Hitachi T-44L - UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum

douglashm · 16th Nov 2013, 1:52 pm

Good afternoon,

I have a Hitachi T-44L Music Centre, approximately 30 years old. It hasn't been used for some time, and I want to bring it back to life.
I would appreciate suggestions to help solve the following problems:

After some years of use, the turntable did not spin at a constant speed. We bought a new drive belt, but have never been able to fit it as we cannot find a way of removing the turntable to get under it.
Volume control and left-right balance is intermittent. We think it may be dust-related or simply lack of use. Moving the volume slider back and forth several times seems to (at least partially) improve the situation.
The cassette holder doors will sometimes not open after playing a cassette (annoying when the cassette is stuck in there).
The cassette spindles will no longer spin.

We have a 5-page "Instruction Manual", but it doesn't provide many instructions for maintenance and repair - certainly nothing to help here.

One used to be able to find little corner shops with men in brown coats who were experts at this sort of thing. Do they still exist?

Herald1360 · 16th Nov 2013, 5:49 pm

Some of the little men in brown coats still exist, but the corner shops are mini marts, betting shops or estate agents now

Bear in mind that if the little man is to make even a modest living from repairs, they will probably cost more than the unit is worth unless it has some sentimental value.

You may however get talked through a DIY fix here

Nickthedentist · 16th Nov 2013, 5:55 pm

Hello and welcome, Douglas.

Many of those men in brown coats are here on this forum! Sadly, the "king" of these, a chap called Les Lawry-Johns, who had such a shop just down the road in Gravesend, passed away some 20 years ago: http://www.vintage-radio.info/llj/les-lawry-johns.jpg

Here's a pic of a similar machine. A fairly cheap (in relative terms, though miles better than the Fidelity/Amstrad/Binatone rubbish) stacking system from the early 1980s: http://aprod.hu/hirdetes/hitachi-t44...o-ID10kzb.html

The crackling is caused by oxidation of the contacts in the controls. A squirt of switch cleaner like Servisol's Super 10 may be all that's needed.

The cassette deck problems will almost certainly be due to perished belts and/or idler tyres. A DIY fix is possible, but only if you're very patient, mechanically-minded and are willing to set a day or so aside to have a go at it.

As for the record deck, this should be an easy fix: cleaning and oiling the main bearing (and possibly the motor ones) plus a new belt. If you could post pictures of the deck with the mat removed, we should be able to tell you more.

Nick

douglashm · 20th Nov 2013, 6:47 pm

Thanks to Herald1360 and Nickthedentist for their helpful replies.

Very glad to hear that the men in brown coats are still alive and well, and active on internet forums.

I'm obviously aware that the items concerned have little or no monetary value nowadays, though they do have sentimental value, and anyway I'm reluctant to throw away stuff that might be made to work again with a little TLC.

@ Nick: The picture you provided is exactly what we have, though the back panel looks slightly different.

I think we've pretty much sorted the cracking volume control.
I can reluctantly live without using the tape decks if necessary; it looks like repairing those is beyond me, even with an expert talking me through it.
The record deck is what I was most concerned about.
Pictures attached...

'LIVEWIRE?' · 20th Nov 2013, 8:14 pm

With most Japanese record decks, the turntable is removed by simply pulling it upwards, having first 'unhooked' the belt from the motor pulley, which will be visible through one of the rectangular holes in the platter. A new belt should be a fairly snug fit around the inner part of the turntable. Once the t/t is lowered into place, the belt can be fitted over the motor pulley with relative ease.

Nickthedentist · 20th Nov 2013, 9:09 pm

Mmm, that's a tricky one. It's not quite like most more costly Japanese turntables with a metal spindle on which the platter is a taper fit as Livewire describes.

Does anyone think that this deck is a BSR one, perhaps, and if so, do they know the secret of removing the platter?

Nick.

'LIVEWIRE?' · 21st Nov 2013, 9:37 am

It doesn't look like any BSR Turntable I've ever seen, and AFAIK Hitachi always made their own turntables (unless anyone knows different!) If the T-44L service manual is available from one of the on-line suppliers (getmanual.com,www.manuals-in-pdf.com, or vinyl engine this should answer the question

16th Nov 2013, 1:52 pm	#1
douglashm Retired Dormant Member Join Date: Nov 2013 Location: Rochester, Kent Posts: 3	Hitachi T-44L Good afternoon, I have a Hitachi T-44L Music Centre, approximately 30 years old. It hasn't been used for some time, and I want to bring it back to life. I would appreciate suggestions to help solve the following problems: After some years of use, the turntable did not spin at a constant speed. We bought a new drive belt, but have never been able to fit it as we cannot find a way of removing the turntable to get under it. Volume control and left-right balance is intermittent. We think it may be dust-related or simply lack of use. Moving the volume slider back and forth several times seems to (at least partially) improve the situation. The cassette holder doors will sometimes not open after playing a cassette (annoying when the cassette is stuck in there). The cassette spindles will no longer spin. We have a 5-page "Instruction Manual", but it doesn't provide many instructions for maintenance and repair - certainly nothing to help here. One used to be able to find little corner shops with men in brown coats who were experts at this sort of thing. Do they still exist?

