I had my Torpedo case powder coated and took lots of time masking things off in order to avoid these issues. Sorry I didn't notice this earlier or I would have walked you through how to do it...
Actually, I believe it was considered proprietary until fully standardized. It was more or less Apple's implementation of a standard that then became another standard. I have talked to people that knew it as Chefcat.
I'm an expert too! Signed some lawyer papers today on what could best be described as a laughable work situation. Next time we have drinks I'll have to fill you in
How much force on the cart and where is the counter weight? Do you feel like you need more wight on the headshell in otherwords?
Also, getting it level can be fun. Try and not extend the feet unless you have to. At least one should be all the way in, in other words.
Once you set the height, the set screw on the bottom collar can be tightened. I think there are three? One is to the bottom left of your red circle. Not too tight though.
I never replaced the stylus guard. Assuming the lift is adjusted and is up, what could possibly happen?
I used a headshell weight with my Ace Space / Bloom combo. Beware of magnetic parts if you go this route. I personally would just stick a 1cm^3 piece of blue tak on top of the arm where it is centered on the cart.
Get ready for crazy dynamic range.
I'm considering finding a 19th century Parisian maker, specifically ex-Vuillaume shop, like Hippolyte Silvestre, Jean-Joseph Honoré Derazey, Charles Buthod, Charles-Adolphe Maucotel, Télesphore Barbé or Paul Bailly. I cannot imagine a safer investment. Perhaps in a year or two.
There is definitely variation in cost even in the highest bracket. But, I don't really need to use that fact. Remember the instrument market isn't dominated by musicians, it's dominated by Asian collectors. They don't play the instruments, they just hoard them.