I have two d6 and 2d6c and one of each. When pushing play it will not stay into lock position and play. Why is that? They will lock in fast forward and rewind but not play. Is there an issue that I need to address by taking the unit apart or what is the issue here? Okay one more time this picture so I can remember which is which working and not working
Given the FF and REW buttons do lock, you are more than likely looking at a worn latch. Seen this before. Unfortunately it's something that does happen on this mechanism (TCM-600, TPS-L2, WM-3, D6, D6C) when it has been used a lot. At this moment I don't have a fix to offer other than simply replace the latch. But do keep in mind both the latch and the play button itself will have wear, so the fix isn't as simple as replacing the latch.
Thank you for that answer. Are there latch replacements that can be bought from anywhere in the world? And if so can you provide a link?
Not aware of replacements being available at this point in time. Only solution are junk donor units. But it will become a common problem in the future, so I do expect that at some point it's likely new parts are going to be made. Only thing I can recommend to you and other people reading this thread is put grease on the ones that are still working. Otherwise with each play press and each stop, that latch will progressively wear.
1. How many steps are necessary to gain access to this latch? To lubricate it? 2. What is this latch made out of what material, is there any way to glue or weld a bit of more material to this latch area to allow it to last longer?
1. For lubricating alone, you need to remove the back cover and tilt the PCB on the D6/D6C. On TCM-600, TPS-L2, WM-3 you need to remove the small servo board. There is a thread with some pictures (TPS-L2) here: https://stereo2go.com/forums/threads/sony-tps-l2-play-button-issues.3364/ 2. It's made of plastic. In theory it is possible to repair it by adding material, but given I have not tested such solution I can't recommend anything. At this point I've not seen many walkmans with this problem, but as is the case with cracked takeup reel clutch gear, seems this latch problem is starting to occur more and more.
Is this the part you are looking for? Sony WM-D6 plate lock brand new remanufactured replacement part: Ebay
I've never taken either of my d6 or d6c apart to look inside to see how they operate and or what part I need to repair with. But I have saved this in my eBay page. To me from Australia it's $100. For such a little item but then I guess a lot of people are going to be need this to make their play modes stay in play mode . It's rather pricey but if that's what I got to pay that's what I'll get. I guess before I get these repaired.