Moving VPI TNT, Wheaton Triplanar, Transfiguration

There are only 3 things that can happen when shipping a TNT. 1) Damaged bearing, 2) Damaged arm, 3) Damage cartridge. Take the platter off. If you are worried about the platter not seating exactly on the spindle when you reinsert the platter, use the screw down clamp and remove the platter and spindle assembly as one piece. Take the arm off. This can be done by removing the 6 bolts that hold the arm mounting board. You can transport the tomearm, arm board and cartridge with stylus guard as one piece if you pack extremely well, BUT, if it were me, I would take the cartridge off to avoid any possibility of damage.

When you lift the plinth off your current support shelf, the feet will remain in place, therefore, you have no other option than to transport the feet separately.

If you have the TNT with air bladder support towers, take the air out of the bladder if you are shipping by air transport.

If you want to make the re-setup as easy as possible and still do as much as is practical to avoid damage, this is what I would do in your situation (in short, remove and pack separately anything that can move):

- remove arm board with tonearm/cartridge still on it. Secure tonearm to it's rest with strips of blue painter's detailing tape (strong, easily removable, and won't leave residue). Secure stylus guard with some of the same tape. Wrap the whole thing firmly in a generous amount of bubble wrap and double box. If you can, transport this yourself.

- remove platter and bearing shaft. Clean bearing shaft with alcohol and wrap it and platter separately from each other in bubble wrap and box.

- clean area around top of bearing well with alcohol and cover with a piece
of plastic packing tape to prevent any lubricant from spilling out. Better yet, use this as an opportunity to clean bearing well and relube later.

- remove rubber ball suspension and feet and pack separately. Leave corner towers attached.

- put plinth in a SOFT pillow case and wrap in lots of bubble wrap and
box. This is one of the reasons I would not let the moving co. do the packing; the plinth's acrylic can be easily marred if wrapped in anything that is the least bit abrasive.

- if you use a flywheel do the same as for the platter/bearing. Wrap motor assembly in lots of bubble wrap, making sure that there is A LOT of protection/clearance around the motor pulley.

- double box whenever possible.

Good luck.

An additional tip that helped me alot for setup later. This has to be done before you move it but it made set up at the new spot less frustrating.

The TNT has a large footprint and the detachable legs make actual relocation of the legs difficult I found when it got moved around. Especially if one person was doing it.
Making a template of the legs and motor/flywheel made setting it up much easier.

If it rests on a light colored isolation platform like mine did you can trace the legs and motor with a crayon or something else that is easy to rub off. Or you can get a large sheet of thick paper – the kind they use for krafts. Just prior to moving slide it under one area at a time. Trace again. When you remove it, cut out the holes for the legs and motor/flywheels. Put this template down on the new surface first and begin the assembly. When set up just cut the template out.
Cheers

Seems you are taking all the right steps. I would carefully read and engage your carrier with a full discussion of the specific insurance that will cover all your items. Having the carrier pack everything, while expensive, is the way to go. It is very important that the shipping manifest detail each item and that each item be valued at new prices (including taxes and shipping.) The latter needs to be done before the carriers truck moves anything. This all needs to be done before anything is packed. It is not unusual for the insurance to cost $5K to $10K as it should be a separate policy that is written just for your move and its goods. I went through a similar move about ten years ago and it took me two years to get a settlement from the carriers insurance company. I had to pay a lawyer about $3K. The insurance carrier, not the mover carrier, is the one to investigate. I paid $7K for my insurance policy. The covered damages were $109K. Remember insurance companies have a policy of delay, deny, deceive. It is what they are all about.

When I moved across the country, I packed the platter, the motor assembly, and the turntable seperately.. I took the arm myself with the cartridge well protected, and travelled with it in the glove compartment of the car.