tascam 414 mII

[mojopin90]

hi

i just pulled out my old tascam 4 track which i think is a 414.
It must be about eight years old.
As soon as I play or record it begins to chew the tape, however it seems to rewind and fastforward okay.
Is this a problem with the roller, isn't this what plays the tape?
I just found an old adapter to use with it could this also be the problem?
Everything else seems to be okay.
Lastly if its the roller is it fixable by myself?

thanks

[A Reel Person]

maybe the takeup hub (right spindle) is not turning CCW when the pinchwheel meets the capstan & tape is shuttled forward in the cassette shell.

For the takeup hub to work,... in most cases & I've not cracked open the 414mkII to look,... there is an idler that moves to the right hub mechanically and should transmit basic motor rotation thru the idler to the right spindle, thus causing it to rotate counter clockwise. It's my off-the-cuff guess that the clutch/idler assembly that interfaces between the motor and the right spindle is not actuating thru it's entire motion to make positive contact with the right spindle.

That's what usually happens with this problem, in the case of the "typical" cassette mechanism.

Unfortunately, you'll have to disassemble the 414mkII somewhat to get a good look at the guts. It could be easy to fix, like placing a belt back on a pulley or snapping in a gear or lever that's become dislodged. There's no way to tell for sure without cracking the case open and looking.

Good luck!!

[Beck]

A dirty, gummy pinch roller will also grab the tape and pull it around the roller, AKA eating the tape.

Clean, clean, clean...

Depending on how old it is the pinch roller may be toast and needs replacing. If you're lucky it's just covered with oxide and wasn't cleaned when put in storage. The catch is that can cause the pinch roller to deteriorate in storage.

[A Reel Person]

Yeah,... and that the FF/RW seems to work okay would indicate (for the most part) that the clutch/idler assembly is working properly. Although that's not ironclad, it's a postive indication.

Thanx!...........

[mojopin90]

i figured i'd have to open it up
thanks for the advice, i might be back if i have problems.....

[mojopin90]

after a few experiments....
the tape is falling in between the roller, should there be a gap there?
Im going to try and fix a bit of plastic to try and stop it, hopefully this wont cause any friction and will feed right through.
Ive given it a clean and there doesnt appear to be any visable buildup.
Any suggestions after laughing at my amateurish D.I.Y.?

cya

[Slowrider]

No laughing here about DIY. Once you learn it that way, you'll never forget it

[blackdavy]

Even if the roller doesn't appear to be sticky it's probably still the roller. It doesn't take much for a cassette to stick when the the roller is beginning to deteriorate. I had the same problem with a Tascam 234 I had that chewed tapes. The roller didn't appear to be sticky, but I cleaned it anyway... this worsened the problem. As an experiment I put talcum powder on the roller to see if it was in fact the roller that was causing the problem... It worked great for a couple of months with the talcum powder on the roller. Not the best idea, but it works in a pinch. I dumped all my tapes onto reel-to-reel and sold the 234 for parts. You could just send the roller off to Terry's Rollers, but that's $40 I'm not sure you'd want to spend. I think it was probably worth it for the 234... I was just tired of working on it... I put a lot of time into that machine.

[mojopin90]

thanks for the advice
i live in new zealand so i cant send to terrys rollers, in fact im not sure who would fix analogue gear here (Auckland). Any kiwis out there?
ill try the talcum powder though
how easy is it to replace the roller, i.e. scrap a tape player with working roller
and replace it with 4 track one?

cya

[Tim Gillett]

On some models the take up reel can be weak in play/record even though it may FF and REW OK. Use a clear cassette and watch as the tape is played. The right hand reel should take up all the tape that's fed to it by the pinch roller and capstan. Does it?

Cheers Tim.

[mojopin90]

right hand reel does not even move in play and record
as i said, works fine in ff and rw

[blackdavy]

I can't imagine it being too difficult replace, but you'll have to be very careful, seeing the 414 has so many plastic parts. I've always hated working on electronics with too much plastic involved... I tend to break them very easily. Maybe you could check some second hand stores for used tape players. I'm not sure what brands would have a similar roller... but I guess that's worth a shot.

[A Reel Person]

but you'd be best off consulting the service manual, which is available thru Tascam Parts.

I have a similar problem with a 414mkII that needs work. If I come up with any specifics by just poking around, I'll let you know.