cleaning off gooey capstan belt residue

[Sonarcade]

so, I've been looking at my Tascam 38 and it seems I haven't given it a proper cleaning, telling from the way the capstan would occasionally seize up. I found that there's a bunch of gooey tar from the last capstan belt that's clogged up the gap between the capstan and the surrounding plate. when I try to scrub it off, the tarred up stuff gets all over my hands but not really off the capstan itself. I tried a search for "goo" and "tar" here with no success.

Funny, because I did a google search for "goo capstan" and immediately found a thread from homerecording.com: http://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=158835 and http://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?p=3077168 .

While we've discussed replacing the belt, I noticed not much discussion has been generated around the issue of cleaning up that stuff. Is everyone else here in on a secret and found something magical (perhaps as magical as Simple Green, my personal holy elixir) that I've yet to discover? It would also be nice to know so I can stop getting "capstan belt" residue from my hands all over my keyboard and mouse. Remind me to wear latex gloves the next time I open the ol' 38 up.

[RRuskin]

Originally Posted by Sonarcade

so, I've been looking at my Tascam 38 and it seems I haven't given it a proper cleaning, telling from the way the capstan would occasionally seize up. I found that there's a bunch of gooey tar from the last capstan belt that's clogged up the gap between the capstan and the surrounding plate. when I try to scrub it off, the tarred up stuff gets all over my hands but not really off the capstan itself. I tried a search for "goo" and "tar" here with no success.

Funny, because I did a google search for "goo capstan" and immediately found a thread from homerecording.com: http://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=158835 and http://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?p=3077168 .

While we've discussed replacing the belt, I noticed not much discussion has been generated around the issue of cleaning up that stuff. Is everyone else here in on a secret and found something magical (perhaps as magical as Simple Green, my personal holy elixir) that I've yet to discover? It would also be nice to know so I can stop getting "capstan belt" residue from my hands all over my keyboard and mouse. Remind me to wear latex gloves the next time I open the ol' 38 up.

Try rubber cleaner/rejuvinator. If not available, denatured alcohol. Last resorts: lighter fluid or wd-40. Wipe away any residue left by the solvent used.

[sweetbeats]

When I was cleaning up goo from my solenoid cushions plain old iso alcohol worked wonderfully...have you tried that?

[Beck]

I've posted about cleaning belt gunk off in the past, but finding those posts with the search feature… I dunno.

Anyway, I use acetone or a product called OOPS Multi-Purpose Remover to get old belt residue off the capstan flywheel and motor pulley… works like a charm. I’ve also used OOPS to get stickers and stubborn Velcro backing residue off of mixing consoles. It’s stronger and faster than Goo-Gone, but doesn’t harm the paint at all.

[sweetbeats]

Stinks like the dickens though!

[Sonarcade]

awesome! Thanks guys. I gave isopropyl alcohol a go and it worked fine for the bits I got on my mouse and keyboard but for the thick layers of rubber that were left, I had to get out the steel wool and scrub the tar (pardon the pun) out of the capstan.

I'll have to get some Oops! (love the packaging!) for future worn out capstan belts.

[jjones1700]

I had to endure that a couple of years ago when I first took possession of a RT-909 deck. It got freakin EVERYWHERE! A solid weekend of tearing it down so I could get all of the transport and faceplates cleaned up. I hope to never have to do that again.