Review on 🎶 Experience Pure Audio Bliss with U-Turn Audio - Orbit Special Turntable (Maple)" by Gary Parker

I liked this player. I was in the market for TT$400, did the usual research, reviews, lots of reviews. I thought the idea of doing business with an American startup would be a good idea. My first TT arrived very well packaged. Very easy to set up. Everything was fine until I removed the shoe. Suddenly the speed started to change (strongly). The culprit was a dust cover rubbing against the edge of the record. It was very obvious and very annoying. I contacted UTurn and explained the problem. They said the cover was warped, they sent a new one. Same problem. They asked me to send my TT back so they could replace it with a new one. When UTurn inspected it, they informed me that the socket was not up to standard, but somehow passed quality control. Before I sent it back I noticed that the dust cover was not flush with the face of the skirting board. It was about 3/32 inch, just enough to touch the record. A replacement came and I installed it. I noticed again that the dust cover is not flush with the front edge. Everything was fine until I lowered the dust cover. Oh no, not again. The edge of the record rubs against the dust cover! Cover - no problem, nah - unacceptable. I also noticed that the original TT had a nice maple base. The second TT has a base that looks like 4 pieces of maple glued together. not aesthetic. I have contacted UTurn Audio and am waiting for their response. Depending on their answer I will either keep it or get a refund and buy Pro-Ject or Rega. Ultimately, I also noticed what other reviews have already said about the belt. I don't play 45s, but the belt holds its shape (the part of the belt that is around the radius of the motor pulley) on the first run. After a few turns it will settle down, but this is uncomfortable. I'm curious how long the belt will last. UPDATE: This morning (07/23) I received an email from one of the founders. He informed me that they have only seen 3 out of about 55,000 TTs that had this problem. I think I have two of these. How are the chances? He suggested I get a walnut baseboard instead since walnut never had this friction problem. It seems strange but I'll try. Given this ongoing annoyance, I suggested he extend the warranty for another 3 years. He declined, saying if TT had a problem after the 2 year warranty was up they would probably take it on. not the answer I expected. He agreed to send some extra drive belts and stated they lasted about 1,000 hours. They were responsive throughout the process, but if they had simply tried to close the dust cover before shipping, this whole issue would never have happened. First. As soon as I get mad I'll post an update. UPDATE: 07/26/18. I went nuts and installed it, record rub cover issue. The dust cover perfectly matches the walnut base. I would advise you to stay away from maple and use walnut. It looks great and sounds even better. I switched from a 2M Red cartridge to an Ortofon 2M Blue cartridge, a very noticeable difference. Worth every penny. There is nothing wrong with 2M Red. You can always upgrade later. This is a very good TT. IMPORTANT UPDATE 7/27/18 I went to level today and found that the walnut base is very badly bent. Decided that QC on three turntables was a lot less fun than sitting back and listening to vinyl. this one comes back. done with it.