Beogram 4002 (5513): Adjusting Chassis, Platter, Tonearm Limits and Tracking Force

The restoration of the Beogram 4002 (5513) that I am currently rebuilding is coming to an end. Today I adjusted the sub-chassis and the platter, and then I did the tonearm limits followed by a calibration of the tracking force. The first step is always to do the plater to finalize the arm to platter distance before doing the arm lowering adjustments. There are two videos on my YouTube channel that show how to adjust the platter bearing and the subchassis (in a Beogram 4000, but the process is very similar in the 4002).

This is an impression of the end result of the procedure:

The platter sits centric in the cutout in the main aluminum plate and is flush with its surface.

On to the arm adjustments. This shows arm lowering limit adjusted to prevent the needle from hitting the lower parts of the 'ribs' on the platter:

This is an important adjustment in case the photosensor fails in the detector arm. There is no failsafe circuitry in the control system to prevent an erroneous detection of a record if there is none and lowering the needle onto the platter. If the arm limit is properly adjusted, this will only result in a nervous moment for the user, but not the loss of the stylus. There is another video on my youTube channel that shows how to adjust the lowering limit. 

The next step was to calibrate the tracking force adjustment wheel. There is also a video about the tracking force calibration process. Before doing this I always install a M3 nut to replace the flimsy retaining washer that is supposed to hold the adjustment screw of the counterweight in place. This shows the original setup

and after installing the nut:

Then it was time to adjust the counterweight to get the right tracking force at 1.2g before tightening the nut:

And then this Beogram was ready for the first test-drive! I selected a recently acquired record by Miles Davis. Sorcerer is definitely one of my favorite jazz records. And such a great cover! Here is an impression:

Ah..beautiful! Very Beolovely! And did I mention that this Beogram was outfitted with my 4002 Commander remote control? It allows the control of this deck without using the keypad to preserve it for the long term. They suffer from the acids and grease in the skin, and so it is best to simply not using them to preserve the looks. Check my Commander page for more info if you are interested!