I recently received a Beogram 4002 (Type 5503) from a customer in Oklahoma for a full functional restoration. It arrived professionally packaged in a Beolover-provided shipping container and so all went well. I extracted it from the box and put it on the bench:
The hood is still intact without cracks in the hinges area, but is badly scratched on the top. It could be polished or replaced with a perfect looking new reproduction hood:
The deck itself is in pretty decent cosmetic condition. The aluminum surfaces only have minor dings
and the keypad shows only light use traces:
It could last for many more years if finger contact is avoided by either using a soft cloth for operating it, or installation of a Beolover Commander remote control module, which enables controlling all functions of the Beogram without using the keypad.
The plinth is also in very good condition with nearly pristine corners:
I removed the aluminum panels and had a look:
As usual the transport lock bushings have completely deteriorated as is evident by their many fragments strewn around the enclosure:
This shows one of the locks. The bushing is completely gone:
The plinth guiding washers are also cracked:
A look at the carriage revealed that some work had been done previously as is evident by the presence of a Beolover tracking sensor light source (red) and the absence of the plexiglass "ruler" which allows the control system to detect the carriage position:
Luckily the ruler and all mounting screws were included in the shipment. Beolovely!...;-)
The small bent metal strip next to the screws is from the carriage end switch. I hope it can be reinstalled.
After this inspection, I plugged the unit in and pressed start. The carriage started moving and the AC platter motor came to life. All good signs. Of course the carriage did not stop at the LP set-down point, but that is no surprise without the 'ruler'.
In summary, this should be a straight forward restoration. Stay tuned!
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