Hi there :smoke:
Um.. where do I begin ?
Just a quick thanks to all involved with the post entitled X-1000 General information... The step by step guide to belt replacement helped me no end with a most exciting recent X-2000 purchase that has quite frankly has left me drooling for a week now (yay) :music: after not being able to do anything for 6 weeks ... so, thank you Vintage TX if you are out there... the deck was stored for 15 years, when i got it, the transport was jammed up and required a new belt..I have also really enjoyed reading the posts and threads left by all... so thank you, but I need a little more help..

Problem 1: My X-2000's left tension arm starts to wobble, up and down when either a 10 1/2 " or 7" reel gets to a certain point... usually in the last 1/3 to 1/5 of tape on the supply reel side. the funny thing is, it doesn't happen all the time, only every 2nd to 3rd tape.. regardless of back coating, tape wrapping or the tape itself.. that is to say that the same tape will sometimes cause wobble or not.. this looks bad but also i noticed the supply reel does this little dance in time with the arm which although kinda cute, leaves me with fears of wow, flutter, pitch gymnastics and frustration.
Problem 2: hmmm... oh, and the left arm seems to get stiff when at the lowest point, when I got the deck it was sort of stuck, I moved it up and down and it freed up.. a quick inspection inside revealed no obstruction or point of lubrication.. Has anyone out there had this stiff tension arm problem ? um.. how do I fix it ?
not sure if the two are related, although it would seem to make sense as the arm wobble is intermittent.. Just one alst thing, I did see the post regarding the trimpots for tension adjustement and thought it may be mechanical (the arm) rather than electrical (i.e. the tension) Sorry for this huge post and thanks again :)
Mimmo

Hi Mimmo,

Im glad the X-1000 post helped you.
What you are describing can be tricky to pin-point so if you can answer a few questions for me that would help.

# Take the left tension cap off without tape loaded on the machine and check if the roller is turning freely, put one small drop of light machine oil on the felt-cap around the center axel and test again.

# Does the L-tension roller act the same on both low and hig speed ?

# New fresh tape and 7-1/2 speed, same thing ?

# Try with a 10-1/2 inch good tape brand like Maxell UD if you have one Mimmo, and press F-forward, does the reels slow down after 50 % loaded on the take up side ?
Fforward all the way thru the tape and press Rewind, check if the speed is different after 30 seconds.
Reason why I ask this a worn out reel-motor can create the problem you describing, but do the first tests first and let me know what you find.:thmbsp:


Let me know what you find

Hi Vintage :)
Thanks so much for responding.. I will do the checks first thing when i get home from work... and post my findings...can't thank you enough for the help.
please tell me if I waffle on too... I'm new to forum's.. ;)

I can answer the first question: I did take the roller off when I first got it to clean the tape groove part with Isoprpyl... I also cleaned the roller shaft, and lubed with ceramic grease (Tamiya) and spun as i put it back on to spread the lube.. there appears to be very little to no friction, I can re-lube with machine oil if you think that's better...
I have not really used it in 3 3/4 ips to comment on the other questions..

A curious thing I noticed after first posting this thread is that I loaded a freshly unwrapped UD 50-60 1.5 mil non-backcoated (I'm sure you know the specs) and found it to be behaving abnormally, the off tape sound is unusually crappy and dropping out in one channel (left), the tape itself, is undamaged and the other one I opened seemed fine ?!?! They are however the earlier variety of Maxell tape, so it could be age.. I'm confused... i will check the same tape on a different deck tonight too..funny, I thought thicker tape meant better tape head contact, again, confused... the tape path and heads are spotless, so my question is, does the thicker tape base cause a change in the head to tape pressure and is this the problem ? all the UD 35-90's I've used so far are perfect and sound amazing regardless of the manufacture age... Does this suggest a lazy spool motor tension ? oh, and both the tension arms are what I would think to be a little low when playing a tape, just below the middle of the inertia and the other guide wheel on the right side... I will also take some photo's to explain myself better..
I love this machine and will do whatever I can to bring it back to full showroom condition, it's seriously in near mint condition and the electronics are quiet as a mouse..
i will also perform the rest of the checks you suggested, Vintage, and post again :)
Cheers

