Garrard 301-Worth the effort?

Like everything...It is worth whatever someone ELSE is willing to pay for it! :)
I've owned, worked on, and know intimate details of the Garrard 301 first hand.

First step: determine exactly what you have from your friend's Grandfather.
First versions, and most desirable (aka fetch high $$$), are the grey "Schedule 1" classics. These had a plain grey platter (no strobe).
Second versions were creme colored and had a strobe platter.
In general, the grey versions have a grease main bearing and the creme colored ones have the later oil main bearing. There are some transition creme ones that have a grease main bearing and some creme ones have a plain black colored platter instead of the strobe platter.

Yes, the original wheels after 40-60 years are shot.
It's the laws of materials so do not let anyone convince you otherwise about old idler wheels. Buying a new one from the U.K. is not too bad and a worthwhile investment.
Especially if it gets the table running properly again.

IMHO at this point, get the deck running properly and sell it - especially if it is a grey one. In any case it is best to not modify, re-paint, restore, etc. any of it in any way. Leave it as orginal as you can and have it running properly. First and foremost you are presumably HELPING your friend. So UNLESS you simply love vintage stuff, enjoy tinkering with your turntable endlessly and have a "reference level" sound system. If you are more of a consumer and music lover (listener) and want something that once it is set up properly just works and works there are far better turntables made nowadays.

Now before some folks go bombastic and say WTF ...Yes, the old Garrard, Lenco, and EMT/Thorens tables have their place but they have their limits and require SUBSTANTIAL upgrade investment. Remember that they were built during a certain period of available technology and engineering. Plus their are no original warranties and service support is rather sketchy depending on where you live (and how much you like packing your turntable up and shipping it!).

Basically the older turntables require a great deal of money and proper knowledge to get the most out of them.
These are not really turntables to be fiddled with by novices or intermediates - either technically or financially. However they do produce some tasty results.
OTOH...when all is paid for, restored, modified, installed and done...do you REALLY have a vintage turntable any longer? eh....probably not.

So I say Keep It Simple and help your friend sell their Grandfather's turntable and have some extra cash in the New Year. If you need ANY free advice, insight etc. I would be delighted to provide it.

Happy Holidays!

Thanks. Like everything in life it is a matter of time, money and effort. I fiddled with 301's to my heart's delight and ultimately moved on (TW Acustic Baby Raven). Why?
Because the 301 appears simple but is actually quite complex and needs a BIG investment to reach its full potential - even when doing the work yourself.
Plus in the end I realized that I love music and not "fiddling" around all that much. I wanted to spend my time listening instead of constantly feeling like I was "auditioning" my turntable set-up.
Enjoy! :)

IMHO, the biggest "trick" is the idler wheel. If nothing else - buy a new one one from the guy in the U.K. ($100?).
The lower/bottom main bearing replacement made by Kokomo in Germany is another "most bang for the buck" upgrade as well.
301/401 idler wheels are quite intense from an engineering & manufacturing standpoint BUT they are rubber and they ALL outgas, shrink and harden with age. So unless they spent all their time in a cold place (dry ice, liguid Nitrogen, etc.) then they are are bad after 50+ years. Yes they may still run & have no flat spots but believe me the property of the material has changed significantly.
So why the controversy?
Well it is the idler wheel bearing that causes the confusion when changing idler wheels. So sometimes a new wheel needs to be burnished to fit an old bearing. Not a biggie but it is important to do it. The wheel must spin very freely and be of proper diameter to DRIVE the inside face of the platter properly. That is where the PRAT is at!
As for Plinths - old adage is very true. First separate/isolate the tonearm from the deck (most designs do not do this!) and heavier is better (the 301 base plate itself is VERY light!
Lastly, NEVER touch-up the platter - especially an early one! Whether grey or black those bare platters have a resonance to them (like a bell) and repainting will kill it! Do NOT paint them, add copper, etc. etc.. Nor do you need clamps or spindle weights!
MATS - get the Loricraft neoprene/cork strobe cut-out mat.
It is the absolute best - bar none! The original mat is BLAH! Nice to look at but not great sound. The neoprene cork is terrific and the the hole for the garrard strobe disk has a "pull down" effect on the record towards the spindle. I simply used some two-sided plastic tape in a few spots to keep it positioned on the platter.

Oh, one last thing...301 LOVES mass (no not the Catholic type! although... Gregorian chants by Enigma 1990("turn off the lights...") do sound very good on it!). By that I mean medium-heavy mass tonearm/lower compliance cartridges. So a modern example would be a Schick tonearm with a Denon DL-103R cartridge. Older example would be an ESL or FR-66 with an SPU cartridge.
I'm presuming that your friend GAVE you the turntable?
Or you purchased it from them?
Either way it is a very nice & worthwhile piece of vintage HiFi.

WOW - that's one helluva nice friend to give you a grease bearing 301!

Nope...not yet.

3009 is an OK start but preferably a Type II.
I do not know much about the type V on up.
All depends on the cartridge that you want to mate it with.

Ironically my listening room was damaged (water incursion)by the torrential rains of Hurricane Irene.
Fortunately no equipment was damaged at all but the carpet, walls, etc. got badly damaged. Still working on finding people to fix it up (to better than it was).
I run all tube equipment into stacked QUAD ESL57s with IMF/KEF subs.
Sad to have my system down right now with the Holidays and all - so enjoy yours when you can.

Merry Christmas! :^)