During the holiday season, I received another Beogram 4002 (5513) turntable for repair. My initial assessment showed that it was packaged very well, with some innovative methods used to protect it during shipping.

The dust cover was secured using soft foam blocks to hold the sub-platter and the RPM panel in place.

The MMC20E cartridge was also protected by foam and arrived in good condition.

Here’s the cartridge after unpacking:

The sub-platter was held securely with a precisely cut piece of cardboard, and the arm support worked effectively.

After removing the dust cover and back panel for inspection, the turntable appeared to be in good cosmetic condition and mostly original. However, when powered on, the carriage moved too quickly after dropping the arm at the 30cm mark. Closer inspection revealed a bent tracking sensor aperture lodged in the bulb housing.

This will need to be repaired. Additionally, the arm linkages are stiff, likely due to hardened lubricants, but cleaning and re-lubrication should resolve this.

The motor is running rough and will require disassembly, cleaning, and fresh lubrication in its sleeve bearings.

Overall, the turntable is in good mechanical condition.

Cosmetically, the plinth is in excellent condition. The aluminum panels would benefit from a thorough cleaning, and the keypad shows typical wear from use, although it’s not severe.

The dust cover would also benefit from polishing, as is common.

There are no significant issues with this Beogram. It has the potential to be restored to excellent condition.