Uher 4000 Report tape not moving - UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum

Dale_Cooper · 27th Mar 2011, 12:48 am

Hello,
I recently acquired a UHER 4000 Report - all was fine until today..I was making some tape loops which I then fed into the machine...they would not go round. I have not done this before..I have only used the reels. BUT I really want to make music this way...with loops of tape I have made right?

So...when the tape would not go through the heads I thought that maybe there is no pinch roller moving it accross. I take off the head cover to inspect if this is the case..I think there is a pinch roller in there. OK it is not moving!

I screw back on the head cover, put the reels back on and play...NOTHING!! Not moving. So maybe it is now broken?? GREAT!!!!

The Spools move when Play is down, FF and RW are also working. Its just there is nothing pulling the tape through the play heads.

Urgh..if someone could advise me on what to do or where I can fix it that would be awesome. Sorry if this message is crazy.

Thank you!

DC

Atomic Boogaloo · 30th Mar 2011, 11:32 am

Yo Dale

. . . . . You kinda beat me to the punch, as i have one similar, that i was going to post about .. but regarding YOUR problem

Firstly - can you hear the motor running when you press play or record ?

If so - have you tried all four speed positions, on the little gate-selector lever ?

If the answer is yes to both, you may be suffering some wear on the rubber transfer roller thingy ( a technical term

) - its a kind of idler, if i remember correctly, that runs outside of some little flywheel arrangement

( I'd been meaning to have a sit down with mine too, to try and bring it back
so if anyone knows their Uher mech's ?)

BTW i think its way cool your making real live tapeloops (for music perhaps ?) rather than digital samples !

Best of luck

. . . . . . . . G

PS I'll try and dig mine out later (if those House Refurb movers ain't lost it !), and hopefully be a bit less vague re the mechanism

Welsh Anorak · 30th Mar 2011, 12:50 pm

Hi
Don't worry - your message makes perfect sense! I imagine that it's a co-incidence that the fault happened while you were using a tape loop - if anything that is less strain on the mechanics.
Basically the motor is running but it's not driving the capstan flywheel which as AB says is done with a rubber drive to the rim. This is driven by a belt from one end of the motor- the belt on the other pulley drives the reels. Either the belt has snapped (likely) or the swivel drive has siezed. Let us know which Report it is (-S, -L, -IC or -Monitor) and we can help more.
Incidentally you've just spoiled my day - I pulled one of my 4200 Monitors off the shelf to check and found someone had left batteries in and they have leaked and made one heck of a mess of the PCB. Luckily I do have a spare machine for parts, but it'll be a long slog....
Good luck
Glyn

Dale_Cooper · 30th Mar 2011, 4:47 pm

Ok, thanks guys for replying.

Well, I have now had a technician at my university look at it. Turns out is the capstan drive belt which has broken - which is GOOD!! Should not be too hard to replace.

Welsh Anorak - sorry to hear about your machine! I hope that it is fixable!! Mine is the report model by the way. The thing looks great - is built like a tank!

Thanks for both your replies. I am looking forward to making my own loops. Am going to use the machine in a live situation, perhaps running the sound through a laptop to process..Not sure. Anyway is good to get away from the digital domain and editing on the computer. Working with the physical media will certainly make a difference to the sound and creativity.
Good luck with you both fixing your machines!

-Coop.

27th Mar 2011, 12:48 am	#1
Dale_Cooper Retired Dormant Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Brighton, East Sussex, UK. Posts: 22	Uher 4000 Report tape not moving Hello, I recently acquired a UHER 4000 Report - all was fine until today..I was making some tape loops which I then fed into the machine...they would not go round. I have not done this before..I have only used the reels. BUT I really want to make music this way...with loops of tape I have made right? So...when the tape would not go through the heads I thought that maybe there is no pinch roller moving it accross. I take off the head cover to inspect if this is the case..I think there is a pinch roller in there. OK it is not moving! I screw back on the head cover, put the reels back on and play...NOTHING!! Not moving. So maybe it is now broken?? GREAT!!!! The Spools move when Play is down, FF and RW are also working. Its just there is nothing pulling the tape through the play heads. Urgh..if someone could advise me on what to do or where I can fix it that would be awesome. Sorry if this message is crazy. Thank you! DC

30th Mar 2011, 11:32 am	#2
Atomic Boogaloo Retired Dormant Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: North London Posts: 5	Re: Uher 4000 Report tape not moving Yo Dale . . . . . You kinda beat me to the punch, as i have one similar, that i was going to post about .. but regarding YOUR problem Firstly - can you hear the motor running when you press play or record ? If so - have you tried all four speed positions, on the little gate-selector lever ? If the answer is yes to both, you may be suffering some wear on the rubber transfer roller thingy ( a technical term ) - its a kind of idler, if i remember correctly, that runs outside of some little flywheel arrangement ( I'd been meaning to have a sit down with mine too, to try and bring it back so if anyone knows their Uher mech's ?) BTW i think its way cool your making real live tapeloops (for music perhaps ?) rather than digital samples ! Best of luck . . . . . . . . G PS I'll try and dig mine out later (if those House Refurb movers ain't lost it !), and hopefully be a bit less vague re the mechanism

30th Mar 2011, 12:50 pm	#3
Welsh Anorak Dekatron Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: North Wales, UK. Posts: 6,928	Re: Uher 4000 Report tape not moving Hi Don't worry - your message makes perfect sense! I imagine that it's a co-incidence that the fault happened while you were using a tape loop - if anything that is less strain on the mechanics. Basically the motor is running but it's not driving the capstan flywheel which as AB says is done with a rubber drive to the rim. This is driven by a belt from one end of the motor- the belt on the other pulley drives the reels. Either the belt has snapped (likely) or the swivel drive has siezed. Let us know which Report it is (-S, -L, -IC or -Monitor) and we can help more. Incidentally you've just spoiled my day - I pulled one of my 4200 Monitors off the shelf to check and found someone had left batteries in and they have leaked and made one heck of a mess of the PCB. Luckily I do have a spare machine for parts, but it'll be a long slog.... Good luck Glyn

30th Mar 2011, 4:47 pm	#4
Dale_Cooper Retired Dormant Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Brighton, East Sussex, UK. Posts: 22	Re: Uher 4000 Report tape not moving Ok, thanks guys for replying. Well, I have now had a technician at my university look at it. Turns out is the capstan drive belt which has broken - which is GOOD!! Should not be too hard to replace. Welsh Anorak - sorry to hear about your machine! I hope that it is fixable!! Mine is the report model by the way. The thing looks great - is built like a tank! Thanks for both your replies. I am looking forward to making my own loops. Am going to use the machine in a live situation, perhaps running the sound through a laptop to process..Not sure. Anyway is good to get away from the digital domain and editing on the computer. Working with the physical media will certainly make a difference to the sound and creativity. Good luck with you both fixing your machines! -Coop.