Tascam 244 / 246 pinch roller removal

cjacek

cjacek

Analogue Enthusiast
Do any of you guys know, from actually doing this, if it's necessary to pop open the bottom and then the top hood to effectively change the pinch roller OR is it possible to accomplish this task by removing that small panel, just above the transport buttons, held by those 2 strange silver screws? Thanks!:)
 
Afaic,...

On the 244 it's necessary to remove the cassette mech from the chassis, by opening'er up and removing the mech & flipping'er over. Unfortunately, there's virtually no easy access from the front,... IIRC !!!

The 246 I'm not sure or can't remember.:eek:;)

For more explicit info, you might want to check the DrZEE website.:eek::eek:;)

(I could always be wrong or have faulty memory).
 
Thanks Dave but are you sure it can't be done by popping the hood open, as I've done here:
https://homerecording.com/bbs/showpost.php?p=3206791&postcount=10

I was just trying to figure out if it can be done another way 'cause as it stands now, I'll have idler tires installed but the pinch roller is good. At some time in the future, though, I will want to replace it too but was hoping I didn't have to open 'er up again.
 
Daniel, Dave? Didn't we already talk about this? Or am I dreaming?
:)

I don't see how it would be possible to remove the pinch assembly from "its shaft" as the portion of it is covered by the top/face cover (See attached photo). You need to remove the c-clip and slide the assembly straight up), and remember that you'll have to deal with that pain in the neck pressure-spring, especially when putting it all back together. You'd need to remove the bottom and then the top covers ...to get "under the hood" that is :)
 

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Daniel,

It's been a few years, but I had to take my 246 all apart. I changed the capstan belt and the pinch roller assembly at the same time. It was a PITA, but I didn't see any way around it.

:)
 
Mike, Tim.. thanks a lot for your replies.:) OK, OK, yeah, I guess I can't get out of it being indeed a PITA!:D

Next time around, when I tend to the 246, I'll do all the things at once, the belts, pinch roller and idlers. The issue with the 244, on the other hand, is that I first did the belts months ago (easy) but then recently had to do the idlers so a more involved dis-assembly. The pinch roller appears in fine condition (not hard, cracked or slick - did a once over with caig rbr) but I'd replace it too 'cause I don't wanna open the ol 244 back up again in the future. The roller is probably good for another 6 months to a year minimum though. I don't have the roller on hand and don't want to keep the 244 opened for another few weeks or more. Hmmm, decisions, decisions..... Heck, maybe I'll just indeed leave the pinch roller for another time and use the 244 for the time being.

Again, thanks guys and, one more question for the good Doc... Mike, I noticed that some 244's have yellowed transport buttons.. Is that due to a previous smoking environment?:confused:
 
I’ll weigh in on this while I’m in the neighborhood.

Cigarette smoke can be a factor in yellowing of white plastic, but the biggest cause is UV from sunlight.

I have a trick I discovered through trial and error a few years ago. It can be a tricky trick, so make sure you’re concentrating on the task. We don’t want to hear you were watching The Flintstones or something while doing this and ruined your buttons.

Take them off the device if you can. Use a cloth just dampened with lacquer thinner and rub across the buttons a few swipes at a time until you remove the yellow layer. The yellow doesn’t go very deep. I last used this method on a Tascam RC-408 remote (for the TSR-8). It was like taking them to the dentist for whitening… completely restored them to bright white, and they’ve stayed that way.

Just make sure you dampen the cloth every few swipes. The thinner evaporates so you have to keep renewing the cloth. Have good ventilation. If you can, test it on a spare piece to get your technique right. This is heavy duty, but it works.

Here's the type I use.

lac-thin.jpg


~Tim
:)
 
ARG!!! And I had to learn that AFTER I already put the transport control and monitoring module back in the 388!!! :eek:

One side of each button has got that yellowing...I'm going to try that out for the future.

Thanks, Tim!
 
wow, Tim!, thanks a bunch for sharing. I gotta try this some day. :cool:
********

Daniel!

