Hello, I recently acquired three personal cassette players: Sony WM-F10 - The tape mechanism is clearly heard and felt, but cassettes won't play. Kenwood CP-Q5 - It was advertised as having been serviced, but cassettes play extremely warbly. Realistic SCP-39 - It was new old stock and plays cassettes, but there's noticeable warble. I feel certain they each simply need new belts and maybe an adjustment, but I'm not mechanically inclined enough to attempt it. Is there a reputable forum member who offers home based repairs? I would like to get them properly working, but don't want to spend a ton of money. Thank you.
there‘s a few good repairmen out here in the forum wich can help you - depends on what you‘re prepared to pay (a proper restoration costs, unfortunately). in my eyes, the WM-10 and the Kenwood (even that i find it ugly) do need to be handled with the right skills. if you‘re new in that hobby and want to improve your own skills, get yourselfe a set of watchmakers screwdriver, some small plyers and a little bottle of isopropanol and start on that Realistic on your own - not much you can break there
Who are the reputable repairmen on the forum who can handle the Sony and Kenwood with the right skills?
You'll have to go through some of the threads, then maybe google the name to make sure they are legit. Unfortunately with most vintage audio equipment the repair shops are far and few between. Repair guys would rather work on a large reciever with a bigger paycheck because they know most Walkman Customers would complain with big bill. Even though they are small they still have a million screws and parts to go through to get to even a "simple" belt change. One of the cool things about this equipment was how they were able to pack so much mech into a tiny space but it comes with it's own issues when something isn't working right.
Welcome to the forum! I get it on how frustrating it can be getting these little gems working as intended. If it’s just a belt and a little cleaning then you want to consider yourself lucky. You can go on eBay and search for “Walkman repair service”. Before committing, review their feedback from previous customers. May I ask where you picked these up? If you got them from eBay, there’s a good chance someone already attempted to repair them and gave up. But if you’re willing to do this yourself, you do indeed have resources such as the archives here, YouTube, service manuals, etc. And btw, I like the look of that Kenwood- hopefully it’s complete with the remote and stick battery/charger.
I have some talents, but taking things apart and putting them back together isn't one of them. With something as delicate as the WM-F10 and the CP-Q5, I prefer to leave it to the experts. The Sony, I received from a close friend who purchased it new in the early '80's. He mentioned that he noticed a co-worker listening to music on one and asked the person about it. It interested him enough that he went out and bought one. He said that he used it for 2-3 years and it has been stored ever since. The Kenwood, I bought from Japan through Neokyo (I strongly suggest NOT shopping through them, but that's a story for another day). It only included the AA battery adapter and was more than I wanted to spend, but the condition appealed to me and it was advertised as, "Overhaul, speed adjustment by tuning meter, cleaning around the head, demagnetization, application of contact restorer" with a picture included. I'm hoping to get a definitive cost of service, before the return window closes. The Realistic, is new old stock and was purchased through eBay. I wanted a "brick" style cassette player and this one has Dolby and auto-reverse (great features back then).
You can see the belt easily in that one, check for blobs of old belt. Sometimes the old belts turn to a tar like goo and even tiny specs will get on the turning parts and slow them down. I've taken apart freshly belted units several times and using a magnifying glass have found small specs. I can't tell if that's corrosion in the upper left, the white stuff, if it is the unit might not be getting a good connection to the battery, causing the speed changes. Are you using a guitar tuner with a Mhz tape? I've never seen that done, cool stuff.
The white on the op left is simply reflected light on the polished piece. The picture wasn't taken by me; it was part of the seller's listing to apparently demonstrate that it had been overhauled and was properly working, which it certainly is not.
On the Kenwood, I would tell the Seller that the cassette player does not work as perceived, that there is too much "Wow & Flutter" when playing, and that it was probably damaged during transit. And ask if he will accept a return. Most likely the unit is insured, and you would get a full refund. The Seller must decide if he still wants the unit back and pay for the high shipping costs. Another option is to negotiate a lower price since the unit was damaged during transit. Also note that the unit is missing the remote control, original headphones that connect to the remote, gumstick battery and charger, so it should not be priced as a complete unit. On the other hand, the Sony is a great find, and more than likely has never been opened, so a simple belt replacement might be all that is needed. Buy the correct belt size on eBay (search for Sony WM-F10 belts) or go here: https://fixyouraudio.com/product/belt-sony-wm-f10/. You might be able find a local electronic, computer or watch shop that would be willing to do this. You can see several belt changes for this unit on YouTube. The only real problem with this model (and WM-10, WM-20) is that the mother board is so thin, a simple fall can break the unit. Good luck!
Your Kenwood player reminds me of the DMC-G3 MiniDisc player I bought a while back. Sadly, it does not work. Something might be wrong with the carriage movement.
