Halloween 2025: Group Photo #9

 October 9

At first I thought I'd write about finding the Crawl DVD at the dollar store and then finding the soundtrack at Half Price Books, but then I stopped myself. Wait a minute. I can do better than this...

    There. That's better. 

    The only thing scarier in the water than a shark fin is a pair of gator eyes skimming the surface. Of the five movies, Lake Placid gets my vote for most fun. I remember watching it in the early 2000s with my buddy Rob. Man we laughed. Every time I look at that cover I think of that.

Yikes. 

Halloween 2025: Group Photos 1-8

    Daphne and Charlotte took a girls' trip to Minneapolis last summer to shop at the Mall of American and IKEA. They returned with new clothes and new room decor items for Charlotte. I helped with mounting Char's new white IKEA shelves on her wall, so I knew exactly what I was looking at when I found a black IKEA shelf at Goodwill. 

    I mounted it in our basement so I can display the sleeve of whatever record is currently playing and what record is up next. 

    Last week I was looking at my different collections and thought it would be fun to also put movies and books together on the shelf. I put eight displays together, and now I want to see if I can get to 31: a different display for each day of October. I'm going to take a picture of each display, and write something about what is on the shelf. I'm not writing reviews,  just random comments. 

I think the Local H concert poster sets the tone nicely. 

October 1

    This is where it all starts for me. 

    In the fall of '83, the TV was running commercials that proclaimed, "FROM THE MIND THAT GAVE US 'SALEM'S LOT, AND THE VISION THAT BROUGHT US HALLOWEEN, COMES FEAR ON FOUR WHEELS: JOHN CARPENTER'S CHRISTINE!" Man, I wanted to see that movie! A high school kid who fixes up a really cool old '50's car and uses it to get the girl and get revenge on his enemies? I was in! 

    Too bad Mom was out. I was 13, the movie was rated R, and there was no way my mom was going to let me see it. She did buy me the book instead, and that's it on the right. It was my first time reading a Stephen King novel, and it was longer (and thicker) than anything I had tackled before. I was really proud of myself when I finished it, and I think that's why I've kept it for so long. When I finally did get to see the movie, I realized that the book was way scarier, and way raunchier. Yay! (sorry, Mom).

    The soundtrack for Christine was the first album that ever I bought. My sister and I had a small stack of 45s to share, but this was my first LP. Pop culture circles back about very 30 years or so, and the record is full of songs from the 50's which my friends and I thought were cool. I bought the soundtrack at the Musicland store in the Empire Mall in Sioux Falls, SD.

    I might get rid of the Christine DVD. The Blu-ray is an upgrade that I just purchased last weekend. I'm glad I had the DVD for this display, though. 

October 2

Another first. The Night of the Living Dead VHS tape was the first actual movie that I owned. I bought it new in 1984 at the Walmart in Sioux Center, IA. 

   Due to a missing copyright notice on the title card, NOTLD has been in the public domain since it was released in 1968. Finding a cheap, scratchy transfer on DVD was easy, and the "Millennium Edition" on the left was a revelation when it came out in 2001. The movie looked good for once, there were all kinds of extras, and Stephen King wrote the liner notes. As you'd expect, the Criterion Collection's Blu-ray release on the right is far superior to the DVD. The DVD has different extras, so I'm hanging onto it.

    In the middle is the colorized DVD edition. It's interesting, but the added color is not my thing. Mike Nelson of MST3K fame does a commentary track. Meh.

    Inside DVD was a monthly publication that only came out on DVD. One side had trailers, movie shorts, interviews, and other promo materials. The other side had a full movie that was either an indie film or a movie that was in the public domain like NOTLD.

October 3

1973's Psychomania is another 80's VHS tape I purchased from that same Walmart. It's a weird movie with non-gory zombies who ride in a motorcycle gang called The Living Dead. I'm a sucker for horror/ transportation mashups. The middle DVD is from a dollar store. It has a murky, non-anamorphic widescreen transfer. The Severin DVD on the right is the winner. The owner of the label intros the film, and he talks about the VHS tape that we both own. I want to get the Psychomania soundtrack on LP. I just bought it! Yay Discogs!

