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The Wollensak 5750 reel to reel tape recorder take-up reel section manages the collection of tape after it has passed through the capstan and pinch roller assembly. This page discusses the take up reel section of the Wollensak 5750 reel to reel tape recorder and what parts I had to replace or adjust to get the machine into good working order.
<-- To Control Central | To Conclusion-->
Wollensak 5750
Tape Recorder Take Up Reel Section
Pass your
mouse over the image below to see the various part labels.
The operation
of the Wollensak 5750 vintage tape recorder take up reel section is pretty
conventional by standards of it's time. The take up reel collects tape fed
through the capstan and pinch roller assembly. It also manages fast forward
function, and back tension for the Rewind function.
Here's how it works:
Play
Mode
Pressing the
Play button (this works in record mode as well) releases the transport plate
to the engage the pinch roller against the capstan shaft. At the same time,
a lever controlled by the end transport plate releases the reel brake and
moves a clutch beneath the take up reel drum, creating friction between the
rotating clutch plate (always powered by the capstan flywheel through a belt)
and the take up reel drum, much like the clutch in a car engages the power
of the engine to the transmission. Below is a detail of how this works.
When in Play
mode, the friction felt allows some slippage, and the take up reel is always
"trying" to spin faster than the tape is being fed through the
capstan and pinch roller, so there is always positive tape collection on
the reel without straining the transmission or stretching the tape, which
would ruin the audio and also the tape! It is an interesting balance of
forces.
Fast
Forward
Turning the
Rewind/Fast Forward lever to the fast forward position disengages the reel
brakes and moves the fast forward idler wheel to make contact between the
capstan flywheel and the take up reel drum. The drum now spins at a much
faster rate of speed. If the tape recorder was previously in play mode, the
Fast Forward lever also disengages the clutch from the take up reel drum.
Other Parts
The motor
pulley and drive idler wheel have been described in the Main Cabinet section
that also deals with the speed control. Click here to go there.
The Power
on/off button has also been described in that section. Click here to go there.
Restoration/Rebuild
Fast
Forward Idler
The fast forward
idler wheel did not have any "flat spots", but the rubber was old,
cracked and dried out. When I received my Wollensak 5750 vintage tape recorder,
it actually did work, but it slipped quite a bit on the take up reel drum.
I sent it to Terry of Terry's
Rubber Rollers and he resurfaced it perfectly. It now grips and engages
the teak up reel drum very well.
Motor Drive
Idler Wheel
As discussed
in the Main Cabinet section that deals with the speed control (Click
here to go there) I sent the motor drive idler wheel to Terry for resurfacing.
He did a great job and it works just fine.
Take-Up Reel
Clutch Plate Belt
The take up
reel aids in smooth operation when the tape recorder is engaged in PLAY mode.
If there is belt slippage, that is transferred to the capstan and can influence
the smoothness of the tape travel and affect the audio quality of the machine.
I found a replacement belt sold by Turntable
Needles.com. They had categorized the belt by Wollensak Model number,
making ordering the replacement very easy.
This
concludes the restoration/rebuild section of this Web site. Proceed to the
Conclusion page for a summary of the features and operation of the Wollensak
5750 reel to reel tape recorder.
<--
To Control Central | To
Conclusion-->
Please
note that ClydeSight Productions DOES NOT rebuild or sell vintage
reel to reel tape recorders, nor can we help anyone involved in such a project.
The tape recorders shown in these pages are part of a personal collection
and are not for sale. We Do Not recommend
that unqualified or inexperienced persons attempt to restore vintage audio
equipment.
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www.clydesight.com Master Site
Web site copyright ©ClydeSight
Productions - 2007
