Hi. I have a Sony D5M which plays okay at the start of the tape, but towards the middle starts to warble, and eventually stops completely. The capstan spins, but the tape doesn't move, and the end-of-tape detection kicks in after a second and pops the play button back up. Pressing the pinch roller into the tape a little fixes it, so it seems to be a tension problem. Things I've already done: 1. Replaced the belts and cleaned the capstan rubber. No change. 2. Replaced the pinch roller. When I replaced the pinch roller I broke both the E clips that are part of the assembly, so I've ordered new ones. The unit has developed a new fault now, which is that FF only works if I have the pause key pressed. Rewind and play are unaffected. I'm not too worried about it, but it would be nice to figure out what I've done. How do I fix the playback problem? I see there is a spring That tensions the pinch roller. Should I replace that? The only other thing I can think of it being is that the whole mechanism isn't moving far enough forwards when play is pressed. I don't have any equipment to test that at the moment, but I could get something if it will help fix this.
Some progress. It seems that the reel hubs are stiff when they should be moving freely. I am looking into how best to lubricate them. Any advice would be appreciated.
The takeup reel being stuck from hardened grease is a problem that can occur on these units. Unfortunately disassemblying the reel mechanism is hard and something I don't recommend. See this, it's pressed like TPS-L2: https://stereo2go.com/forums/threads/tps-l2-broken-clutch-gear.9534/ Rather, the solution is to put IPA in the bushing, try to clean it with cotton buds and pieces of cotton as best as possible then add fresh oil. However for good access you will need to remove the entire takeup reel assy from the mechanism chassis. Regarding the roller pressure, simply press on the bracket more to increase the tension. If that fixes the problem you know this is the cause. Spring shouldn't be changed unless it has been deformed beyond its normal elasticity point.
Thank you Valentin. I am trying to get some new tyres, but they aren't easy to come by. There is a place in Hong Kong that has them, and a few AliExpress sellers but the photos they have don't look great. I will see what I can do to clean up the reel spindles. I'd rather not take it all out, but if that is the only option... Well, I do have to take the idlers off to change the rubber, if I'm going to do that.
Even the ones that don't look great in pictures are not bad at all, it's just that the edges have some remains from the mold. The best value for money kit available on ebay is this: https://www.ebay.com/itm/335392051465 But same kit is half the price on Aliexpress: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005005910289819.html However note this kit only has the main belt, not the counter and REW belt. It's also missing one small idler for FF, but that can be sanded. Really for the price they're selling this kit for, there's not much to complain about. The main PLAY idler can usually be sanded, but the 2 thin FF/REW ones almost always need replacement because they become hard and brittle. The reel assy isn't hard to remove: once you remove the pause lever, the main drive pulley and a couple of other things it only has 2 screws and comes out. It's much easier to work on it while removed, hence why
Well, I already ordered the eBay ones, I could cancel I suppose. I already replaced the belts, it's just the tyres that need doing. Are there any videos or photo guides you know of for taking the reel assy out? I've looked at a few on YouTube and various forums, but not found one showing that. The service manual shows removing the whole mechanism.
Will check if I took any pics when I did this. Don't think there are any online, at least none that I've came across. And yes the service manual doesn't show that as it's not really something it was supposed to be serviced back in the day. Also in general it's not a common problem, guess they may have used more than one type of grease and may also depend on how the unit was stored.
