Fire up those RTR

[Wardsweb]

Okay all this R2R talk motivated me to dig the neglected Teac out of the closet.  A quick clean up and testing confirmed the problem with play and FF continue.  I contacted a tech 2 hours from here and made arrangements for him to take a look.  The other two Teacs still working.

 

The old Teacs are notorious for the head transport getting sticky from the old grease drying out and gumming things up. A typical path would be to clean and relube the head transport, replace the capstan belt, clean the pinch rollers (replace if needed). If you push up on the head manually like it would be when playing music and let it go, it should drop down quickly and easily. If it moves slow or doesn't want to come down, then it needs maintenance.

Edited June 1, 2015 by Wardsweb

[Tarheel]

 

Okay all this R2R talk motivated me to dig the neglected Teac out of the closet.  A quick clean up and testing confirmed the problem with play and FF continue.  I contacted a tech 2 hours from here and made arrangements for him to take a look.  The other two Teacs still working.

 

The old Teacs are notorious for the head transport getting sticky from the old grease drying out and gumming things up. A typical path would be to clean and relube the head transport, replace the capstan belt, clean the pinch rollers (replace if needed). If you push up on the head manually like it would be when playing music and let it go, it should drop down quickly and easily. If it moves slow or doesn't want to come down, then it needs maintenance.

 

Thanks Luther.  Two out of three have the same problem.  The pinch rollers do not move up and down freely.  Both the problem decks are the "X" series.  Never a problem with the 42 year old 3300S.  Reading some I see they have a new grease formulation that doesn't harden.  Hope my tech uses it.  If I attempted the repair there would be parts left over I'm sure

Edited June 1, 2015 by Tarheel

[Marvel]

My TEAC had that problem... I cleaned out the solenoid with some solvent and re-lubed it. Works great now. How daring are you?

 

Bruce

[MORE KLIPSCH PLEASE]

just a quick note..

I will be getting several RTR's this summer, I will be helping a widow sell her late husbands gear. 

I will start a thread when it happens..

MKP :-)

[Tarheel]

My TEAC had that problem... I cleaned out the solenoid with some solvent and re-lubed it. Works great now. How daring are you?

 

Bruce

Not very Bruce.  I would like it to work when I put it back together

[khornbred]

 

 

 

Otari is still making decks, but man are they expensive!

You got that right, 10K.http://www.broadcaststore.com/store/model_detail.cfm?id=812624

In my opinion you would be much better off with a refurbished Ampex or Studer, at half the cost. Better FR, W&F and S/N. But that is in the 2-track realm.

Forn4 track consumer/prosumer, there are many, many great decks out there.

Travis

i work in what used to be the Ampex facility starting in the 60's, now a machine shop. haven't found any rtr's laying around though. there are still quite a few pieces of manufacturing equipment in our shop that date back to the ampex days. in the basement are offices sitting as they were left in the 80's, i wouldn't be surprised if there was something yet to be discovered down there.

Alabama, Chicago, Redwood City, Culver City? Which one. My Dad worked for Ampex, thus we live in Northern CA, and SoCal. If you can tell me what city and narrow it down to a building I can tell you what they did there. Opilieka, Alabama was Orr Industries who made Irish audio tape, the preferred tape of Mr. Klipsch, until it was bought by Ampex and made the Tape Division. The other locations did multiple things but each had specialities.

Would be interested to know which plant/building you are in.

Travis

 

none of the above. Colorado Springs on Wooten Rd, i believe Ampex's first co springs location.

[Travis In Austin]

Otari is still making decks, but man are they expensive!

You got that right, 10K.http://www.broadcaststore.com/store/model_detail.cfm?id=812624

In my opinion you would be much better off with a refurbished Ampex or Studer, at half the cost. Better FR, W&F and S/N. But that is in the 2-track realm.

Forn4 track consumer/prosumer, there are many, many great decks out there.

Travis

i work in what used to be the Ampex facility starting in the 60's, now a machine shop. haven't found any rtr's laying around though. there are still quite a few pieces of manufacturing equipment in our shop that date back to the ampex days. in the basement are offices sitting as they were left in the 80's, i wouldn't be surprised if there was something yet to be discovered down there.

Alabama, Chicago, Redwood City, Culver City? Which one. My Dad worked for Ampex, thus we live in Northern CA, and SoCal. If you can tell me what city and narrow it down to a building I can tell you what they did there. Opilieka, Alabama was Orr Industries who made Irish audio tape, the preferred tape of Mr. Klipsch, until it was bought by Ampex and made the Tape Division. The other locations did multiple things but each had specialities.

Would be interested to know which plant/building you are in.

Travis

none of the above. Colorado Springs on Wooten Rd, i believe Ampex's first co springs location.

