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OM style carts suck!
So, i had some stanton trackmasters, the concorde style ones, and i wasn't too impressed with them. I looked around extensively and decided eventually to go with something cheap and reliable, the industry standard recommended Stanton 500 AL II.
Little did i know what a pain in the ass these things are! When i got my concorde style ones, i just slipped em on, hit play and was ready to go. with these, they sat for 5 days before i even opened the package because i knew it would be a pain.
so, i got up this morning, and decided to put them on. first step is
"if the ton arm requires the cartridge to be mounted by screws from underneath, screwing inot thread holees in the tone arm, then use the BLUE plastic peice. you will probably need to use the 348 brass screws."
"if your tone arm requires cartridges to be mounted by screws from the top, use the two BLACK pieces and one pair of the #2-56 screws.
Well.. how am i supposed to know? I eventually looked it up in my technics manual, but a lot of people would have no idea, and no manual. turns out i am supposed to use these plastic blocks. so, i try this. first thing i realize is, there is no mini screw driver provided. I get out my multihead driver, but alas, no bits small enough to fit in these screws. i guess i will have to go buy one of those eyeglass toolkit things. but, it's early, nothing is open, and i am still in my pajamas, so i grab a butter knife, which fits perfectly.
so, after looking at the cryptic, badly photocopied diagram, i eventually figure out how to attach the plastic blocks to the "wings" of the cartridge. I try to put in the screws. If you have ever tried to screw something together, where the pieces are very small, and nothing is stable (ie it's all loose and sliding around) then you will know how difficult this was, especially using a butter knife. suffice to say it took me awhile.
then once i had them mostly tightened, i got the overhang gauge out (another thing most technics owners probably don't still have), and tried to line it up properly for the right overhang. unfortunately, the screws were a bit too close for the headshell, and moving it was difficult, it kept wanting to slide sideways. Also, the wire leads are in the way, and keep trying to push it the wrong direction
I got it pretty close to lined up, the right distance, and the right orientation, and screwed it in. well, almost until i got to the point that i realized my butter knife wasn't going to cut it, because there is a channel for the screws, and my knife would not fit. note to anyone who buys cartridges like this a knife will not do, you must go and buy a watch or eyeglass tool kit.
anyway, i realize that there are some bolts that came with my technics, (in a little bag it took me ten minutes to get open with my teeth), and i realized those would fit in the channel, making it possible for me to screw in the screws all the way with the knife.
now, here is where i screwed up. i UNSCREWED the screws, put the bolts in (which kept falling through the holes sideways), and tried again, with the technics screws (as opposed to the stanton ones, which were just slightly too small for the bolts) I figured that the technics screws would carve new threads nicely in the plastic, since they were bigger. Unfortunately, i was wrong, they won't go in now.
so, i'm basically fucked. I have $1300 worth of turntables, and $80 worth of carts and needles, and i can't get them to work, for lack of patience, a proper toolkit, and a tiny plastic block.
anyway, if you read all this, save your self the hassle, just get the ones that screw right on
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I have one 500AL-II on one TT and a black Ortofon Concorde Pro S on the other TT. I'd rather pay the $80 or $90 and get something that I can install immediately, has better sound quality, and looks fly as hell. 
