I’ve been trying to get an old Walkman EX 48 up and running but it I keep running into trouble. I thought it would be simple by just replacing the belt. I couldn’t find a reliable guide to replacing the belt so I tried to use common sense. But I keep running into issues. I don’t really know what is wrong. When I put a cassette in and press play I get nothing. No sound no gear turning, nothing. So where do I start from here, keep in mind this is a completely new area of repairs for me. Thank you all so much in advance
I would start by removing the leaky SMD electrolytic capacitors, clean the PCB, check traces and vias (repair if necessary) and then install new capacitors. On the mechanical side you will also need a new clutch gear apart from the belt: https://fixyouraudio.com/product/sony-wm-ex48-clutch-gear/ Please read post #18 from this thread (https://stereo2go.com/forums/threads/list-of-walkman-portable-recorders-common-problems.7535/) for more info.
Thank you so much. I’ll update you on my process but for now are these all things I can obtain on eBay or some other retailer?
Don't think there is a capacitor kit available for this particular walkman, you'll have to source the parts yourself from a components distributor like DigiKey. You can also use SMD tantalums instead of electrolytics if those are not in stock. The most important thing about replacement caps is the physical size and then the voltage rating. The reel gears, if completely cracked, can be replaced with this new ones: https://www.ebay.com/itm/334972740460 (note you'll need 2 pcs and seller offers just 1 in the kit) Otherwise glueing the shaft to the gear when there's just a small hairline crack near the center. Also note the ebay kit linked above also contains a clutch gear. So if you happen to need reel gears, you don't need to order the clutch gear as you will have one included in this kit.
