i created an idler tire once from an o ring. it came out quite good. i put the o ring on to the idler and then i hooked the idler to a cordless drill, and then i let the drill spin and i flattened the o ring surface with a sandpaper. it worked like a dream.
Wanted to thank you for mentioning rubber renu a while ago. Never heard of it before and bought it then. Great stuff! Really brings old rubber to nearly new shape👍🏻
Hard to believe that in this day of 3D printers, one could not manufacture an idler wheel to work well with an off the shelf O-Ring that could provide a Manufacturer's spec. WRT WOW and Flutter, speed. My BX 100 was incredible. And I loved that I could play with the pots inside the case to optimize the sound laid onto the tape. I mean, the "Dragon" it was not, but if you knew enough about it, the "semi-Dragon" it could get close to.
Yes. The later version have gear instead of tire. But the control motor failure is another common failure of this deck. Original replacement of the sanyo motor is probably impossible to find. Modern substitution is available but will need drill or mod the screw holes. I also applied the ANT mod to it. It replaces the Dolby Switch CMOS with simple relay so that few Caps and resistors can be eliminated from the signal line. It greatly increased the audio.
@12voltvids: The cam motor getting stuck (dead spots) is not uncommon on these Nakamichi/Sankyo machines. I usually dismantle the motor, clean the commutator and brushes, lube front and rear bearing and put back together. Might be worth a shot with this one if it comes back with the same symptoms in the future.
Indeed. I've had one stick on a CR-7A. A tape tech cleaned up the motor and got it working, but after a year or so it gave up again. So the next time, he replaced the old motor all together. He said it required a bit of modification to make it fit the deck properly, but it now works like a charm.
@@stevebennett9750 Yes, I have heard that some tape techs that specializes in Nakamichi decks replace with a brand new similar motor and modify brackets etc. to fit. To ensure the cam system of the tape deck will work for 20 new years and not having a dissatisfied customer coming back after some time with the same problem claiming the problems was not fixed. It makes sense to do it that way if the goal is to have a long lasting deck and the customer is prepared to pay for the hours.
The mode motors tend to develop dead spots in that transport, mostly because the motor only runs when changing modes. I take them (the mode motor) apart, clean the commutator, oil the bushings and they're good to go. Sometimes if you just start a stuck one by hand they'll work for quite a while, but cleaning the commutator and brushes is best. If you put them together wrong they run backwards, so mark them first.
Those cam motors are notorious for developing flat spots because they don't turn enough to keep the motor clean. You may just find the deck acting up again by the cam gear not turning.
I still have my Nakamichi Dragon in my studio and all my cassettes from the eighties. I still listen to it often. It still sounds like it did when I bought it. The heads and transport are as good as it gets. OMG, I just looked on Ebay. Someone is offering one for $4950.00. Wow.
Wishful thinking. They are junk. The auto azimuth head systems fail left right and center. Threw many of them away back in the day. Should have brought them home to sell to suckers. Had i only known. Last one i saw was about 20 years ago. Gave the customer a 200 repair estimate to replace the transformer and fix the unit (lightning strike ) and they said toss it, which we did. Into the dumpster.
@@12voltvids Wow, I must be lucky then, because mine sounds really good. Do you have a favourite cassette recorder that, in your opinion, is reliable and high quality?
@@australianbloke3934 JVC tdv 1010, technics rsm275 are a few I have experience with. Sony had several tck series that were good. Teac v850 was also a well built deck.
@@12voltvids My Teac V850X has a bad cam motor. It was still doing its job, but with a horrible noise. Opened the cam motor up, and found that the rear bearing is just plastic and now beyond repair. Point is, the V850X might still be a well built deck, but nowadays all decks are so old that you really have to expect something breaking regardless what brand and model you go for. And what is important is to buy a model that is easily repairable and that you still can get spare parts to (and/or easy to find a second deck to use for spare parts). Just bo be clear, I do not disagree with you tips, I am just adding my own thoughts on these aging machines.
