Phonoland

I will be using a new 78 stylus made for the Pickering V15 cartridge on my 2025 TC, and I would like to know if there is a tracking force adjustment on the tonearm. Since the stylus requires 4 or 5 grams I want to adjust the tracking force to that equivalent level if possible (or necessary). I don't see anything that resembles a counterweight, so I am wondering what, if anything, needs to be done to play 78's. Thanks.

If you lift the arm and look underneath the pivot housing you'll see a spring attached to a bracket with a small screw.
There should be an opening in the front of the housing to turn this screw with a small jewelers screwdriver.

Thanks for your advice, I think I have found it. On the right underside of the pivot there is a spring from the pivot to a bracket on the fixed base, but no screw. On the left however there is a screw on the topside of the pivot and on the underside there is an irregularly shaped plastic spacer about 3/4" long that is compressible toward the screw and rests against a post activated by the cue lever. Turning the top screw clockwise raises the plastic spacer which lowers the equilibrium position of the tone arm, so that must be the tracking force adjustment. I suppose the length of the plastic spacer is to cover the range of motion of the tone arm.

The problem then is how to determine the tracking force since I have no gauge. The force certainly depends upon the cartridge weight. If I turn the adjustment screw clockwise until the spacer is high enough, it gives the maximum tracking force, which is the weight of the tonearm plus cartridge when in playing position. If anyone knows approximately what that force is (in grams equivalent) I would appreciate the information.

Make your own. Rig a balance using a 6" plastic ruler, a pencil, and a dime. A dime weighs 2.3 grams.

Balance the ruler on the pencil at the 3" mark. Place the stylus at 2 + 5/16 inches from the center of the ruler, and place the center of the dime at the number of inches from the center for the tracking force you need in grams.

Thanks Rchanger, but I've already sent info on basically the same gauge to montrose in a pvt.
It's crude but works.

I'm lucky to have several "real" gauges, a 70's vintage Shure balance gauge AND a prisine garrard "dial" gauge.

Montrose, here's a crude pic I made up for you to understand the workings and adjustment you should look for.

Thanks MT and RC. There is no screw associated with the visible spring going from a bracket to the back end of the arm underside, but there is an unseen spring between the irregular plastic spacer (light gray at the top center of photo) and an adjustment screw on the top of the pivot (seen in the second picture). I have three adjustable screws: the cue lever height adjustment, which I believe is the small vertical screw on the bottom of the base that adjusts the height of the post behind it and to the left, since turning this screw did adjust the arm height when raised by the cue lever; the second screw is a set screw facing the front that adjusts the set down position of the arm as described by RC in a response to my previous topic, and adjusting this did properly adjust the set down position on the record; the remaining screw is on the top of the pivot, shown in the second picture, that adjusts the position of the plastic spacer against the cue height post. I was able to adjust this using a similar balance procedure to those you described. I don't see any other adjustment possible. Let me know what you think. Thanks.

Thanks for posting the photo.
That style of arm uses an old-fashioned type of stylus pressure adjustment.
Simple... those series of HOLES that the spring hooks into.
You simply PICK a hole and measure the pressure.
Moving the position more towards the FRONT of the arm stretches the spring more, lessening the pressure, and vice-versa.

That's amazing, I never would have guessed. There are 14 holes, which is a fine graduation of force, and I am guessing that since the spring was on the highest hole, 5 grams would correspond to one of the lower holes. I am still wondering about the third adjustment screw with the spring, since the plastic spacer on its bottom rests against the cue lever post and would apply an adjustable force on the stylus opposite its weight. I don't see the need for it in cue height adjustment since that is taken care of by the screw next to the post.

montrose1504 wrote:That's amazing, I never would have guessed. There are 14 holes, which is a fine graduation of force, and I am guessing that since the spring was on the highest hole, 5 grams would correspond to one of the lower holes. I am still wondering about the third adjustment screw with the spring, since the plastic spacer on its bottom rests against the cue lever post and would apply an adjustable force on the stylus opposite its weight. I don't see the need for it in cue height adjustment since that is taken care of by the screw next to the post.

The top screw that adjusts the plastic plate is for raising the arm clear enough to set down on the rest post during the change cycle.
The lower screw also adjusts the mechanism from below, and shouldn't be messed with unless you know the clearances involved for the mechanism to work properly.
As long as the arm clears the restpost during change, and the cuing lifts enough off a record when activated, leave things be.

The 5 screws in the pictures are tonearm height (on top), tonearm setdown point, cue height difference, the cone bearing for the horizontal axis, and mounting the arm to the mechanism below. The last two are for taking the arm apart for repair.

That lower height screw is a differential adjustment between cue height and automatic cycling height.