Yeah, the control buttons on my 244 are pretty yellow (not as brown as they came out on that photo though... but still). Also the switches are about twice less yellow than the buttons and the plastic tops of the faders are almost white (well, they are rather kind of a bit greyish-white) ...so I guess diffrent plastics are "yellowing" differently under influences of the time and the matter :)
Also, I have no idea whether or not this machine was smoking in the past. I have to say though, that when I was cleaning it all around it was not that bad. And I had some REALLY smoked-to-coma devices under my scalpel, when you have one you will not miss it, as it stinks and when you wipe/clean - you will SEE that stuff ....grrrrrrrrr.
 
Dr ZEE said:
And I had some REALLY smoked-to-coma devices under my scalpel, when you have one you will not miss it, as it stinks and when you wipe/clean - you will SEE that stuff ....grrrrrrrrr.
Click to expand...

Wow, you're more brave than I am. Case in point, I ran into a pretty scummy, dirty, yellowy 244, local for 50 bucks. When I actually saw it, I almost tossed my cookies! It was smeared in grease with chunks of food inside the faders. I didn't even plug it in, if you can believe. I was outta there fast.:D
 
Yup, got it. I guess I just gotta get exposed to it a lot more often and then maybe, just maybe, I'll get desensitized as well.;)
 
cjacek said:
Yup, got it. I guess I just gotta get exposed to it a lot more often and then maybe, just maybe, I'll get desensitized as well.;)
Click to expand...



Or die of some rare Cheetos and potato chip born respiratory disease. :eek:

Some things are definitely too yucky, IMO. :D

Makes me want to gargle with lacquer thinner… sorta…
 
Beck said:
I’ll weigh in on this while I’m in the neighborhood.

Cigarette smoke can be a factor in yellowing of white plastic, but the biggest cause is UV from sunlight.

I have a trick I discovered through trial and error a few years ago. It can be a tricky trick, so make sure you’re concentrating on the task. We don’t want to hear you were watching The Flintstones or something while doing this and ruined your buttons.

Take them off the device if you can. Use a cloth just dampened with lacquer thinner and rub across the buttons a few swipes at a time until you remove the yellow layer. The yellow doesn’t go very deep. I last used this method on a Tascam RC-408 remote (for the TSR-8). It was like taking them to the dentist for whitening… completely restored them to bright white, and they’ve stayed that way.

Just make sure you dampen the cloth every few swipes. The thinner evaporates so you have to keep renewing the cloth. Have good ventilation. If you can, test it on a spare piece to get your technique right. This is heavy duty, but it works.

Here's the type I use.

lac-thin.jpg


~Tim
:)
Click to expand...

Another good point Beck Thanks for the advice.
 
alright i need some help y'all!!! my tascam 244 is eating up tapes on the right side by the pinch roller and one of the cassette spindles doesn't spin... i ordered new belts from tascam and replaced them today following drZees website. I didn't order a new pinch roller because it is in really good shape and looks nothing like the pictures of the bad ones. My next plan is taking the front panel off and replacing the idler tires, does anybody know if this will be the solution?? Any other tipps of advice are appreciated, i really wanna be able to use this again )):
 
In short, YES, replacing idler tires will be the solution.

As for tips, look at this:
https://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?p=3206791#post3206791

Your best bet, other than ordering the idler assembly from TASCAM, is to go with the rubber washer idea. It's less than ideal and it takes some patience to fit on but it is less expensive. I personally have tried in vein to find ideal rubber tires, from some online stores but none were good. The closest, as I mentioned, is the rubber washer solution (as per Dr. Zee) but then there's also the case for wanting to get the whole assembly from TEAC and this, incidentally, is what I have done. The rubber washer is holding up fine but I thought I'd use original parts now.

Oh, before I forget, I think a round rubber o-ring would work too and, before replacement, clean up the areas where the rubber idlers ride on.
 
THANK YOU!!!
This forum is great, big thanks for the help!
And DrZee gets a big thanks for his website!
But yeah my plan was just to use the faucet washers, i'm not too picky about OG tascam parts, heck when i opened it to change the belts the capstan had a super cheesy blue rubber band on it and it was flaking off all over the inside of the tascam, so I actually am happy i ordered the tascam belts, but the idler tires with faucet washers looks plenty legit to me :)
 
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