English is not my native language. So I'll try my best to get my point across without too many errors here. I don't view myself as an expert on these things. Far from it. But I have serviced a lot of what I would call "mainstream" vintage players. Among them roughly 15-20 PL-51 and PL-71. Cleaning and lubricating the pots is of course necessary on all of them. But this model, and a lot of similar players, they usually also have 1 or 2 microswitches for selecting 33 and 45 speed, and turning them on/off. What you will see on most such players is, the speed is seemingly stable after regular service of spindel and pots, but the moment you start to switch between 33 and 45, the speed starts to drift. Because those already mentioned microswitches are worn out. It's easy to test this. While the player is running on for example 33 speed, push and hold down the 33 speed selector switch. You'll usually see the speed starts to drift instantly. I always replace those microswitches when I service a player that has such switches. Simply because they ARE going to be the cause of unstable speed. I would replace them even if it was possible to clean them. Which it's not. New ones are dirt cheap. And replacing them ensures that the player is going to run 100% stable for years to come, provided the caps in the power supply are replaced with new ones, and the pots and spindel are cleaned and lubricated. I would also have used a magnetic screwdriver to remove the bearing in the spindel shaft. Any dirt and particles are going to be located under and around that bearing, and is impossible to clean without first removing the bearing. On some players the microswitches are a pain to replace. But on the PL-51 and PL-71, they are relatively easy to deal with. Simply turn the player upside down, remove the bottom plate as you did, and then loosen the metal frame as well. That whole mechanism that holds those microswitches can then be taken out by loosening 3 screws. That gives you easy access to those switches, and the pots as well. This is just the way I prefer to service players. We all do things differently. All I'm saying is, the microswitches for selecting 33 and 45 speed, and for turning on the player, they are the all too often partly the cause of drifting speed. My philosophy is simply: satisfied customers = the best promotion there is.

@millervintagehifi3034

2 ай бұрын

Thanks for the thoughtful and helpful comments! I appreciate it!