Wally Tractor

jcoat007 · « **on:** 26 Nov 2003, 04:21 am »

Anyone here use a Wally Tractor? I just got one along with a Wally VTA Guage.

I cannot imagine setting up a turntable without one. It is so precise, and each one is made for your individual arm/table combo. After going through the setup, I have come to the conclusion that you are just guessing if you don't have one of these.

Any comments? Anyone found any other way to get your arm/table/cartridge this dialed in? I can see why Micheal Fremmer raves about this.

Steve

BWentler · « **Reply #1 on:** 28 Nov 2003, 08:16 pm »

I have been looking at Wally stuff for sometime but with a loss of my last job and the acceptance on one at a 30% pay cut, my wish list will need to wait a little while longer.

I have VPI HW19 mkIV table with VPI JMW 10.5 arm and I am plaining on getting his:

WallyJMW Tuning Kit
Wally Tractor
WallyScale, Mechanical

Was his stuff hard to use? Did you call him for assistence?

jcoat007 · « **Reply #2 on:** 1 Dec 2003, 03:54 pm »

He is a absolutely fantastic to deal with. He has incredible knowledge and gives very good advice.

IMHO - I would get the Wally Tractor first and get a Shure Stylus Force Guage for $20 instead of the Wallyscale. These two items will allow you to get your rig set up precisely and accurately. Once you see how precise it is, you will wonder what you were doing previously. It made a huge difference in my system.

The Wallyscale might be more accurate than the Shure, but the Shure should get you very close. I think the Wallytractor is indespensible.

I also got his VTA Guage, because I have easily adjustable VTA. I put a mark at two positions which shows me a 180gram pressing and a regular or thin pressing. Now adjusting the VTA is a snap and it is much more accurate that when I was guessing.

The sound that I am now getting from my turntable is simply sublime.

duff138 · « **Reply #3 on:** 1 Dec 2003, 05:18 pm »

what did you use to set your cartridge alignment before the Wally Tool?

jcoat007 · « **Reply #4 on:** 1 Dec 2003, 08:08 pm »

I used a DB Systems Protractor and another little gizmo that I cannot remember where I got it. The other Gizmo is a mirror with two sets of squares and you align your cart by moving the mirror back and forth from one null point to the other. I found the DB Systems protractor to be difficult to understand, and not nearly as precise.

The Wallytractor does take some time to get your cartridge aligned perfectly, because the tolerances are so small. Your are literally trying to get the stylus in a groove that is just a small scrath on a piece of glass. Wally does send along a helpful magnifying glass, which is the only way to magnify everything to make sure you are getting the stylus in the groove.

Go here for his detailed instructions:

http://www.simplyblack.net/pdf/WallyTurntableSetupProcedures.pdf

Go here and click on Wallys Vinyl Corner for all of the stuff he sells:

http://www.simplyblack.net/

There really is no other method out there that is this exact. And each one is custom made for your arm/table combination. He even told me that my pivot to spindle distance was wrong and I needed to move the pivot point a specific distance from the spindle. There is just no way that I could have known that on my table. But he knew immediately when I sent him my measurements. I have a Nottingham Sapcedeck/Spacearm and anyone else out there with this table should talk to him. The armboard can rotate around and he mentioned that armboard placement is very inconsistent on this table. Anyway, Wally is awesome to talk to, full of knowledge and will get your table dialed-in like no other.