@@torstej they all wear out. The rsm275 control belt wears but at least the reel drive and capstan is direct drive. The tdv1010 is also direct drive. My decks are all very lightly used. Probably less than 100 operating hours as cassettes were not heavily used here. I always hated cassette tape as it has terrible sound. Used it only for the car. For home recording I used reel to reel or the hifi track on my betamax for longer recording. Then dat came along and that became my standard
I have that problem and everytime i turn the power on the head mechanism just goes up and down continuously. I noticed that some of those little arms (I have the BX300) are way to open and dont make contact and i think is my problem.
There is a lady in Calgary selling off all the bits and equipment from a vintage electronics shop. On Kijiji and facebook. Lots of knobs and rollers of all kinds, tons of the stuff. Styli NOS. Cables equipment impressive to see.
I own a Nakamichi CR-3A. It stopped working so I opened it up and wiggled the white nylon gear below the copper reed switches. It works now. But for how long?It sounds too good to give up on
One way to revive old and tired rubber parts: boil them in a hand sanitizer containing ethanol and glycerol! Dispense disinfectant e.g. into a metallic measuring cup (don't let your wife see this), put enough to soak the rubber part. Then, place the cup in boiling water and let it cook for a few minutes. Rinse the rubber part with water and dry it. Just some days ago I successfully revived the drive belt of an old Olympus dictating recorder - that belt was available nowhere, but now it works again like a proverbial charm.
Hi again, I talked to you about my Nakamichi 500 before. In play mode, it spins fast! As fast as fast- forward. You told me, most likely the problem is in the motor. Now, I changed the motor, it's still as fast as fast-forward. Any advice where else should I check or change? Thanks again.
Ok, I'm going to pull a BX-125 apart right now and see what is up with the tire on it. I think the home made split washer fell off that I made out of a package container. Put new rubber tire on 2 years ago and lost the fiber washer that was holding the wheel on.
Makeshift keeper washer was fine, cleaned the plastic mating surfaces with isopropyl alcohol and the rubber tire with rubber renew and now working. The replacement rubber tires are not as soft as original ones I think, or they have been sitting on a shelf too long. Got it off of eBay for not much coin, but you get what you get.
Those "idler tires" look like ordinary square cut seals. Commonly used in hydraulic assemblies they're a lot more expensive than an o-ring though which would work just as well.
Alive for a bit longer :-D i've never used copper wire for packing, but i have cut thin strips of white sticky parcel labels. But only on ff/rew pulleys. For cheap crap decks with a slightly slack motor belt, i elongate the motor bracket screw holes to allow pull back.
He is going to look for an o-ring that will fit. The guy that owns it is just archive his old tapes and once done will likely retire the deck for good.
@@12voltvids ok but that deck is one that is rare I have a pair of left 103.4 speakers that are mint but keeping them stored with silica packets to preserve them and I have a vic spit digital table that stopped working no spinning and that was found in the street vintage gear has the best reliability all metal and solid you really are fun to watch and very helpful be safe and careful all the best jon
@@tough213 I have a JVC tdv1010 and that is just a rare. Why? Because when new it sold for 1300.00 and not that many people were spending 1300 for a cassette deck in 1986.
@@12voltvids yes most would spend no more then 300 dollars and even for some that is a lot unless you are an audiophile I had a gold ring lenco turntable my pride and joy as well as a mint tasca 32 reel to reel and beringer 12 channel mixer and I was robbed and they took that and my 10.5 inch reel collection and I just have a take up reel they left all the 7 inch reels and the teac I have and so I really was angry I only got half the money back from insurance and I had an alarm anyway it is sad that quality is no how it was years ago insurance companies are really cheap with people's money I would love it if you can make a video and show what you have all the best jon
I have a question if we change the head on a cassette player will the frequency and sound quality of the recording change ?? I had an old Sony stereo that supported a recording frequency of 14,000 hz and a small portable Sony cassette player that supported a recording frequency of 10,000 hz. I changed his head with the one from the old stereo that supports 14,000hz recording frequency, I placed it on the small cassette player, I did head alignment and now that I did a test I see a difference in the recording quality! is this possible on what depends on the recording quality of the head? or from the system
to me however it worked somewhat, now the sound is louder and clearer than before, but my question is, to perform better the frequency of sound quality recording depends on the head ??? or from the cassette player circuit that gives the frequency?