Hi again,

The 50-60 tape that didn't sound good, can be the age.
If you have any 35-90 or 18-180 laying around try that and see how it sound.
There is one thing with both your model and X-1000 R, pinch-rollers need to be soft and in good condition.
Pain to adjust right in some cases, the forward direction can play flawless and then reverse direction start acting up.
In some cases switching the rollers from L to R can help but replacing both is the best way.
Your cleaning and lube on the tension-roller was a good move, just leave it like that and do the other tests now,

Good luck

Forget to ask, what deck is that in your avatar ?:scratch2:

Oooh... so glad you asked... a 'true blue' stunna (in my opinion)... It's my full track, all tube, Rola 77 -serious broadcast machine, made in Melbourne Australia in the early 60's, i use it to bump vocals off Pro-tools to tape for the tube and tape compression, and capture back into the digital domain for mix down... as a mic pre, recording gtr amp (with it's little internal spkr) or just listening to mono material I have dubbed... WARNING, sales pitch ahead: if anyone doubts tape compression for anything, try a full track machine at 15ips or halftrack for stereo... wowie ! It took me 3 years to find this one in such good shape (in it's original 'portable' case, otherwise they are racked)
Best link I've found for these decks..
http://users.chariot.net.au/~debpeter/Rola_77_Mk_III.html
(hope links are allowed ?!?)
I love it... he he...

That is a cool machine:thmbsp:
Never seen one like it before, isn't that amazing when you find a goldmine like that, I understand with the 15 speed and fulltrack that thing must sound great !

O+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++++++++++++++++++++++
+

:scratch2:A kryptic message or ?

Allo again peeps... Mr. Vintage,
well, here are my findings;
# Take the left tension cap off without tape loaded on the machine and check if the roller is turning freely, put one small drop of light machine oil on the felt-cap around the center axel and test again.
We covered this one :thmbsp:
# Does the L-tension roller act the same on both low and hig speed ?
Yes.. speed seems to make zero change, same wobble at the same rate regardless of speed - 3 3/4 or 7 1/2
# New fresh tape and 7-1/2 speed, same thing ?
Yes to this one too... three different types of freshly opened (yum) Maxell, an XL-I 35-90 7" (black box with silver, last type made) and UD 35-90 (Early Gold box type with Blue and later version white box type with blue and black) and also a fresh out of the sealed box, later cardboard only BASF LP35 all with the same wobble, although I'm almost certain the 50-60 tape is having more trouble trouble than it's thinner siblings...
# Try with a 10-1/2 inch good tape brand like Maxell UD if you have one Mimmo, and press F-forward, does the reels slow down after 50 % loaded on the take up side ?
Phew... no... I was quite worried about this one, but she passed with flying colours :) No slow down, in fact, took off from the get go, no slow down approaching, during and following the midway point, if anything got a little faster just beyond the midway point, from a blur to a faster blur.. also tried rewind and same awesome speed... makes my B77 seem kinda slow ;).. test tape: 10 1/2 " Maxell XL-I (mid-late 80's)
So a couple more observations and notes of interest for your consideration:
*When i apply mild pressure on the supply reel flange, the tension arm stops wobbling and lifts slightly, the more pressure, the higher it goes, but the wobble is gone.. hmmm.. I remember another post that mentioned the tension adjusting trimpot, which if you agree the rollers are low when play is engaged may indeed be the problem (see attached pic).
*The deck is an X-2000 only, and has no reverse (which I like cause I have to get up and flip those reels, joy!... okay, I know.. it's sad...)
*The deck is running off a stepdown transformer 240V-120V as it was a US version only (it is a high quality isolation transformer unit with ample current 2.2A available at 120V) so my only reason for mentioning it, is if the deck's voltage regulator design is not super and any subtle voltage drop may impact the voltage being fed to the supply and take up motors, this may also explain the tension drop, however I have not dug into the schematics yet.
*All the tapes I have used so far i have bought from ebayers at nasty prices (postage to Aus) so they are still sealed and , I can't say the same for the 10" reels i have, but as far as 2nd hand reels go they are all well maintained, VCG Maxell UD's and XL-I's... if anyone wants to sell me a reel or two of sealed XL-I at a reasonable price considering postage ;)
*Pinch rollers are still kinda soft, not fractured and no hard spots I could find.
Have i left anything out ? thanks again.
mim :smoke:

Whoops... sorry about that earlier one... my cat, I think ?

