jupitersspot
Active Member
Hi all,
I've owned a KX-1200U since new (maybe 1988?) but it's been in a cabinet for years. I want to get it running again so I bought a set of belts for it and installed them. I cleaned the capstan wheels where the old rubber had turned to goo and also blew out the dust, but otherwise did nothing else to the deck. It plays tapes just fine now and sounds great. However, neither the fast-forward nor rewind functions work. When I press either of those buttons it makes the usual thunk noise and I can hear a motor spin for a couple of seconds, and then stop. If I take the tape out and press on the sensor switches that make the deck think a tape is inserted and then press FF or RW, the deck makes its thunk noise and the take-up spindle spins merrily. It's as if the motor isn't strong enough to spin the cassette wheels and tape, but has enough power when no tape is present. I have tried several different cassettes with the same results, and I'm able to move the tape spools easily by hand (in other words, I don't think the issue is with my cassettes but rather with the deck).
I play a lot with receivers and amps of this period, but I have zero tape deck experience. This seems to be a mechanical issue, not an issue of circuits or discrete components. Has anyone seen this before, or have a suggestion about what to try? I have the service manual (thanks internet!), but there isn't a handy troubleshooting guide.
I've owned a KX-1200U since new (maybe 1988?) but it's been in a cabinet for years. I want to get it running again so I bought a set of belts for it and installed them. I cleaned the capstan wheels where the old rubber had turned to goo and also blew out the dust, but otherwise did nothing else to the deck. It plays tapes just fine now and sounds great. However, neither the fast-forward nor rewind functions work. When I press either of those buttons it makes the usual thunk noise and I can hear a motor spin for a couple of seconds, and then stop. If I take the tape out and press on the sensor switches that make the deck think a tape is inserted and then press FF or RW, the deck makes its thunk noise and the take-up spindle spins merrily. It's as if the motor isn't strong enough to spin the cassette wheels and tape, but has enough power when no tape is present. I have tried several different cassettes with the same results, and I'm able to move the tape spools easily by hand (in other words, I don't think the issue is with my cassettes but rather with the deck).
I play a lot with receivers and amps of this period, but I have zero tape deck experience. This seems to be a mechanical issue, not an issue of circuits or discrete components. Has anyone seen this before, or have a suggestion about what to try? I have the service manual (thanks internet!), but there isn't a handy troubleshooting guide.