October 4

In the early 2000's someone donated a collection of movie novelization paperbacks to the Animal Lifeline Thrift Shop in Des Moines. I bought quite a few of the horror books for a quarter each. Here's three novelizations of Amicus horror anthologies. Tales from the Crypt has a segment that's fun to watch during the Christmas season if you like seeing a deranged killer in a Santa Claus suit. I have no problem with that.

October 5

Some more novelizations with their DVD brethren. If I remember correctly, in Blue Sunshine, Billy Crystal's older brother Richard runs out of from a party screaming when it's discovered that he's wearing a wig. Then he returns screaming and pushes a woman into a burning fireplace. Say no to drugs, kids.

October 6

    Whew. That's a big jump in quality. I went from having a 80's track team slasher movie on CED and jumped right to the same movie on Blu-ray. I guess I couldn't find it on Betamax.

    If you don't remember what CEDs were, you can click ----> here.

October 7

    Speaking of Betamax tapes, there's Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge on Beta. It's on DVD there, too. I'm not a huge Freddy fan, but I'll pick up a film if it's in the wild (cheap in a thrift store, I mean). The novelization is interesting as it's a combination of the first three films. It also has a bonus chapter: "The life and Death of Freddy Krueger." I don't know if the book is any good. To paraphrase Rob Gordon, "I haven't quite absorbed that one yet."

October 8

    The Return of the Living Dead on Beta tape, DVD, and Blu-ray. All three were found in thrift stores over the years. I'd have a pretty hard time replicating that today.

Okay, that's eight displays. I'm all caught up. Let's see what I can come up with for tomorrow.

A Turntable Rescue: Part 2, Finding a Twin.

I did a double-take when I spotted this turntable at the West Des Moines Goodwill on Saturday. It's a Technics SL-B2 turntable which is exactly the make and model of turntable that I've been working on. What are the odds of that happening? I hardly ever see turntables at Goodwill, and now I've seen two of the same pieces of equipment in almost the same condition? Am I stuck in a time loop?

This turntable was just as dirty as mine was, but overall it was in a bit rougher shape. There was no headshell, and the broken tonearm looked like it had been used as a handle. I would have bought it anyway if the dust cover was intact, but it wasn't. Someone had inserted one of the cover's tabs under the hinge instead of into the hinge. The tab snapped off when they tried to close the lid. That's a bummer.

As for my dust cover, I bought some plastic glue that is supposed to dry clear and be "an ultra-strong adhesive." To test it, I used a small paintbrush to apply the liquid glue to the bottom inch of the crack. I tried to get the glue to wick into the crack from both sides. It dried to a "cloudy" finish. That's not a big deal. I'm going for stability, not for looks. It does feel sturdier when I open and close it.

I was disappointed that I forgot to take "before" pictures of this turntable project, so I took some pictures using the TT at Goodwill as a dirty stand-in. The grime on this turntable isn't exactly the same as what was on mine, but it's really close, and you'll get the idea of what kind of results you can get with a deep cleaning.

Okay, back to my player.

The inside of the base was really clean, thankfully. There's also a lot open space. That's nice because it makes getting to parts much easier.

A common reason that a turntable's speed fluctuates is because the pitch-control assembly is dirty. Two screws attach it to the base.

The pitch-control is the black mech on the left. There is small slit in the bottom that allows me to spray some DetoxIT inside. Then I work the wheel back and forth to clean the contacts. The speed switch on the right was sprayed with DetoxIT and worked back and forth as well. 

I added a drop of lube to the motor. The metal tip that came with the oil makes it easier to be precise.

I bought a digital stylus force scale just for kicks. I was curious how accurate the markings for the tone arm's counterweight are. I have it set at 1.5 grams. Looks like it's actually under that.

That's better.

The eBay seller who sold me a replacement spindle gear threw in a 3D printed overhang gauge for free.