Sorry again, I forgot the photo's.. and thanks Vintage, the Rola just sounds so familiar and (cringe) warm... That Akai of your looks tasty, never have forgiven myself for letting a friend carry away my minty little D-230 that i bought second hand (my first real deck)... ah the GX glassy goodness...weep.. alas, I have never seen her again.:thumbsdn:

These photo's I took while the deck was in play mode, and running at 7 1/2 ips... thankyou
mim

Ok, good test-report with the reel-motors, they are not causing the problem.
So no auto-reverse on yours ?
Thanks for the pictures of the tension rollers, seems normal as the right one always has a lower position on the take up reel.
How much does the left tension-roller move up and down in the slot on playmode, 1 inch or less ? :scratch2:

So what is the hz in Aussie, 50 or 60 ?

No Auto reverse :( but it's in such beautiful condition, even the buttons are shiny silver ;)
Australian power is 240V 50Hz (bloody colonial who-har) although I checked the schematic and didn't see any difference between the AUS model supply rails and the US post transformer, same line voltages, would the frequency difference effect the performance somehow, I can't see how, as the General export model doesn't seem to adjust Freq. but I don't claim to know everything.. he he...

and in answer to you previous question, no, only a quarter inch at most however a nasty side effect is the supply reel jumping, it's not overly violent but very scarey to watch nontheless.. I'm troubled by it.. you know..
What's your favorite deck ? My decks are: baby X-3, X-2000, ReVox B77 and the Rola 77, well, 3 Rola's but one operational and two in waiting boxes that are for rack mount that i honestly haven't had time to check out, all from the same original location in Sydney.. I am hoping to use the best parts of all three to make one or two super decks, and maybe convert one amp module in to a dedicated custom mic/DI pre for recording, as they are a bit special ;)
and as you agree, the sound off tape @ 15 full track is stunning, albeit mono.

Oh.. and if you meant how much does it move up and down in general, over the course of a reel being played sart to finish, and not the wobble, still only a qtr inch or so... no matter where the tape is on the supply reel, the tension arm is in pretty much the same spot, start to finish until the wobble kicks in... Is that weird ? it has freed up, only seems to get stiff at the lowest extreme (resting place), above that it seems springy and free..
also, looks like that wobble is now happening ealier into the tape play... so not just near the end 1/4 of the spool... :thumbsdn:
here is a fuzzy shot of both arms in action (play mode)
better go sleep :boring:
:)

The frequency difference shouldn't effect it on this model as it has dc motors, but not so sure when you use a transformer.
I know some friends overseas with similar problems.
Teac made 4 models in the 2000 series:
General export model, USA /Canada model, Europe model and finally UK/Aus.
Does yours have a voltage selector on the inside ?

There is only two things I can suggest checking to solve the tension-roller problem.
# The left inertia roller is dragging or the small spring inside is broken, spin the roller without tape loaded on the deck and see if it makes noise or act sluggish.

# the tape tension need adjustments, there is 2 adjustments pot's on the large pc board behind the cover R 122 and R 222, but you need a tentelo meter to adjust it correctly.
Load the deck with 7 inch reels after taking off the rear cabinet first.
Let it run so half of the tape is on the take-up reel and 3-3/4 speed.
Press stop:

Measure the tape tension in the center of the left side between the edge of the reel and the tension-roller (left side) and it should be 50 g if correct, if not adjust the R 122 pot first (turn it clockwise very carefully just a hair) and measure again on both the L and R side of the deck for the tape tension.

This can be take some time, but just be patient, if you have a shop nearby they should be able to help.
But check the inhertia roller first before attempt the tape tension adjustment.

About my favorite deck, hmm...I have many, when it comes to bigger decks, X-1000, Tascam 44, Tascam 42, Teac X-10, 7 inch series, Tascam 22-2, Tascam 22-4, Teac X-300, Akai GX-4000 D, Akai 1710 W, Sony TC-630, Sony TC-399, Sony TC-366.
Everyone has a different taste thank god:music:

But I really like that Rola, think a search here in US for one is on the list for christmas:scratch2:

