Hi Mike- The main problem with mine was that the Cueing Cam assembly (that's the cam that is right under the pedestal that holds the tonearm-it's on the bottom side of the turntable) was not turning freely. After taking it off, I found that the shaft it rotates on was corroded slightly. Cleaning up the corrosion and oiling that shaft and cam-solved the problem of the Lab 80 not staying on. HOWEVER-I still have problems with it cueing properly and tracking properly. Still cannot get it to always shut off when the record is finished. I've have always owned this particularly Lab 80-having bought it new in college almost 40 years ago-so it was never abused. Just did not use it much the last 10 years or so-and there, in my opinion, lies the problem. The Lab 80 is basically mechanical-relying on a series of cams and levers to make all of the functions work. The lubricants used seemed to be a rather thick black grease-very prone to harden with age. It also is VERY finicky with the various adjustments to get it to properly work. S0 to your question "Is it cool or junk?" My opinion only-It looks COOL with the wooden tonearm-it can be made to play a record OK-but MECHANICALLY it is junk compared with direct drive or even belt driven turntables. Just too many parts-too much friction-to accomplish what is done with electronics today. Probably the best way to get it working right is to take it almost completely apart, clean off the old lubricant, and REASSEMBLE it-a rather daunting task! If you go that route-then suggest that you purchase a copy of a Garrard Lab 80 Service manual available from various sources on the internet or Ebay. Hope that this helps and GOOD LUCK!! Cheeers-Dave
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