That was nice, but I had no idea what a overhang gauge does. Turns out, the gauge tells you how far out the turntable manufacturer wants the cartridge to be in the headshell. You can't really see it in the photo, but it looks like mine is just a hair short. That's okay. I don't feel like adjusting the cartridge again. 

And that wraps it up. It's time to put this turntable in my lineup, and see how well it plays. A few tests runs have been successful, so I'm feeling good about it.

This was a fun project. I probably saved a turntable from the landfill or a parts bin. I also learned about cartridge alignment and overhang. I applied both of those lessons to my main turntable, and I have to admit that these adjustments made a big improvement in that turntable's performance. 

Big shoutout to YouTube and eBay. Thanks for all the help.

A Turntable Rescue: Part 1

You don't really find quality brand stereo equipment in brick and mortar thrift stores anymore. Anything halfway decent goes online to the highest bidder (curse you, shopgoodwill.com). So, I was surprised to find a Technics SL-B2 sitting on an ottoman in the Ankeny Goodwill.

I wasn't the first person to check out the turntable. I could tell it had already been inspected and rejected by some earlier shoppers. There were segments of a broken motor belt lying on top of the platter mat, and the broken stylus had been puled out of the cartridge and left next to the strips of belt. I don't think the cracked plastic lid impressed anyone. Also, the shell ring securing the headshell to the tonearm wouldn't budge. But probably the Technics' worst offense was how dirty it was. I wish I would have taken "before" pictures, but sometimes that doesn't really do the filth justice. 

It wasn't just dusty. There was layer of what happens to dust when dust dies. My best description is that it was covered with a light brown grime. It wasn't sticky, but I was sure to not let the turntable touch my clothes as I carried it to the cashier where I ran my card to pay the tidy sum of $11 (I rounded up a penny). The clerk said, "Keep this," when she handed me the receipt, "You'll need it when you return that. You've got seven days." She nodded her head in disapproval when she said "that" and looked at my purchase as if it had given her the finger.

"That" made me smile. Sure, the Technics needed work. But I had a hunch that this turntable was going to play music again. 

And I was right.

The first thing I did when I got it home was to check the power cord for damage. It looked okay. I then removed the rubber mat and the platter so I could see the motor. I plugged in the cord, released the tonearm, and swung it towards the spindle. Using my finger, I could feel that the motor's capstan was spinning. I could also feel a change in speed when I switched from 33 to 45 rpms. Good news. The motor appeared to work. That's when I tossed the receipt. 

I wasn't being cocky. I ordered a new motor belt from Amazon, and the predicted delivery date was beyond a week. I was officially into a new thrift store project, and it was a first! I hadn't rescued a turntable before.

The first "repair" was to remove the headshell. I carefully worked the shell ring back and forth using a pliers when my fingers couldn't do the job. I probably should have used a cloth to protect the ring, but it worked out fine. Once I got the ring to move a bit, I added a drop of Tri-Flow and worked that into the threads. Even though I got the ring to turn freely, the headshell was still stuck. It took some prying and wiggling to get the tonearm to release its grip. I can easily remove the headshell now, but it took a lot of passes with a q-tip dipped in isopropyl alcohol to get the end of the tonearm fully cleaned out.

The next item on my list was finding the right stylus for this cartridge. 

According to the manual I found online (love that I can do that), this isn't the stock cartridge that came with the Technics SL-B2 when it was new in 1979 or 1980. A previous owner had installed this AT13EX instead. Let's call it an upgrade. I ordered a replacement stylus from LP Gear. 

I got busy cleaning while I waited for the belt and the stylus to arrive in the mail.

The base of TT' came first. I tried to remove the grime with some isopropyl alcohol, but surprisingly that didn't make a dent. What really saved the day were these cleaning wipes that I bought a couple of years ago at Hy-Vee. They were selling them four for a buck since Covid was mostly in the rearview mirror. I bought 6 packs, and they have come in handy many times. I'll be sad when I eventually use all of the last pack.  

