Garrard 301-Worth the effort?

In contradistinction to Jeremy's observation, I went from a Jean Nantais wood plinth using a stock Lenco chassis to a Lenco in slate cum PTP top plate, and I think the latter is somewhat superior sounding in every way. It is more neutral to my ears. One can always add flavoring via one's choice of tonearm, cartridge, phono stage. I prefer my tt to be as neutral as possible.

Hifi in general is subjective and comes down to personal preference. I personally felt the Slate plinths with the Lenco were cold and sterile, lacking tonality and emotion. I can see why you would want your turntable to be as neutral as possible, it makes sense. One thing is for sure, this is not a "one size fits all" hobby....ymmv as they say

Like everything...It is worth whatever someone ELSE is willing to pay for it! :)
I've owned, worked on, and know intimate details of the Garrard 301 first hand.

First step: determine exactly what you have from your friend's Grandfather.
First versions, and most desirable (aka fetch high $$$), are the grey "Schedule 1" classics. These had a plain grey platter (no strobe).
Second versions were creme colored and had a strobe platter.
In general, the grey versions have a grease main bearing and the creme colored ones have the later oil main bearing. There are some transition creme ones that have a grease main bearing and some creme ones have a plain black colored platter instead of the strobe platter.

Yes, the original wheels after 40-60 years are shot.
It's the laws of materials so do not let anyone convince you otherwise about old idler wheels. Buying a new one from the U.K. is not too bad and a worthwhile investment.
Especially if it gets the table running properly again.

IMHO at this point, get the deck running properly and sell it - especially if it is a grey one. In any case it is best to not modify, re-paint, restore, etc. any of it in any way. Leave it as orginal as you can and have it running properly. First and foremost you are presumably HELPING your friend. So UNLESS you simply love vintage stuff, enjoy tinkering with your turntable endlessly and have a "reference level" sound system. If you are more of a consumer and music lover (listener) and want something that once it is set up properly just works and works there are far better turntables made nowadays.

Now before some folks go bombastic and say WTF ...Yes, the old Garrard, Lenco, and EMT/Thorens tables have their place but they have their limits and require SUBSTANTIAL upgrade investment. Remember that they were built during a certain period of available technology and engineering. Plus their are no original warranties and service support is rather sketchy depending on where you live (and how much you like packing your turntable up and shipping it!).

Basically the older turntables require a great deal of money and proper knowledge to get the most out of them.
These are not really turntables to be fiddled with by novices or intermediates - either technically or financially. However they do produce some tasty results.
OTOH...when all is paid for, restored, modified, installed and done...do you REALLY have a vintage turntable any longer? eh....probably not.

So I say Keep It Simple and help your friend sell their Grandfather's turntable and have some extra cash in the New Year. If you need ANY free advice, insight etc. I would be delighted to provide it.

Happy Holidays!

Wow! I didn't realize this thread was still active. First, it is a creme colored, greased bearing, schedule 1a unit with a black platter in excellent shape. Really excellent, so it didn't need much work other than cleaning the dried grease and re-lubricating the bearing and linkages. I think I will go with white lithium grease for the bearing or possibly gun grease as the lower viscosity seems to be a benefit. It came to me plug and play with a vintage Garrard tonearm and Shure cartridge mounted on a homemade (weren't they all) plinth of 1/2" pine. Actually not a bad job.
It seems I will be making 2 plinths for this 301 and use the SME 3009 tonearm (non improved) I already have. I will see which plinth sounds better and possibly sell the other.
This plinth project is on hold for the winter as my outdoor woodshop isn't well heated and I prefer the warm weather.
The sides and tops of each plinth have been glued up and cut to dimension and only need to be joined. The delay is that I hate to cut dovetails while shivering. So for the winter, I will enjoy my HK T65C while I refurbish a vintage Dynakit ST-70.
First plinth is made of glued up 2" solid red oak. No plywood veneers for me. Weighs a ton and I may also load any void spaces within with more oak. Not sure if this is overkill, time will tell. Joinery will be glue and biscuit butt joints throughout.
Second plinth is the artsy one, glued up 1x curly maple with different patterns and colors to resemble inlay work. Left and right sides of the carcase will be half-blind dovetailed to the front and rear boards, while the entire carcase will be half-blind dovetailed to the top. The goal here is to use no mechanical fasteners other than the dovetail joints and glue to assemble.
Slate, marble or other similar materials were never considered as I believe they have a greater potential to ring and resonate.
From a resonance standpoint, the solid oak plinth should be superior. Although maple wood is a little "livelier" than oak when tapped by my fingers, we'll just have to see how it sounds.
Initial listening tests of the 301 on it's original pine base were encouraging. Barely any rumble or friction noises from either the plinth or cast chassis of the 301 listening with a stethoscope. Strobe test also looks good and steady, another pleasant surprise.
My next biggest decision will be how to stain and finish the final product to maximize it's character for the most visual "pop". A minor study will probably be necessary to research and determine the best way to mount the chassis and Tonearm to the plinth as well as providing isolation from the assembly's "environment".
Of course, a mock up version will also be constructed out of "off the shelf" materials till practice makes perfect.
Measure twice, cut once.
So yeah, it looks like a go, I mean, how can I pass up this opportunity. My plan is to keep 2 turntables, my dilemma is where to put them and keep the cats from messing with the anti-slate weights.
Thanks for keeping the thread alive, I appreciate the input. Sorry I didn't check back earlier.

Agreed with JHendrixfan to keep it to the pro restoration companies like Artisan Fidelity (thornton), Dobbinss ect, ect.. to get the most out of these vintage decks. I heard a modded Lenco in a big modern system before and it was just incredible and spectacular but it was also modded and plinthed by a pro who clearly understood what to do with the thing to make it sound that way. People think sometimes you can head to your garage, take your hacksaw, drillpress, sandpaper and whatever and do what the top restoration mod companies do but they are totally wrong. It would be like saying that since I can fiddle with a Chevy LS1 small block V8 that I can do what Lingenfelter does with Corvette, which is ridiculous..you guys get the idea.