Metamorphosis of a 70's 'Superdeck'

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mafioso

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So I had this Dunlop Systemdek in storage for the past 15 years or so and decided to do something useful with it. Its proper nomenclature is 'Systemdek Transcription Turntable' and as you can see, it was expensively and innovatively made in Troon, Ayrshire Scotland, back in the day. Koff...koff...did I hear something about wimp-looking Linn LP12's? ;D

IMO one of the most innovative, yet forgotten decks. It weighs a ton and yet is surprisingly compact with a nice low profile (approx 45 x 36cm). Among the innovations, the sprung suspension and leveling is adjusted from above.

I originally bought it for the Supex mc cartridge on it but almost immediately stored it as I got involved in my first Garrard 301 plinth project.

The Systemdek also had a severe affliction - the high tech Nextel paint finish had become soft and sticky and there was no cure for the problem, other than to strip the ol' gal bare - something which I had some practice with in my youth ;D

OK. So I got out the airbrush, various sandpapers and a goodly supply of Windhoekies. Here you can see the result.

'Plum' metallic auto basecoat/satin clearcoat applied on auto matte grey primer. The latter undercoat applied to bare masonite and extruded aluminium.

The painting (by airbrush) was relatively easy but the Nextel took 3 full days to strip. Numerous applications of paintstripper only made things worse. Thinners didn't work at all and acetone finally turned the Nextel into an ever tackier, sticky tar-like  goo. So, scraping by hand and blade finally did the job.

So, here she is. Ol' mafioso presents
 

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