16th Nov 2013, 5:49 pm	#2
Herald1360 Dekatron Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Leominster, Herefordshire, UK. Posts: 16,535	Re: Hitachi T-44L Some of the little men in brown coats still exist, but the corner shops are mini marts, betting shops or estate agents now Bear in mind that if the little man is to make even a modest living from repairs, they will probably cost more than the unit is worth unless it has some sentimental value. You may however get talked through a DIY fix here __________________ ....__________ ....\|____\|\|__\|__\_____ .=.\| _---\__\|__\|_---_\|. .........O..Chris....O

16th Nov 2013, 5:55 pm	#3
Nickthedentist Dekatron Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Oxford, UK. Posts: 17,846	Re: Hitachi T-44L Hello and welcome, Douglas. Many of those men in brown coats are here on this forum! Sadly, the "king" of these, a chap called Les Lawry-Johns, who had such a shop just down the road in Gravesend, passed away some 20 years ago: http://www.vintage-radio.info/llj/les-lawry-johns.jpg Here's a pic of a similar machine. A fairly cheap (in relative terms, though miles better than the Fidelity/Amstrad/Binatone rubbish) stacking system from the early 1980s: http://aprod.hu/hirdetes/hitachi-t44...o-ID10kzb.html The crackling is caused by oxidation of the contacts in the controls. A squirt of switch cleaner like Servisol's Super 10 may be all that's needed. The cassette deck problems will almost certainly be due to perished belts and/or idler tyres. A DIY fix is possible, but only if you're very patient, mechanically-minded and are willing to set a day or so aside to have a go at it. As for the record deck, this should be an easy fix: cleaning and oiling the main bearing (and possibly the motor ones) plus a new belt. If you could post pictures of the deck with the mat removed, we should be able to tell you more. Nick Last edited by Nickthedentist; 16th Nov 2013 at 6:02 pm.

20th Nov 2013, 6:47 pm	#4
douglashm Retired Dormant Member Join Date: Nov 2013 Location: Rochester, Kent Posts: 3	Re: Hitachi T-44L Thanks to Herald1360 and Nickthedentist for their helpful replies. Very glad to hear that the men in brown coats are still alive and well, and active on internet forums. I'm obviously aware that the items concerned have little or no monetary value nowadays, though they do have sentimental value, and anyway I'm reluctant to throw away stuff that might be made to work again with a little TLC. @ Nick: The picture you provided is exactly what we have, though the back panel looks slightly different. I think we've pretty much sorted the cracking volume control. I can reluctantly live without using the tape decks if necessary; it looks like repairing those is beyond me, even with an expert talking me through it. The record deck is what I was most concerned about. Pictures attached... Attached Thumbnails

20th Nov 2013, 8:14 pm	#5
'LIVEWIRE?' Rest in Peace Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: N.W. Oxfordshire(Chipping Norton) Posts: 7,306	Re: Hitachi T-44L With most Japanese record decks, the turntable is removed by simply pulling it upwards, having first 'unhooked' the belt from the motor pulley, which will be visible through one of the rectangular holes in the platter. A new belt should be a fairly snug fit around the inner part of the turntable. Once the t/t is lowered into place, the belt can be fitted over the motor pulley with relative ease.

20th Nov 2013, 9:09 pm	#6
Nickthedentist Dekatron Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Oxford, UK. Posts: 17,846	Re: Hitachi T-44L Mmm, that's a tricky one. It's not quite like most more costly Japanese turntables with a metal spindle on which the platter is a taper fit as Livewire describes. Does anyone think that this deck is a BSR one, perhaps, and if so, do they know the secret of removing the platter? Nick.

21st Nov 2013, 9:37 am	#7
'LIVEWIRE?' Rest in Peace Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: N.W. Oxfordshire(Chipping Norton) Posts: 7,306	Re: Hitachi T-44L It doesn't look like any BSR Turntable I've ever seen, and AFAIK Hitachi always made their own turntables (unless anyone knows different!) If the T-44L service manual is available from one of the on-line suppliers (getmanual.com,www.manuals-in-pdf.com, or vinyl engine this should answer the question