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Need advice on a headshell wieght for a JMW9 arm?

I recently set up a Scoutmaster in my 2 channel rig. I installed a new sealed "old" stock Benz Glider (from the first run series) over this past weekend. The Scoutmaster counter wieght maxes out my stylus gauge at 1.6 grams. The reccommended wieght for the glider is 1.8 to 2.2 grams. VPI sells a chunky little 3 gram counterwieght. Since I only need .6 more grams, I think it is overkill. Can anyone recommend something less bulky and intrusive. And hopefully something that won't make me have to re-align the cart (I am a newbie, and can't believe I nailed it my first time, on a nude stylus to boot. Man does this vinyl stuff sound good!!)

Thanks in advance for your help.
judsauce

Showing 2 responses by dopogue

dopogue
1,773 posts
 
My own main arm is a JMW 10.5. I personally prefer to have the counterweight
as close to the pivot point as possible and have never experienced any tracking
difficulty with that approach. In situations like yours with lightweight carts, I've
simply affixed some small pieces of Mortite (plumber's putty) up under the
headshell where it's not noticeable, and smoothed them with a flat tool of some
kind. This also provides a bit of resonance damping, and it's easily removable if
you decide to try something else. If it doesn't offend you esthetically, it should
do the trick :-)
dopogue
1,773 posts
 
Mortite doesn't harden for at least a couple of years after which you can simply remove and replace it if you haven't switched to a different cart by then. Frankly, it's never hardened for me. It also allows a great deal more weight precision and better resonance damping than the "best" way, aside from being cheaper than dirt. But to each his own. Blu-Tack is okay too, BTW, but steer clear of the look-alikes such as Fun-Tack which can become gummy and runny if exposed to the least bit of heat. Dave
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