@@12voltvids the recording has improved it writes clearer and louder than before, but to me my question is the recording quality and frequency comes from the cassette player circuit; it depends on the head?
![Mesmerizing 1930s Artillery Sprinkler [Restoration]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/NVgXvGDgq4Y/mqdefault.jpg)
i created an idler tire once from an o ring. it came out quite good. i put the o ring on to the idler and then i hooked the idler to a cordless drill, and then i let the drill spin and i flattened the o ring surface with a sandpaper. it worked like a dream.
Wanted to thank you for mentioning rubber renu a while ago. Never heard of it before and bought it then. Great stuff! Really brings old rubber to nearly new shape👍🏻
Good thinking , Teflon thread tape springs to mind as well.
As always you make great perfect with your great skill and magic touch and make any electronics to work like new all the best always be safe
Life saver! Been trying to troubleshoot this for ages! Thank you!!
Hard to believe that in this day of 3D printers, one could not manufacture an idler wheel to work well with an off the shelf O-Ring that could provide a Manufacturer's spec. WRT WOW and Flutter, speed. My BX 100 was incredible. And I loved that I could play with the pots inside the case to optimize the sound laid onto the tape. I mean, the "Dragon" it was not, but if you knew enough about it, the "semi-Dragon" it could get close to.
I had the bx150. I liked how the door could be removed to clean the tape path. S7-11 fluid worked great.
Great tip on the idler tire. There are also products that claim to renew the rubber but I can't vouch for them
Yes. The later version have gear instead of tire. But the control motor failure is another common failure of this deck. Original replacement of the sanyo motor is probably impossible to find. Modern substitution is available but will need drill or mod the screw holes. I also applied the ANT mod to it. It replaces the Dolby Switch CMOS with simple relay so that few Caps and resistors can be eliminated from the signal line. It greatly increased the audio.
How much of a difference did you notice? Was it just louder or Also clearer ?
That's a very clever trick ....Thanks !
@12voltvids: The cam motor getting stuck (dead spots) is not uncommon on these Nakamichi/Sankyo machines. I usually dismantle the motor, clean the commutator and brushes, lube front and rear bearing and put back together. Might be worth a shot with this one if it comes back with the same symptoms in the future.
Indeed. I've had one stick on a CR-7A. A tape tech cleaned up the motor and got it working, but after a year or so it gave up again. So the next time, he replaced the old motor all together. He said it required a bit of modification to make it fit the deck properly, but it now works like a charm.
@@stevebennett9750 Yes, I have heard that some tape techs that specializes in Nakamichi decks replace with a brand new similar motor and modify brackets etc. to fit. To ensure the cam system of the tape deck will work for 20 new years and not having a dissatisfied customer coming back after some time with the same problem claiming the problems was not fixed. It makes sense to do it that way if the goal is to have a long lasting deck and the customer is prepared to pay for the hours.
Great tip on the wire before o-ring!.
Won't forget this one, finding a good idler tire can be a challenge.
Pita for sure
excellent video, thank you
Thank you for your good advice rubbers wheels on cassette decks
What I have done before was go to the automotive store and get an assortment of O rings. I have used them on my tascam machines and worked fine.
The mode motors tend to develop dead spots in that transport, mostly because the motor only runs when changing modes. I take them (the mode motor) apart, clean the commutator, oil the bushings and they're good to go. Sometimes if you just start a stuck one by hand they'll work for quite a while, but cleaning the commutator and brushes is best. If you put them together wrong they run backwards, so mark them first.
Those cam motors are notorious for developing flat spots because they don't turn enough to keep the motor clean. You may just find the deck acting up again by the cam gear not turning.
Good repair ♥️
What a great idea with idler tyre
I still have my Nakamichi Dragon in my studio and all my cassettes from the eighties. I still listen to it often. It still sounds like it did when I bought it. The heads and transport are as good as it gets. OMG, I just looked on Ebay. Someone is offering one for $4950.00. Wow.
