The Penguin Posted February 6 Posted February 6 Kia ora tatou Has anyone got experience with fixing the dreaded Roksan sag? I’ve got a Xerxes that I’ve had since 1989 and it’s been fine all these years until a few months ago when the platter started to catch on the top plate. Annoyingly, it comes and goes, so that I never know if today it will do it or not- must be the weather… I’ve seen a couple of suggestions on the web. One is to put a woodscrew into the gap to pull the sagging section up and the other is to attach a metal plate or shim across the underside of the gap. Anyone tried these methods or got other suggestions? Particularly interested in thoughts about where the shim should go. Any thoughts gratefully received
e83cc Posted February 6 Posted February 6 I cut 3mm off the back of the top plate, clamped the plate to a flat bed, and then glued and screwed a 3mm aluminium bar across the back. Touched it all up ( paint ) to finish off. Also Roksan used to sell a kit to fix this which if I recall correctly simply used extra washers and bolts for the bearing to lift it slightly.
audiofeline Posted February 8 Posted February 8 Strange design by Roksan, I'm surprised they didn't think of how it would work in the long-term (or didn't care). I had a look on the web, and the video link below shows the screw fix - the plate is first pulled up to be level with the plinth, and the screw holds it in position. It looks like it would be worthwhile trying, if any energy is transferred via the screw there would be minimal contact and therefore minimal transmission. It is a quick, cheap and easy fix, and most importantly, it is easily undone if you don't like what it does, or prefer to try another solution. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xoef8CwabhM
The Penguin Posted February 8 Author Posted February 8 On 7/2/2025 at 2:11 AM, e83cc said: I cut 3mm off the back of the top plate, clamped the plate to a flat bed, and then glued and screwed a 3mm aluminium bar across the back. Touched it all up ( paint ) to finish off. Also Roksan used to sell a kit to fix this which if I recall correctly simply used extra washers and bolts for the bearing to lift it slightly. Thanks Nick, can I ask where across the gap you put the bar? (And did it solve the problem?) And that explains references to an apparently mythical solution from Roksan called “the shim”. Makes sense now.
The Penguin Posted February 8 Author Posted February 8 4 hours ago, audiofeline said: Strange design by Roksan, I'm surprised they didn't think of how it would work in the long-term (or didn't care). I had a look on the web, and the video link below shows the screw fix - the plate is first pulled up to be level with the plinth, and the screw holds it in position. It looks like it would be worthwhile trying, if any energy is transferred via the screw there would be minimal contact and therefore minimal transmission. It is a quick, cheap and easy fix, and most importantly, it is easily undone if you don't like what it does, or prefer to try another solution. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xoef8CwabhM Thanks Rob, I think that’s the same video that I got the idea from… As you say though, it’s easy to undo if it doesn’t work. I’ve done a lot of trawling forums and it seems that Roksan pretty much denied any responsibility for the problem. I have to say that I think it’s a wonderful record player when it works and for more than thirty years I’ve been smugly thinking “well, mine doesn’t do that…” but now that it does, it’s quite difficult to get any definitive advice. Guy 1
e83cc Posted February 8 Posted February 8 Quote Thanks Nick, can I ask where across the gap you put the bar? (And did it solve the problem?) So on my unit ( I used to sell them in the 80's ) it was the piece across the back of the top plate that sags. So I flattened it and ran the aluminium bar across the full width at the back. That fix lasted some years, then the centre where the bearing is mounted started to sag and the guy I sold it to added the Roksan fix - which was to lift the bearing and make sure the platter was level relative to the arm mounting simply by torquing the 3 screws holding the spindle as required. To be honest the mdf used in the early Roksans was very poor quality. If you are going to keep the TT for a while I would consider getting a new top plate made from birch ply or similar and get rid of the problem completely. Its not a big job with the ready availability of CNC machines these days. It is still a very good deck - the bearing is superb by any standard. 2
The Penguin Posted February 12 Author Posted February 12 On 8/2/2025 at 11:44 PM, e83cc said: So on my unit ( I used to sell them in the 80's ) it was the piece across the back of the top plate that sags. So I flattened it and ran the aluminium bar across the full width at the back. That fix lasted some years, then the centre where the bearing is mounted started to sag and the guy I sold it to added the Roksan fix - which was to lift the bearing and make sure the platter was level relative to the arm mounting simply by torquing the 3 screws holding the spindle as required. To be honest the mdf used in the early Roksans was very poor quality. If you are going to keep the TT for a while I would consider getting a new top plate made from birch ply or similar and get rid of the problem completely. Its not a big job with the ready availability of CNC machines these days. It is still a very good deck - the bearing is superb by any standard. Thanks, that’s all v helpful I like the idea of a new top plate, I need to have a think about this…
andyr Posted February 12 Posted February 12 1 hour ago, The Penguin said: I like the idea of a new top plate, I need to have a think about this… Instead of 'normal' birch ply ... howsabout Panzerholtz? It's available in several thicknesses.
e83cc Posted February 12 Posted February 12 Quote Panzerholtz Actually, for the Roksan Bearing/platter a lightweight approach would be a far better proposition - aluminium honeycomb sandwich or A less expensive form of carbon fibre is forged carbon fibre sheet used for tooling dies. CNC's beautifully as it is designed for tooling - like this https://kiwi-tooling-website.squarespace.com/cfp360 1
The Penguin Posted February 15 Author Posted February 15 On 13/2/2025 at 12:18 AM, e83cc said: Actually, for the Roksan Bearing/platter a lightweight approach would be a far better proposition Yes, I’d have thought panzerholtz would be too heavy for the Roksan suspension
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