Need A Quote- Just a bit curious at this point.

[Dougie085]

Alright I'm building a turntable here pretty soon (the HiFi kind) and I'm just a bit curious what it would cost for someone to turn a platter for me. Really shouldn't be a hard job. So there are a couple things I'm looking for right now. The first is the material. I want to use a very dense hardwood if possible. I want the total thickness to be 5" and then about the diameter of an LP maybe a tad bit wider (1/8"?). Other then this it just needs to be as close to perfectly flat on both sides and then the top edge I'd like to have a slight chamfer around the top edge. So if anyone has any suggestions for material and as to about what it would cost to do this I'd be greatly appreciated. I understand that the material alone may be some what pricey.

[Dougie085]

In case someone doesn't know what I'm talking about

http://www.hifigear.co.uk/site/scrip...roduct_id=5821

This is about what it would look like. You wouldn't have to worry about the hole in the center or any of the mounting. Basically I just need the standard platter it self cut. It could be done in acrylic or polycarbonate but I don't think that would be to cheap? Probably more then hardwood. I also don't expect to find a piece of hardwood that thick. I would guess would have to find a few pieces that are 1" or so thick and then laminate them together. I think this would look neat anyways there would be some interesting stripes on the sides.

[Dougie085]

I'm kind of surprised with the lack of replies here? If I had a lathe or even access to one I would do this my self no problem. Unfortunately I don't. But regardless should be a really easy job. Not trying to start anything just saying. Maybe it's such a small job that its not worth it?

[Dr Honda]

Hi,

Well… I think it’s that most people looking on here don’t want to be bothered with a single part. They want to make a run of parts. (job shop style) Also, most guys don’t want to put wood in a metal lathe because it makes a mess out of it. Lastly… you made a reference to “Cheap.” Most shops don’t what to deal with people with that mindset.

I’m not trying to be an a$$... I’m just saying the truth.

If you want it out of a plastic material… I can do it for you. But, as you know… plastics can be expensive in a large chunk. Also, my shop charges $65/hr for “Shop Time” and $100/hr for “Spindle time.” So, it very well be a few hundred dollars by the time it’s done. (for a single part) It may be cheaper if it were made from aluminum.

How big is an LP. I don’t think I own one anymore.

[Dougie085]

The only thing I mentioned the word cheap with was the material. I fully understand that the work it self can get rather expensive. Like I said previously if I had a lathe I'd turn it my self and obviously if the cost starts to get high buying a lathe may be an option lol. Aluminum would be kind of nice just didn't think it would be less money then wood or plastic. The other issue is I need to cut out holes in the bottom for the magnets as it will use a magnetic bearing system. So not sure how easy it would be to do that on aluminum...I guess if the magnets were smaller I could use a drill bit obviously.

I believe an LP is about 11" wide I'll have to find one around here to measure or something but pretty sure that's about right.

[Dr Honda]

Actually… aluminum is relatively cheap. I’m a small shop, and I don’t buy huge quantities… but I can get 6061 for as little as $2.20/lb delivered. (and it should be going down soon) In most of the parts that I produce (motorcycle parts for Victory) the aluminum is almost a non-factor in the pricing. A $100 part will have $1 worth of aluminum. The Polishing, Chroming, machine time, and hardware is where the expense is at.

But, if it were a solid block of aluminum… (11x5) it would weigh around 45 Lbs. The Aluminum would cost about $120-$130… But a quick search for nylon… it would run around $500 for a 12x12x5 hunk. Yes, wood would be cheaper… but like I said before… I don’t think anyone will put it in their metal lathe.

Have you looked local to you for a wood shop? The only problem there is, they would have to be able to cut an 11” OD part.

[Dougie085]

I haven't really looked for a wood shop. I figured some people on here may do wood work but not sure?

Do you really think an 11x5" thick piece would weight that much? I guess 120-130 isn't bad even so though. All though 45lbs may be a bit heavy for what I'm doing haha. I could probably just use a jasper jig with my router and cut out some 1" layers and glue them together.... Would probably be pretty consistent that way. I'll have to think some more like I said before just kind of starting to look into it for now.

[MrWild]

Well, I don't see wood doing a good job as a platter. Except for the wow factor of being different, you'll probably end up with wow and flutter. If I were you and thinking cheap, I'd grab a maple cutting board from a store. It's about 3/4" thick, multisegmented, and flat on both sides. Someone here with a router (JGRO?) could cut the shape and the magnet recesses. You don't need a high precision machine to do what you want to do. My home built router isn't done yet or I'd offer to do it for cheap just because its different. I think you should ask on the router forums.

[Dougie085]

Well I've seen several good high quality DIY platters that were built out of wood. It would be hardwood so not anything like plywood or anything. I have thought about doing it out of bamboo cutting boards before. Figured bamboo would be pretty consistent as far as density and what not. The magnet holes should really be easy.

[dpotts]

Do yourself a little experiment and try making one out of MDF(Medium density fiberboard). You can pick up a 4'x8' sheet for about $20 US Dollars.It is consistant as far as density and easy to cut and laminate using wood glue.It is cheap and may solve your dilema.

[Dougie085]

Yeah I know all about MDF. My friend has some plyboo (bamboo plywood) this is not the stuff that is just plywood with a bamboo veneer the entire thing is made of bamboo. I thought I may try and make one out of that stuff. I've thought of using a cutting board before as well. I don't really want to veneer or paint the platter so I would rather not use MDF.

[harryn]

If you want precision and balance, then Al is going to be much better than wood, and pretty much any decent shop can make it for you to tolerances that begin where the wood cutters stop.

I am not sure if that is required or not, and the wood might make for a "fun" platter.

In any event, mass is just one way to manage wow and flutter, you really need a feedback loop. Even my sub $ 200 turntable from the 80s came with some kind of light source on the side that was part of a frequency lock loop arrangement.

BTW - thin layered veneers of quality wood bonded and vacuum bagged together are pretty impressive.

I think it is going to be touch to find a commercial shop to take on the project for less than the product you linked to. If your goal is to achieve it for perhaps 1/2 of that, then it might be useful to consider posting on craigslist.