Restoring the Beogram 7000 - Adjusting the turntable

My previous post covered how to change the necessary electronic components in the Beogram 7000. Naturally, the next step is to adjust the turntable and relubricate it, which this article will cover.

Adjustments and other common issues

I always adjust the turntables accordingly to the manual. Take a look at pages 5-1 to 5-5. It describes the process in detail and covers relevant topics, such as speed adjustments, chassis height, and centring.

New belts

The belts should also be replaced. If not, you'll start to hear wow and flutter, and you'll also notice that the turntable is having a hard time maintaining the right speed. There are only two belts that need to be replaced, as seen below, #1064 and #1021.


I usually order belts from a Germany-based company called BlackReel.

Lubrication

There are multiple parts in the turntable that need to be cleaned and lubricated. The original lubrication chart, as seen below, refers to lubricants that might be hard to get or are only available in larger quantities.

Reference: The manual 4-8.

You should systematically walk through the points of lubrication above, and clean all the parts of old grease. I use a Q-tip and lukewarm water to soften and dissolve the old grease.
Instead of using the recommended lubricant from the chart, I recommend the following:

• Use silicone grease for the rails, but choose one of high quality that doesn't harden or liquefy over time, such as the SMG494.
• Use an oil-free Teflon lubricant for the remaining points of lubrication, like the Weldtite TF2.

Other issues

I’ve read about other issues in various forums, but I have yet to encounter them myself. Some of the problems reported were:

• Broken solenoid
• Broken plastic tap on the sliding chassis (1120)
• Pulley wheel that, for some reason, gets stuck (1634)

If and when I encounter the issues, I’ll update this article accordingly.

If you have any questions, please let me know and don't hesitate to contact me. I still need to restore the dust cover and the RIAA preamplifier,r which the next articles will cover, so stay tuned.