Wishful thinking. They are junk. The auto azimuth head systems fail left right and center. Threw many of them away back in the day. Should have brought them home to sell to suckers. Had i only known. Last one i saw was about 20 years ago. Gave the customer a 200 repair estimate to replace the transformer and fix the unit (lightning strike ) and they said toss it, which we did. Into the dumpster.
@@12voltvids Wow, I must be lucky then, because mine sounds really good. Do you have a favourite cassette recorder that, in your opinion, is reliable and high quality?
@@australianbloke3934 JVC tdv 1010, technics rsm275 are a few I have experience with. Sony had several tck series that were good. Teac v850 was also a well built deck.
@@12voltvids My Teac V850X has a bad cam motor. It was still doing its job, but with a horrible noise. Opened the cam motor up, and found that the rear bearing is just plastic and now beyond repair. Point is, the V850X might still be a well built deck, but nowadays all decks are so old that you really have to expect something breaking regardless what brand and model you go for. And what is important is to buy a model that is easily repairable and that you still can get spare parts to (and/or easy to find a second deck to use for spare parts). Just bo be clear, I do not disagree with you tips, I am just adding my own thoughts on these aging machines.
@@torstej they all wear out. The rsm275 control belt wears but at least the reel drive and capstan is direct drive. The tdv1010 is also direct drive. My decks are all very lightly used. Probably less than 100 operating hours as cassettes were not heavily used here. I always hated cassette tape as it has terrible sound. Used it only for the car. For home recording I used reel to reel or the hifi track on my betamax for longer recording. Then dat came along and that became my standard
The mode motor issue is tarnished contacts with the brushes etc. Common problem.
I have that problem and everytime i turn the power on the head mechanism just goes up and down continuously. I noticed that some of those little arms (I have the BX300) are way to open and dont make contact and i think is my problem.
There is a lady in Calgary selling off all the bits and equipment from a vintage electronics shop. On Kijiji and facebook. Lots of knobs and rollers of all kinds, tons of the stuff. Styli NOS. Cables equipment impressive to see.
You can always flip the idler tire inside out to make new again! Cheers!
I've done that with the square type drive belt on a cassette that rides in a v groove just gave it a twist to ride on the that was not used before
Tire flip has been an old goto of mine as well. I also like acetone for rubber renew.
Little strip of one sided foil-tape, wrapped around a few times, under the rubber-ring, might give better consistency maybe.
When I want to expand the diameter of an idler tire. I use 2mm wide 0.5mm thick 2 way sticky tape from 3M. Works extremely well. Under the idler tire.
Winding dental floss under the tire works well too as does thread, tape ect.
I own a Nakamichi CR-3A. It stopped working so I opened it up and wiggled the white nylon gear below the copper reed switches. It works now. But for how long?It sounds too good to give up on
Very easy to get brand new tires online. I order about 20 from a guy a couple months ago should be set for a while now
One way to revive old and tired rubber parts: boil them in a hand sanitizer containing ethanol and glycerol! Dispense disinfectant e.g. into a metallic measuring cup (don't let your wife see this), put enough to soak the rubber part. Then, place the cup in boiling water and let it cook for a few minutes. Rinse the rubber part with water and dry it. Just some days ago I successfully revived the drive belt of an old Olympus dictating recorder - that belt was available nowhere, but now it works again like a proverbial charm.
Mega Like! Thanx a lot!
Hi again, I talked to you about my Nakamichi 500 before. In play mode, it spins fast! As fast as fast- forward. You told me, most likely the problem is in the motor. Now, I changed the motor, it's still as fast as fast-forward. Any advice where else should I check or change? Thanks again.
Pinchroller
Is there a rubber belt containing fluid for the flywheels available. Or Armorall? Thanx.
Ok, I'm going to pull a BX-125 apart right now and see what is up with the tire on it. I think the home made split washer fell off that I made out of a package container. Put new rubber tire on 2 years ago and lost the fiber washer that was holding the wheel on.
Makeshift keeper washer was fine, cleaned the plastic mating surfaces with isopropyl alcohol and the rubber tire with rubber renew and now working. The replacement rubber tires are not as soft as original ones I think, or they have been sitting on a shelf too long. Got it off of eBay for not much coin, but you get what you get.
