-edible zone-
--circa late 1950's early 1960's. The beginning of the Stereo
era.
The Thorens TD124 was sold as a "motor unit" only and
required the addition of a tonearm and cartridge in order to complete
it. .....and let's not forget about the cabinet you were going to need
to hold it. You had to buy that too! Of course the authorized Thorens
dealer would have inventory at hand to fully equip the TD124. The ESL
S1000 tonearm was a common choice offered by dealers to their customers
in North America.
--more info via a product berochure:
(click thumbnail to view full size image)
-- Minimum tracking force on this arm was / is 2 grams. The ESL 1000 had a dynamic tracking force feature by means of two adjustable spring tensioners that would maintain a set tracking force under all conditions. Read brochure above for more info. There is no provision for anti-skate on this tonearm, which was common for the era.
#9
The tonearm park stand. No latch. Dynamic tracking force
(spring loaded) in combination with gravity would serve to keep
the arm parked in its holder....if left undisturbed.
A vintage Dexter Dextrafix arm lift. Note: this is from a time when most
tonearms did not come with an integrated cue lift. And so accessories
such as this were invented to serve the purpose. Ortofon had their
Hi-Jack. Decca had one similar in configuration to the Dextrafix.
Below are some shots of the tonearm / turntable as received. (TD124 sn7888)
As can be seen in the photo, the tonearm mounting base was
cracked/broken. I repaired this using Devcon epoxy liquid metal. Then
sanded and repainted the housing in flat black. The repaired piece does
not indicate the repair and is as structurally fit as was the original
part....which is to say that it is somewhat fragile and should not be
over-tightened when mounting to the armboard.
I sold this arm,
complete with armboard, park stand and the Dextrafix lift to a fellow
enthusiast back around 2008-9. Should I have kept it? I did not think so
at the time. Now, in 2021 I recall that it was a nice enough specimen
but the headshell had been molested with a grinder. (as can be seen in
Photo #9