Has anyone heard from Yip?

Good thing you posted this. I have used any number of protractors over the years and the SmarTractor is second to none. It is so much more flexible and accurate. It is wonderful to use even if you are an old guy with bad eyesight. Yes, it is twice as expensive. It is worth 4 times as much. I promise you will never regret spending the money on the SmarTractor.

MintLP $130.
Smartractor $800.  

Same here.  Contacted him well over a month ago.  No reply.

I also have the SmartTractor.  Ir’s expensive, but It’s allowed me to set up my cartridge despite my cataracts and floaters.  It’s still a challenge. The Dr. Feikert tool simply would not work for me because of the black background, which made it difficult to spot the cantilever/stylus.

I was an early adopter of the SmarTractor’s precursor, the UNI-Pro. I like it, although I have tended to use my 20-year old WallyTractor for my 9-in Graham. The current Universal Wally does not have curves for 10-in Grahams, which is what I need, and a custom WT for this arm is $800, I learned this morning. I’m used to using arc protractors, hence my reaching out to Yip, but $800 is more than I want to spend on single-arm tool.

Related question for UNI-Pro users. I have a Graham template and related micrometer settings. Are they specific to effective length? In other words, can I use them for a 9-in or a 10-in Phantom with the same results? I have an email in to Daniel asking the same question.

@mijostyn , @randyk , How do you find the tolerances of the SmarTractor, particularly the rotating structure that enables selection of geometry? I've heard reports that there's some slack in it.

@wrm57 

Unless you brutalize the tool, tolerances remain german tight. I think once you settle on an alignment, I use Lofgren B DIN, you never change the tool. As long as you are careful not to scratch the surface there is no reason the tool should not last forever. Always return it to it's box. 

The two tools I use the most are the SmarTractor and the WallySkater

I forgot the third tool, the Ortofon Tracking Force Gauge.