Saved from the Fire...
This deck belong to Brian Cua. It was one of the two 1200s used in Bed Bar in Malate, Manila.
When fire broke in Bed, the firemen sprayed water in the 3rd floor and all of the excessive water flowed straight down in the 1st floor where the DJs booth was located. This turntable and it's pair were submerged and caught the debris from the fire rushed by the water. The pair had been there for quite sometime until the fire investigation was done. Brian asked me if I could still work on them and bring them back to life. So first thing I did was to check if the circuits of the main board was still working. Unfortunately, they were dead and the pitch controls too. It took me more than 2 years to find a surplus working main board. The tonearm section was in real bad shape. Tonearm clips were broken and pivot bearings were corroded with rust.
Main frame was scraped and repainted to super gloss white using polyurethane automotive paint. Same painting procedure with the tonearm section. Pivot bearings were thoroughly cleaned and removed the rust. Bearings were also lubricated and main arm was cleaned. The rubber base were painted to flat black and platter was scraped, repainted to white and refaced. New pitch control was installed as well as the aluminum pitch decal ornament. Strobe, 33/45 and pitch zero indicator were replaced with super bright white LEDs. Pop up lamp was also converted to LED. RCA cables and connectors were also replaced with high quality and durable ones, ground wire eliminated and internally grounded. Pitch knob was also repainted to match the body.
Unfortunately, the other pair was beyond repair. Some parts used in this deck were also salvaged from its partner to keep at least one deck working.
Before and after pictures below...
When fire broke in Bed, the firemen sprayed water in the 3rd floor and all of the excessive water flowed straight down in the 1st floor where the DJs booth was located. This turntable and it's pair were submerged and caught the debris from the fire rushed by the water. The pair had been there for quite sometime until the fire investigation was done. Brian asked me if I could still work on them and bring them back to life. So first thing I did was to check if the circuits of the main board was still working. Unfortunately, they were dead and the pitch controls too. It took me more than 2 years to find a surplus working main board. The tonearm section was in real bad shape. Tonearm clips were broken and pivot bearings were corroded with rust.
Main frame was scraped and repainted to super gloss white using polyurethane automotive paint. Same painting procedure with the tonearm section. Pivot bearings were thoroughly cleaned and removed the rust. Bearings were also lubricated and main arm was cleaned. The rubber base were painted to flat black and platter was scraped, repainted to white and refaced. New pitch control was installed as well as the aluminum pitch decal ornament. Strobe, 33/45 and pitch zero indicator were replaced with super bright white LEDs. Pop up lamp was also converted to LED. RCA cables and connectors were also replaced with high quality and durable ones, ground wire eliminated and internally grounded. Pitch knob was also repainted to match the body.
Unfortunately, the other pair was beyond repair. Some parts used in this deck were also salvaged from its partner to keep at least one deck working.
Before and after pictures below...