Cleaning a vintage item is rewarding for me. I get immediate results, and it doesn't take any talent or research. All I need is time, patience, and elbow grease. I spent about 90 minutes cleaning the base.

What was left of the rubber belt had hardened and adhered to the surface under the platter. I soaked it with a Q-tip dipped in isopropyl alcohol. That softened it up enough to peel it off. It did take some of the plastic's color with it. You can see the strip of damage the belt left behind.

You can clean out years of debris from tight edges and corners with cleaner, Q-tips, and toothpicks.

Up next was the plastic dust cover.  A shard of plastic jutted out awkwardly where it was cracked. I was able to pop it back in place with a little encouragement. It's lucky that the tab that inserts into the hinge is intact.

Novus cleaners/ polishers 1 and 2 did a decent job of removing a lot of the small scratches. Overall, the cover looks a lot more presentable. I don't love the cracks, but cover works as it should. 

The parts arrived in the mail around this time. Installing the belt is a snap. Just wrap it around the outside of the inner edge of the platter, put the platter on the spindle, and pull the belt onto the motor's capstan. 

The new stylus just snaps into place.

Then it was time to finally take a test drive, and.... eh.

I made a few discoveries when I played a record for the first time. 

1) I could hear music. Yay! But the music was really faint. I had to turn the receiver way up just to hear it. Boo.

2) I could adjust the speed of turntable's platter. Yay! But the needed strobe light didn't turn on. Boo.

3) I could play a record all the way through one side. Yay! But the tonearm didn't lift and auto-return to the cradle. Boo.

That's kind of disappointing, but the solutions were pretty straightforward. 

1) The problem with the faint volume was caused by me. I hadn't pushed the stylus all the way into the cartridge. The cartridge is sun-faded from age, and there was a bright strip of white that should have been covered by the sides of the new stylus. I'll admit this took well over an hour to discover. I should have used Occam's razor and traced my own steps first.

2) Here's the deal with the strobe light: it's supposed to flash rapidly at the rotating dots that are on the side of the platter. You can move the pitch or speed adjust dial to get the dots to appear as if they are going to the left (too fast) or to the right (too slow). When you get the dots to appear as if they're standing still, you're platter is set to the right speed, and you're hearing the music as intended. 

When the tonearm is moved inward, a power switch turns on both the motor (the platter starts spinning) and the strobe light. When the tonearm returns to the cradle, the switch turns both off. I figured the fuse was okay and that the strobe was bad since the motor would turn on and off, but the strobe wouldn't. So, I went to my friend eBay and found a used replacement. This solution worked, but there could have been other causes. 

Here's the non-working strobe light that I removed.

And here is where the "new" working one is installed. It's beneath that square circuit board above the round motor. I was in a hurry to see if this solution would work, so I'm using twist caps wire connectors for now. We'll see if I go back in to solder them... (Shhh. I probably won't).

3) Okay, now we're on to the solution for the non-working auto-return. Turns out that this is a common problem, and the cause is a broken gear on the center spindle. I ordered a new 3D printed gear from an eBay seller who included instructions and a 3D printed tool to assist me getting the gear into the right position.

Here's the installed gear.

 Here's the old gear and the tool guide.

I think it's cool that we live in a time when what used to be a really hard part to find can now be 3D printed and easily purchased. The auto-return now works as it should. Yay progress!

The seller also threw in a 3D printed 45 adapter, which was very cool since this turntable was missing one.

Finally, I used a cartridge protractor to make sure the cartridge and its stylus are aligned with the grooves of the record. I also set the tracking force to 1.5 grams.

Parting shots:

Parting thoughts:

No, this is no longer an $11 record player. Projects like these are like pet adoptions. The initial cost doesn't matter at all. It's all the vet bills that come later. I spent about $125 on parts and shipping. Half of that was spent on the stylus, but that's as it should be. Buying a new belt and stylus for a used TT is a no-brainer. 

I really like the idea that this 45-year-old turntable is getting a new lease on life. 

I still have a few things left to do, so I plan on writing one more blog post about this guy.