680zx still working like a champ
Thumbs up for the Casio digital watch.
That's interesting, I've never heard the idler wheel referred to as a tyre. Makes sense though. Guess it's like a car tyre on a wheel. I like it.
@Matt Quinn Hi Matt. Yes I understand that. Did not express myself very well. Sorry.
I clicked this one faster than you can say "Nakamichi"!!!
That is a nice deck. Would you know if the Denon DN-790R is any good?
I have that exact deck in my collection !
@@richardbrobeck2384 The one in the Video or the Denon DN-790R?
@@Jamesnov1970 the one in the video and I have worked on that Denon tape deck they make some nice stuff .
Those "idler tires" look like ordinary square cut seals. Commonly used in hydraulic assemblies they're a lot more expensive than an o-ring though which would work just as well.
O rings do work. I have used them.
Alive for a bit longer :-D
i've never used copper wire for packing, but i have cut thin strips of white sticky parcel labels.
But only on ff/rew pulleys.
For cheap crap decks with a slightly slack motor belt,
i elongate the motor bracket screw holes to allow pull back.
Teflon thread tape springs to mind as well
Can these parts be 3D printed?
My Nakamichi CR-1A had an issue like that, and it was a bad motor driver IC, took forever to diagnose
Good to know. I have a CR-1 & CR-3 still in the box from 30 years ago.
Dont Use My NAK 100E Much Needs New Tyre Sent For One From Germany Dont Know If It Will Be Good Or Bad Great Video Dave !! Regards mike.
a belt kit for this is available for $12 on Ebay
Cool Trick..
tape decks are great
I keep thinking there is a snake in the room whenever i play a sale due to all that hissing in the background.
The owner might want to look for a doner deck on ebay to use for parts or he might get lucky and fine a working deck again great job all the best
He is going to look for an o-ring that will fit. The guy that owns it is just archive his old tapes and once done will likely retire the deck for good.
@@12voltvids ok but that deck is one that is rare I have a pair of left 103.4 speakers that are mint but keeping them stored with silica packets to preserve them and I have a vic spit digital table that stopped working no spinning and that was found in the street vintage gear has the best reliability all metal and solid you really are fun to watch and very helpful be safe and careful all the best jon
@@tough213 I have a JVC tdv1010 and that is just a rare. Why? Because when new it sold for 1300.00 and not that many people were spending 1300 for a cassette deck in 1986.
@@12voltvids yes most would spend no more then 300 dollars and even for some that is a lot unless you are an audiophile I had a gold ring lenco turntable my pride and joy as well as a mint tasca 32 reel to reel and beringer 12 channel mixer and I was robbed and they took that and my 10.5 inch reel collection and I just have a take up reel they left all the 7 inch reels and the teac I have and so I really was angry I only got half the money back from insurance and I had an alarm anyway it is sad that quality is no how it was years ago insurance companies are really cheap with people's money I would love it if you can make a video and show what you have all the best jon
I have a question if we change the head on a cassette player will the frequency and sound quality of the recording change ?? I had an old Sony stereo that supported a recording frequency of 14,000 hz and a small portable Sony cassette player that supported a recording frequency of 10,000 hz. I changed his head with the one from the old stereo that supports 14,000hz recording frequency, I placed it on the small cassette player, I did head alignment and now that I did a test I see a difference in the recording quality! is this possible on what depends on the recording quality of the head? or from the system
It may not even work. Each different head has a different impedence and putting the wrong one in is not going to improve anything.
to me however it worked somewhat, now the sound is louder and clearer than before, but my question is, to perform better the frequency of sound quality recording depends on the head ??? or from the cassette player circuit that gives the frequency?
@@12voltvids answer my question please
@@amatorev it will change the performence but improve?
@@12voltvids the recording has improved it writes clearer and louder than before, but to me my question is the recording quality and frequency comes from the cassette player circuit; it depends on the head?
Have u done a nixie clock kit? Do u like them?
I have built 2 nixie clocks. You can search the build videos.
@@12voltvids ok will do thanks
Use cloth sewing thread instead of wire to wrap up
Good luck finding any if that here.