Ah ha, I didn't even know that one. He say that was the Instrumentation Division. Recorders for telemetry, aerospace and medicine. The recorders were designed and built to record at a relatively wide frequency range and at very high frequencies necessary to provide accurate data. Their basic models for military and aerospace applications with the appropriate tape were flat from 50 hz to 100khz at 15 IPS. They made portable models that could go in rockets, as well as larger groud based units that recorded demodulated fm signal information.

Essentially they made an almost bullit proof unit, impervious to shock and vibration, capable of accurately recording the widest available frequency ranges within military/aerospace/NASA tolerences.

So what was in Colorad Springs at the time that was involved in aerospace, missels and their telemetry and space itself? Pretty much a majority of the the entire operational and develomment component of those areas were handled at bases in and around CS. As I recall, that is still true today.

I will see what else he can remember about it there that isnt still classified.

That is cool stuff.

Edited June 2, 2015 by dwilawyer

[Tarheel]

As unhandy as I am I am tempted to try and operate on the decks pinch roller problem.  It's a recurring problem...especially with Teacs that I would like to be able to tackle myself.  Would be nice for someone to make a step by step slide show and post.  Want to give it a shot Bruce?

[jcmusic]

What are you wanting to do?

[Tarheel]

The grease in the pinch roller shaft/sleeve has hardened I guess.  The pinch rollers should move up and down freely but they don't.  Grease needs to be removed and new lithium grease installed. Techs around here are rare.

[jcmusic]

You can do this yourself it is not that difficult...

[Travis In Austin]

You can do this yourself it is not that difficult...

Said the man who builds superstructuters, underwater. I suspect you can also build a ship in a bottle.

Luther did a top to bottom restore on two Teacs I believe. He could probably tell you pretty quick just what level of skill it would require. I think he woukd also reccomend going ahead and ordering new pinch rollers and have them on hand and ready to go.

I would say as long as you don't need to loosen anything that could effect the physical head alignment then go for it. If it requires loosening or removing the head assembly I wouldn't touch it with a ten foot pool.

Can you post some high quality close ups of what you are talking about?

[Marvel]

Can you post some high quality close ups of what you are talking about?

My week is super busy, but I'll see if I can get a couple pics of the inside of mine to help explain.

 

Bruce

[khornbred]

 

 

 

 

 

Otari is still making decks, but man are they expensive!

You got that right, 10K.http://www.broadcaststore.com/store/model_detail.cfm?id=812624

In my opinion you would be much better off with a refurbished Ampex or Studer, at half the cost. Better FR, W&F and S/N. But that is in the 2-track realm.

Forn4 track consumer/prosumer, there are many, many great decks out there.

Travis

i work in what used to be the Ampex facility starting in the 60's, now a machine shop. haven't found any rtr's laying around though. there are still quite a few pieces of manufacturing equipment in our shop that date back to the ampex days. in the basement are offices sitting as they were left in the 80's, i wouldn't be surprised if there was something yet to be discovered down there.

Alabama, Chicago, Redwood City, Culver City? Which one. My Dad worked for Ampex, thus we live in Northern CA, and SoCal. If you can tell me what city and narrow it down to a building I can tell you what they did there. Opilieka, Alabama was Orr Industries who made Irish audio tape, the preferred tape of Mr. Klipsch, until it was bought by Ampex and made the Tape Division. The other locations did multiple things but each had specialities.

Would be interested to know which plant/building you are in.

Travis

none of the above. Colorado Springs on Wooten Rd, i believe Ampex's first co springs location.

Ah ha, I didn't even know that one. He say that was the Instrumentation Division. Recorders for telemetry, aerospace and medicine. The recorders were designed and built to record at a relatively wide frequency range and at very high frequencies necessary to provide accurate data. Their basic models for military and aerospace applications with the appropriate tape were flat from 50 hz to 100khz at 15 IPS. They made portable models that could go in rockets, as well as larger groud based units that recorded demodulated fm signal information.

Essentially they made an almost bullit proof unit, impervious to shock and vibration, capable of accurately recording the widest available frequency ranges within military/aerospace/NASA tolerences.

So what was in Colorad Springs at the time that was involved in aerospace, missels and their telemetry and space itself? Pretty much a majority of the the entire operational and develomment component of those areas were handled at bases in and around CS. As I recall, that is still true today.

I will see what else he can remember about it there that isnt still classified.

That is cool stuff.

 

interesting info, thanks!

[Kent T]

Open reel spoken here. I own Otari MX 5050 B machines. Both of them free from fellow engineers or stations. One slow speeds, one high speed. 

[Marvel]

My son-in-law gave me this for my birthday, a Webster wire recorder:

 

 

[bluesboy]

That is a cool looking machine. Does it work? Have you tried winding tape on to it? 

[Marvel]

Does it work? Have you tried winding tape on to it?

I haven't had time to try it yet. It uses wire and not tape, and rather thin wire at that. It has a spool of wire that was on it. I found a schematic for the electronics, and will check it out before trying it. Nice little tube circuit.

 

Bruce