Just bought a slightly-used AKAI cassette deck
for use in recording old tapes to CDs. Am wondering
if there is any cleaning/lubing/adjusting I should
(or should not) do. The deck seems to run true and
the mechanism looks clean -- maybe too clean. Should
thre be any lube on the gears??

thanks,

chuck

In article k.net,
chuck wrote:

Just bought a slightly-used AKAI cassette deck
for use in recording old tapes to CDs. Am wondering
if there is any cleaning/lubing/adjusting I should
(or should not) do. The deck seems to run true and
the mechanism looks clean -- maybe too clean. Should
thre be any lube on the gears??

Have you actually touched the gears with your fingers?
Some decks used a carbon powder lubricant that is put
on in a very thin film, thin enough not to notice unless
you get some on your fingers. If this is a nice deck,
you might want to invest in the service manual and get
the exact lubricants that they specify.

If it is a cheap deck, or you have little invested, then
it probably doesn't hurt to take a shot at using the
common audio video grease that comes in a tube that looks
like a small toothpaste tube. Over the long haul, this
grease might attack plastic parts, and it can get sticky
with age and actually do more harm than good.

One part to pay attention to is the capstan bearing.
The capstan is the thin silver post that moves the tape
past the heads. It normally has a flywheel on it behind
the mechanim. Or it might be a motor if it is direct
drive. On older decks, you would have to pull the capstan
every so often and lubricate it. Modern decks might have
a carbon lubricant, or some exotic moly grease, or even
be permanently lubricated. Again, the service manual would
help here.

The other part to clean is the tape contact areas. Anything
that touches the tape should be clean with an alchol or carbon
tet degreaser. Some tape heads have glues in them that can
be attacked by these cleaners, so if you have the service
manual, check to see if they recommend a cleaning chemical.

Finally, demagnetize the heads.

You might want to consider doing a tape head alignment.
The problem is that this is hard to get right without the
right tools. If you don't have the equipment, then leaving
it alone might be better. Since you are using this deck for
some long-term work, you might want to have a pro take a
look at it. At least buy a test tape, and make sure that
the playback levels from each channel are even, and that
the high frequencies are there.

-john-

--
================================================== ==================
John A. Weeks III 952-432-2708
Newave Communications http://www.johnweeks.com
================================================== ==================

Thanks John,

I did not feel any lube on the gears so maybe I'll
search out an appropriate lube. The belts look
great and test tapes play really well. I'll
spend some time checking this out.

thanks for your info,

chuck

John A. Weeks III wrote:
In article k.net,
chuck wrote:


Just bought a slightly-used AKAI cassette deck
for use in recording old tapes to CDs. Am wondering
if there is any cleaning/lubing/adjusting I should
(or should not) do. The deck seems to run true and
the mechanism looks clean -- maybe too clean. Should
thre be any lube on the gears??


Have you actually touched the gears with your fingers?
Some decks used a carbon powder lubricant that is put
on in a very thin film, thin enough not to notice unless
you get some on your fingers. If this is a nice deck,
you might want to invest in the service manual and get
the exact lubricants that they specify.

If it is a cheap deck, or you have little invested, then
it probably doesn't hurt to take a shot at using the
common audio video grease that comes in a tube that looks
like a small toothpaste tube. Over the long haul, this
grease might attack plastic parts, and it can get sticky
with age and actually do more harm than good.

One part to pay attention to is the capstan bearing.
The capstan is the thin silver post that moves the tape
past the heads. It normally has a flywheel on it behind
the mechanim. Or it might be a motor if it is direct
drive. On older decks, you would have to pull the capstan
every so often and lubricate it. Modern decks might have
a carbon lubricant, or some exotic moly grease, or even
be permanently lubricated. Again, the service manual would
help here.

The other part to clean is the tape contact areas. Anything
that touches the tape should be clean with an alchol or carbon
tet degreaser. Some tape heads have glues in them that can
be attacked by these cleaners, so if you have the service
manual, check to see if they recommend a cleaning chemical.

Finally, demagnetize the heads.

You might want to consider doing a tape head alignment.
The problem is that this is hard to get right without the
right tools. If you don't have the equipment, then leaving
it alone might be better. Since you are using this deck for
some long-term work, you might want to have a pro take a
look at it. At least buy a test tape, and make sure that
the playback levels from each channel are even, and that
the high frequencies are there.

-john-

Chuck,

If the gears you are speaking of are the reel hubs and drive for them
then leave them alone! Most cassette decks use nylon gears that do not
have wear problems, and if you add lube you'll have all sorts of
problems as the torques will be too low, and the mechanism will bind up.

Regards,
Tim Schwartz
Bristol Electronics


chuck wrote:

Just bought a slightly-used AKAI cassette deck
for use in recording old tapes to CDs. Am wondering
if there is any cleaning/lubing/adjusting I should
(or should not) do. The deck seems to run true and
the mechanism looks clean -- maybe too clean. Should
thre be any lube on the gears??

thanks,

chuck

IF IT WORKS.. DON'T TOUCH ANYTHING.
CLEAN HEADS BY USING RUBBING
ALCOHOL ON A COTTON SWAB..
WIPE OFF EXCESS ON A PAPER TOWEL AND THEN CLEAN HEAD(S)
DRY WITH PAPER TOWEL.
THE SETTINGS ON A CASSETTE DECK ARE VERY PRECISE, DO NOT ADJUST
ANYTHING. FACTORY SETTINGS
NORMALLY DO NOT GO OUT OF ADJUSTMENT. DO NOT LUBRICATE
ANYTHING. SOMEDAY A BELT
(IF ANY) WILL STRETCH; THATS THE
FIRST TIME YOU SHOULD EVEN ATTEMPT TO GO INSIDE THE BOX.

F IT WORKS.. DON'T TOUCH ANYTHING.
CLEAN HEADS BY USING RUBBING
ALCOHOL ON A COTTON SWAB..
WIPE OFF EXCESS ON A PAPER TOWEL AND THEN CLEAN HEAD(S)
DRY WITH PAPER TOWEL.
THE SETTINGS ON A CASSETTE DECK ARE VERY PRECISE, DO NOT ADJUST
ANYTHING. FACTORY SETTINGS
NORMALLY DO NOT GO OUT OF ADJUSTMENT. DO NOT LUBRICATE
ANYTHING. SOMEDAY A BELT
(IF ANY) WILL STRETCH; THATS THE
FIRST TIME YOU SHOULD EVEN ATTEMPT TO GO INSIDE THE BOX.


Actually, the only statement that I agree with tinj the above paragraph is the
first one.

Do not use rubbing alcohol, it contains lubricants and water.

Factory settings are neither precise, accurate nor necessarily correct, but it
takes test tapes and equipment to verify or disprove them. Don't adjust them
until you know what you are doing and have the gear to verify your adjustments.

Almost any deck can be made to work better with the addition of new belts,
pinch roller and proper alignment.

Richard H. Kuschel
"I canna change the law of physics."-----Scotty