Worn pinch roller on a Bauer VCC 612

[HansensUniverse]

Hi,

After much use i noticed that the camera was starting to mess with the tape, sometimes unable to record and play back my videotapes, upon teardown i noticed that the pinch roller was heavily pitted, causing all sorts of issues.

It's a 30 year old unit, i bet it's difficult to impossible to find any replacement parts for such a rare camera, what are my options? Can i resurface the pinch roller or is it okay to replace it with a similar unoriginal one?

[johns0]

You can try and resurface the roller but if it's too gummy then it needs to be replaced,a similar one will do as long as it has the same fittings and rubber size.

[HansensUniverse]

Thanks for the reply,

Where do i buy these? I've come across some for VCRs and are way too big, not for camcorders, note, there is a little spring in the pinch roll, it appears to be highly specialized, i don't see how i could find another one that would fit on the shaft. Are there any page for collectors or camcorder specialists that has some sort of marketplace or knowledge of these? I've probably got one of the rarest camcorders in the world, literally nothing on these, must have been sold in particular EU countries back in the day.

[johns0]

No idea,best place to try is google,i would try and clean it first with a cleaner meant for rubber renewing.

[HansensUniverse]

Looks like i have no choice but to do a little DIY, either go with electrical tape and make a nice even layer, or find some sort of thin walled hose / tubing that matches nicely that i can use to thread over to form a new layer or find a cable with similar diameter and try and use it's insulation lol, the reality parts are seriously scarce around here, some might not like the idea of going this route but finding new replacement parts are out of the question.

[dellsam34]

No need to replace the whole arm, Just pull out the little white plastic ring from the pinch roller shaft, the roller should come off easily, Use any VCR's roller that has the same diameter, it's an easy replacement.
Too bad you are in a different country otherwise I can try to see if I have one with the same diameter.

[johns0]

Have you tried cleaning it as i mentioned?I have worked on many vcrs and cleaning the pinch roller fixed the issue most of the time.

[dellsam34]

That's a deep gouge impossible to remove by cleaning unless put on a lathe and grind off about 1mm from the surface but the roller becomes smaller and may loose tension, A replacement is a much easier way.

Wonder how long that pinch roller is being pressed against the capstan shaft to leave a groove like that, Probable years.

[johns0]

Ya,i didn't notice the indent,can't be smoothed out,look on ebay for parts.

[dellsam34]

https://kpcomponents.co/products/vcr-pinch-roller-17mm-x-4mm-x-18mm-pr14