real pivot to spindle distance in sme 309 tonearm

The SME website shows the pivot-to-spindle distance as 215.35 mm which I believe is the correct distance to obtain null points approximating Lofgren's A alignment with DIN groove parameters or null points between Lofgren's A and Stevenson's alignments with IEC groove parameters.

It may be that the manual is stating the original tone arm design parameters, which were changed to accomodate the desires of consumers that complained. (That's based on this forum post:
http://db.audioasylum.com/cgi/m.mpl?forum=vinyl&n=353366&highlight=sme+m2-9+tonearm

Tom

I forgot to add that the pivot-to-spindle distance is only part of the equation. It's the effective length (232.32 mm) that really matters since the SME 309 headshell does not allow any adjustment for overhang. The tone arm has to slide backward or forward to get the correct effective length if a cartridge has a somewhat nonstandard stylus-to-mounting bolt distance.

Tom