Shure SME 3012 Turntable Tonearm + Headshells Lot NR

Own a piece of British record-royalty! Manufactured in England, the SME 3012 is the most sought-after pickup arm ever manufactured. My late father, Julian Hirsch, acquired his 3012 Series II in the early 1960s and used it for all Hirsch-Houck Laboratories cartridge testing through the mid-70s. If memory serves, it was mounted on a Thorens turntable that has long since departed this mortal coil. I recently found the arm while going through his estate and spent some effort restoring it.

The arm is fitted with an 88.6 gram one-piece counterweight, and over the years the rear arm extension sagged downwards under the weight as the isolating rubber aged and hardened. I obtained a genuine SME replacement kit, but this arm is such an early unit that its construction differed notably from the accompanying factory service sheet. In most 3012 Series II arms, two small isolation bushings ride on a long, slender "spigot" rod protruding from the main portion of the arm. This unit turned out to have a short, thick rod attached to the extension itself. The isolator was a single 1/2" long sleeve that looked much like a section of rubber tubing. I consulted with an individual experienced in SME repair, but he had never seen one like it and had no advice to offer. Working carefully, I machined the main elastic coupler to fit on the extension rod and come up with a workable arrangement. The large weight still causes a small amount of misalignment, but the isolator is centered, pliable and able to do its job properly. The arm lift damping pot has been topped up with the proper SME-branded fluid and operates with a feather-like delicacy. Remaining fluid is included with the arm (see pictures).

The four grommets on the arm mounting plate are another notorious wear item. The originals were hardened and cracked and have been replaced, again, with original SME parts. The original "bias" (anti-skating) weight survives and is provided with the arm. Both rider weights are included and the spring-loaded detent on the sliding weight is present and functioning (these often get lost). The plating and finish is in good to pristine condition, with no pitting or flaking evident. The arm bearing seems perfect with no discernable friction. All wiring is intact and I've verified electrical continuity between the head shell leads and base socket. Since I lack a turntable base large enough to carry a 12-inch arm, I have not been able to install a cartridge and listen to it. I located a number of old-style SME, Shure/SME and Ortofon branded head shells. These were at ground-zero of laboratory testing and have the scars to prove it! I estimate 1-200 cartridges were in and out of these over the years and they are included for historical interest - soldering iron burns and all. More practical are the two Lustre head shells. These appear unused and fit perfectly. Now to the bad news: The cable assembly intended to plug into the base of the arm and carry signals to the pre-amp is missing-in-action (probably with the turntable in Hi-Fi heaven). These do appear on eBay at intervals. As another alternative, there is an eBay seller who offers aftermarket kits to adapt the arm base to RCA phono jacks. In my opinion, this is the preferred solution.

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