Tarheel Posted August 10, 2019 Share Posted August 10, 2019 Am I the only one who has replaced a cartridge only to find the pins are either too big or the leads too small? Ordered a Nagaoka cartridge and the leads fell off each time I went to put the others on. Tried a Clearaudio Virtuoso Wood and the leads from the tone arm were too small for the pins. Tried crimping the leads for the Nagaoka and a cartridge pin fell out or broke off. Was able to use a paper clip to reopen the leads after crimping but what a frustrating experience! Luther diagnosed the problem as "Gremlins"😑 Is it time to leave vinyl to you young folks? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wardsweb Posted August 10, 2019 Share Posted August 10, 2019 Reminds me of an old Hee-Haw line. If it weren't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all. Gloom, dispair and agony on me. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnJ Posted August 10, 2019 Share Posted August 10, 2019 41 minutes ago, Tarheel said: Luther diagnosed the problem as "Gremlins"😑 Is it time to leave vinyl to you young folks? I have had different carts to install several times and this situation is a setback. Gotta maintain your patience first -off, then do you have any needle nosed pliers? I mean small ones and a thin head slotted screwdriver? That would be for compressing or opening the female ends respectively. I don't have a desk with a bright light anymore so I went in the bathroom and worked on the counter with the four 60W equivalents above the 3 X 4 foot mirror last time this happened with me. Be careful to not damage the wire insulation also. If you mangle a set, don't worry you can buy new leads all over the place. AudioTechnica used to make some excellent pfoc? copper leads that were bigger diameter (less resistance) or AudioQuest makes some that you might even improve the playback of your lps. But seriously the models you listed are pricey, they should have very good leads with them. You are talking about leads that are totally separate from the tonearm right? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tarheel Posted August 10, 2019 Author Share Posted August 10, 2019 7 minutes ago, JohnJ said: I have had different carts to install several times and this situation is a setback. Gotta maintain your patience first -off, then do you have any needle nosed pliers? I mean small ones and a thin head slotted screwdriver? That would be for compressing or opening the female ends respectively. I don't have a desk with a bright light anymore so I went in the bathroom and worked on the counter with the four 60W equivalents above the 3 X 4 foot mirror last time this happened with me. Be careful to not damage the wire insulation also. If you mangle a set, don't worry you can buy new leads all over the place. AudioTechnica used to make some excellent pfoc? copper leads that were bigger diameter (less resistance) or AudioQuest makes some that you might even improve the playback of your lps. But seriously the models you listed are pricey, they should have very good leads with them. You are talking about leads that are totally separate from the tonearm right? Thanks for the response John. Yes I have small screw drivers and fairly small needle nosed pliers (maybe not small enough). I am talking about the leads coming out of the tone arm (tiny little fragile wires with female ends). One of those wires broke originally that started this chain of events. Yes the Clear Audio was pricey ($800) and the pins are more sturdy than the Nagaoka ones for sure. Luther rewired the tone arm for me after my misadventure. The head shell was glued on, the glue had to be soften with heat, and the shell was replaced with a Luxman shell. I have installed quite a few cartridges but never ran into different pin sizes before. Just wondered if this was common. At any rate I think between the shaking hands and farsightedness I have a limited future in this particular media. There's always bingo right? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnJ Posted August 10, 2019 Share Posted August 10, 2019 28 minutes ago, Tarheel said: One of those wires broke originally that started this chain of events. That's the way my newest tt is, the leads are built in. I did have to tighten them just a little to get them to fit snug on the cartridge pins. T i t vs tat... don't know if it's better than the $$ leads that came with my cart. Hope you can get it straightened out. Have you touched base with @cincymat since he came down here? With the menus you've posted up here for us to ponder while eating sloppy-joes you might be able to get him to swing by if y'all aren't too far apart. He has a fine setup himself! JJ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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