Sony TC-558 floppy pinch wheel

[magneticdave]

Got a Sony TC-558 in the spring, just looking at it now. It is in good condition as if it was 197? and i just got it and was opening the box to look at it. This is the second sony that i have had, I try to stay away from them. It works ok but what is with the floppy pinch roller . Can anyone explain the purpose for this and how it is supposed to work or how to fix it, it just stays where i put it no matter what the direction the tape is running. Good looking deck, F&F heads, but tape does not seem to track properly if the pinch roller has not flopped in the right direction.:thumbsdn:

 

[goldear]

The pinchroller is the achilles heel of that particular machine. I've never understood why Sony made this flop back and forth, when Akai didn't need to, but they did. However, despite this one design flaw, this is a really excellent machine, when running.

I believe that there is a rubber roller on the back side which caused the pinch-roller to move into position. I think that it has probably hardened over time, and that the rest of the mechanisms probably needs a good cleaning to allow it to move freely again.

 

[Jonny Ramone]

Use the AK search at the top of the page for additional posts.

 

[magneticdave]

I see the small roller and i understand how it works. It looks to be in good condition and tried to clean it with a Q-tip with no good results. I will have to clean and lubricate all the moving parts and rubber restore on that wheel, but if the rubber has shrunk it will never work.