I refurbished a Discman!

the famous 'middle gear problem'...!!! Always makes me chuckle because of an observation made by my fav sci-fi writer Robert Sheckley about 'middle son problem': the eldest son inherits the Kingdom, the youngest son slays dragons and marries a princess. But the middle son is left in limbo, does not know what to do and ends his days badly

I bought middle gear for D-100 off eBay from this seller: DISCMAN MIDDLE GEARS Just make sure that you get the correct one: D-10 is different from D-9/D-25/D-555

 

Thanks Jorge..

 

Yes, check this eBay listing:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/SONY-D-555...162726?hash=item34266fd566:g:oDwAAOSww5Zd7bmr

I can personally say, although it takes a long time to receive them, they are really nice. The D-99 that has just sold has a new gear in it, and it's smooth as butter.

Just saw Jorge's post, sorry for a duplicate solution...

 

@Jorge

I'm having a spindle motor issue with my latest D-9. Can you tell me where to find a replacement? Mine is very noisy and only works when on it's side. Causes skipping when it's being noisy. Capacitors have been done but that didn't fix this particular issue.

It's cosmetically the best one I've ever done, so it's really worth the work.

 

I use these: Mabuchi RF-300CA Shaft is 0.5mm longer than the original but fits perfectly, no need to shorten it. Just extend the wires, reset the platter and you are all set! I used to buy RF-300 with longer shafts and then would cut to exact 'Sony' size with diamond Dremel cutter wheel but the pains of sealing the motor so that metal shavings won't get to it do not justify the end result
Few photos of the motors: the original (Left) and from the link above:




I posted a few photos on 'how-to' at my hobby-site here: Sony D-90
If any Questions, just ask!... and Good Luck!!!

 

...if it's of any interest: i have a D-99 with accessories/manual for sale or trade (preferred). it's working in some way but not 100% reliable.

 

Wow, thanks a lot! That looks to be very easy to do. I just ordered a few for my d-9's. They work great, but only if you can get the spindle motor to stop popping and clicking.

Any good tips for getting the platter off?

 

Two medium-size flat screwdrivers (old-skool screwdrivers of course, not the ones with interchangeable bits!) on both sides under the platter, all the way to the brass center, then gentle but powerful push.
Do not forget to make a shim!

interesting... !!!BUT!!!: Shipping back and forth US-Europe will cost more than the Discmans.

 

...ha, those thingies are that flat - i just put a stamp on it

 

OK, I have removed the old motor and successfully removed the platter as well. Yes, I do have a template for the platter so I will know how far to put it on the new motor. After some quick testing, I found the old motor was super grindy and unstable!

 

Ok, GREAT NEWS! I've been searching.... (no, not Chicago), through my parts bin. I found a great Mabuchi 300 motor I had saved. I installed it in a D-9, and Voila!

It is SOOOOOOOOO smooooooth. What was once skipping, is now completely quiet and stable. I listened to it for about an hour, and hey, it passed the Sussudio test.

Special thanks to @Jorge for helping with this.

 

Ah that's it...looks very nice.

 

Great Job!, honored to be of help here!!! And I must say that it is YOU, not just the baby-Discman who passed the test: if I hear Sussudio song one more time I will have to shoot myself

 

Haha, I get it. You either love it or hate it.

You know, I kinda like the 300-CH better than the 300-CA motor. I know you have to solder your own wires to the CH, but it just works really well if you rout the wires right.

I guess I did pass the test, I was kinda worried about that motor, but when everything powered up and went so well, I was very much relieved. I do have a lot of experience repairing this kind of stuff, but until now, I had zero experience with replacing spindle motors...

 

Ha!!! My love for good’ol’Phil is forever but I must have listened to his song one time too many

I did not notice much differences between RF300 motors, my concern is that when motor is played to death, laser is at the end of its life also. Got a box of cheap Discmans with KSS220A lasers for when eyepattern goes below 800mV

 

Welp, all of mine so far (except for two) uses the KSS-162A (220A's older variant) and with that new spindle motor, it will play badly scratched CD-R's perfectly fine. My experience tells me the KSS-162A is better than the 220A, both of my 220's were a bit weak, but still hanging in.

Before replacing the motor, the latest build couldn't play an original scratchless copy of 'no jacket required' without skipping.

I too love good old Phil, and Genesis, and PG, but yes, even the greats do get old. Been moving back into some REO lately...

I also have to agree with you.. the D-99 isn't as good as the D-9 is. It doesn't sound nearways as good. I got to do some really good side-by-side comparisons.

Also, the capacitors on the D-99 tend to be more corrosive, I guess since they are full-size. Dealing with the SMD's on the D-9 is a problem, but they are not too corrosive.

 

Hey Jorge. Do you know which motor is used in the D33?.I have had an intermittent problem with mine which is my garage player. Nothing special I know but the skipping seems to stop when the player is on and angle. A tell tale sign the spindle motor is on the way out. Not even sure it's worth the effort but I've got a few Mabuchi knock off motors in the spares box. They are RF-410-CA units.
Cheers
Brian

 

@Silverera it is RF-300, as in most Discmans. RF410 was used mostly for slim-line pricey models like D-15/250/350 and if you have the original 410 with longer chaft you will be able to sell each for the price of another D-33

@Recaptcha I fixed so many D-90 that even managed to narrow down the month and ~Ser.No. when Sony upgraded from KSS162A to 220A My Discmans 'guru' Kaosun told me once that KSS220 is a better laser than KSS162/165 but my own experience shows that it depends more on how many hours of play specific Discman had. Opposite to yours but when it comes to playing Skip-Test and CD-R disks sometimes full recap around Focus/Tracking servo and Focus+Tracking gain readjustment is needed Fortunately, a new motor is all you need to make D-90 play CD-R/Skip-Test CDs, and with a few exceptions those were older Discmans with KSS-162 lasers

 

@Jorge Thanks for the info. Probably not worth bothering because it's a workhorse D33 and this morning is working perfectly on a studio CD. Seems only some burned CD's the skip problems arise. Not even sure now the angle test was really that reliable.

 

Yeah, I've had to re-adjust that stuff too. That's always fun...

I really hate it when you have to adjust the tracking/focus gain even after replacing all the caps on the laser block, because it usually means the laser is too weak to perform at the level Sony originally calibrated it. So, in my experience adjusting laser power and gain is only a temporary fix for a much bigger issue, a failed laser.

I wander, can you even buy new KSS-220A lasers? or 162/165? that's always a concern with these things...