Hmmm... Unfortunately I bought the deck in good faith that it was a general export, however upon opening the case when it arrived, to my horror there were only fuses, and not the voltage selector I was expecting... Realised it was purely the U.S. model... although again, I noticed that there is no difference in either the main PCB components or power PCB, but I do need to confirm that the difference in supply frequency does not impact the voltage output of the second winding... I have to go back to my books unless anyone knows in audiokarma land... I have one possible option here, and that is that i found NOS genuine replacement Transformer for this deck and our voltage 240V.. I could swap them out and make this as close to the UK/AUS model as possible... had the board out to do the belt and checked out the job, so i am sure i can do that :) only thing is it's $235 AU - ouch ! rather spend that on more tape... lol..
I took the left inertia wheel off cleaned the post, lubed and replaced.. no friction to speak of and no change to the wobble I'm afraid...
The small spring you mentioned, is that on the tension arm or inertia wheel ?
My desperation to fix this is pushing me to try a very small change to the tape tension, but I will try and be patient as i don't really want to mess with the factory settings... not having a tentelo meter :nono:... hmmm... I could ask around if a any workshops have them.. Just can't do that for a while and I know i will be tempted to hit that trimpot...
I really thank you for all you help, do you think in your opinion as an experienced tech ,with a steady hand and careful observation I could do that tension adjust without the meter ? If I were to make the slightest of adjustements ? (I'm pushing my luck, right ?) I will also re-read the other post regarding a tension adjustment trick.. If you, Vintage, or anyone else can think of anything else... please let me know..
So glad you like the Rola, you have excellent taste sir, the Rola company took over the Decks from Byer, you may also like these... they are very sexy and sound very similar to the Rola.. http://users.chariot.net.au/~debpeter/Byer_66_Mk_II.html, my friend has one, that has been fixed up to sing for another 40 years... he he... Nice Christmas toy, you could dump a bunch of mono vintage Christmas records on it ;)
Oh, before i forget, I just got a new belt for the Teac X-3, and can't see how to change the belt from the back of the deck... any hints ? I don't have the service manual for that one.. and feel lost without a deck to play with as my Revox is in for a full service and the Rola is also with a tube master, here in Melb. for some work...
gosh... don't ask a lot do I ? :sigh: :)

Hmm, I have a 110 -240 transformer with the voltage-selector here if you want, but I suggest finding a shop with a tentole meter first.
If you live in Melbourne there must be some old shops around, check the phone book or search online.
Doing this adjustments by yourself..you are out in slippery water, have seen that too many times in the past.

About the inerta wheel, there is a small spring behind the cover, sometimes it breaks off or get lost, and create a friction between the outer cover and roller with result similar to yours.

The X-3 you change the belt from the front, whole faceplate has to come off first, and it's similar to this model Tascam 22-2:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y173/VintageTX/DSCF0028.jpg

# Take off the headstack first ( 2 screws)
# Look at the headstack mounting plate, 4 screws total.
# Slide out the pinch-roller plunger on the right side when you lift the assembly plate off.

And you have this result:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y173/VintageTX/DSCF0023-2.jpg

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y173/VintageTX/DSCF0022-1.jpg
#Clean the fly-wheel and capstan motor pulley.
#When installing the new belt, around the fly-wheel first and hold it with your fingers and assembly plate at the same time.
# Slide the plunger in the solenoid and then put the belt on the capstan motor pulley, it's gonna be tight so take your time:thmbsp:
# put two screws in the assembly plate so the position is fixed.

# Spin the flywheel two turns and look so the belt center on the capstan pulley, be careful as it can slip off, kind of tricky but patience and steady hand helps.

# Mount the headstack again on the assemby plate and you are done.

Most important thing..no magnetic screwdrivers when doing this surgery.:no:


Good Luck

He he... ok... Now I know what i am doing this weekend :) Again, thanks so much for the effort in your pictures and step by steps.. I'm sure other reel heads will apreciate it too :thmbsp:
I agree with you on the tentelo point, I should be able to find a place and be patient, I have waited months already so i guess a couple of weeks ain't that bad.. It's just the kid inside wanting the batteries for the remote car, NOW ! ha ha... but I do understand the critical nature of the adjustment, and I take advice seriously.. Your offer of the transformer and selector is very cool, Can I email you about this ? I can make you a r2r dub of my bands album straight off the 24 bit digital master at the format and speed of you choice ;)
Any reason for an absence of Euro decks in your favorites list ? I love my ReVox ?!? What deck should I want next ???

You welcome for the X-300 help, if you need any more pointers, I be around here this weekend.
About the X-2000, yes I understand it's tempting, but check with a shop first.
Sounds cool with the tape offer, check your PM:music:
Everyone like different decks, I started with a Tandberg 64 many years ago, and thought that was heaven.
Nowdays my music taste has changed a little, and same with the decks.

Hey... I discovered something new in the world of tension arm wobble... It's only happening in the vertical position... not on it's back...:scratch2:

what the ?