tho' requires a bit of extra thought due to more expenditure (oh help me!).
One of the few parts to survive. Anyhow been chewing this over after reading all these posts, whilst a new platter isn't exactly on the top of my list at the mo since the gain is just a shiny smarter looking the deck. I've therefore decided to buy a new platter (try & sell the old one) or perhaps go for the Krown with trade in as I do like the look of that too. That tho' requires a bit of extra thought due to more expenditure (oh help me!).
per-Sony-fied
Me in another jacket
I have been thinking of easier less abrasive methods that may do the trick but have no idea if any will work, like contact cleaner (seems to have numerous uses other than keeping switches clean), label remover, acetone, possibly paint stripper (sounds harsh but should be real quick) or IPA?
Does this matter? Can’t say I’ve ever polished mine.
John
Rack’em Up!
I seldom look at my LP12, much of the time I’m not even in the same room when it’s playing. My advice is to avoid handling the platter, especially the outer edge. Mine is 35 years old and still looks pretty nice.
per-Sony-fied
Me in another jacket
My platter hasn't received any treatment in its lifetime it has just aged gracefully. Can't say I've really been bothered over the years just that as time has moved on it is starting to notice especially now compared to the new inner platter that came with the Karousel.
You can strip the lacquer pretty quickly with careful rubbing of paint thinners on a pre-loaded swab/rag. I didn't want to go for the mirror polished finish, so used some worn scotchbrite (an old scourer) to 'rebrush' the existing finish. If you use a finger as a datum on the platter as you refinish, you'd be hard pushed to tell it apart from the original turned finish, takes a little practise, but it's pretty straightforward.
I applied some Meguiars Quik Wax to 'seal' the finish, but will probably re-lacquer it when I get a bit more time.
I applied some Meguiars Quik Wax to 'seal' the finish, but will probably re-lacquer it when I get a bit more time.