Troubleshooting help needed for my Sony Betamax VCR

[Scotch]

Hi everyone.



I own an old Sony Super Betamax VCR, model SL-100, with a date code on the back of the VCR of "6D", which is malfunctioning, and I'm wondering if any one could assist me in trying to troubleshoot it.



The two problems that it's having is that it won't show any picture on my TV any more, and it also seems to have trouble turning the tape.



Four months ago, I was just watching a tape on the VCR, when, all of a sudden, the picture was completely gone, and it just started showing a black screen on my TV. My TV started showing an on-screen display reading "weak or no signal.", which always comes up whenever there's no video on the screen. I tried using my old head cleaning tape, but it didn't work, and the problem still persists.



The other problem the VCR has is that the mechanism seems very weak, like it's having trouble physically turning the tape, either during playback, rewind, or fast-forward. It seems like it's struggling, and the motors are producing weak whirring noises, sounding different than when the VCR works normally.



Besides my Sony Betamovie camcorder, model BMC-110, which still works, it's my only Sony Betamax VCR, and I haven't been able to use it or watch any of my Betamax tapes since March, so I'm interested in repairing it. If any one could help me, then I would really appreciate it.



Thanks!

[Scotch]

Is any one still on here?



It's been a few weeks since I was on here, and I still need help with my Sony Betamax VCR, which still doesn't work, so can any one please help me?



Thanks.

[aramkolt]

I don't have experience with that specific model, but one of the more common problems is dirty heads and "shine"/polishing that occurs on the upper drum over time that increases the friction and tension. This goes over what you could do to at least temporarily get rid of the shine, but there's some risk of damaging things further. Could also be some capacitors have gone bad, but that's a bit harder to chase down if you haven't repaired these before. Can't hurt to try to repair it, but I think there's also working machines out there for around $200 on ebay that may be worth considering depending on how much time you want to put into it.

[Scotch]

I'm sorry for the late reply but thank you for the suggestion. I've read online that a dirty head drum is a common problem with old Sony Betamax VCRs because the magnetic tape is always in contact with the heads of the VCR whenever a tape is loaded in the VCR. I've researched working Sony Betamax VCRs for sale online, but I can't afford a new one, so I just have to keep the one that I have & try to repair it.



I managed to find another Sony model SL-100 VCR for sale in my community that I bought cheap just for parts. Since I'm a novice with repairing VCRs, and I don't know anything about capacitors, is there anything else that I should know about?



On a side note, I'm also thinking of buying a Betamax tape rewinder, since I've been rewinding & fast forwarding all of my videotapes in the VCR, which I know causes a lot of wear & tear on the VCR and could also be part of my problem.



Thanks again.

[aramkolt]

Not sure what your budget is, but I do attempt repairs on betamax machines from time to time. What's most frustrating about them is that the parts that sometimes will wear out can only be sourced from other parts machines that you have to hope don't have the same issues and even if the parts machines themselves are cheap, the shipping is often not because of how heavy they are. Some models also like to break their PCBs during shipping because scarcely placed plastic standoffs can act as a focusing point for force if the deck is dropped just right, cracking the PBC and breaking many traces. The round-trip shipping costs alone make repair attempts often not worth it if it were to cost $100 in round-trip shipping alone just as an example.

[themaster1]

Watch videos of 12voltvids and Mrbetabyte on Youtube, that should give you some clues (keywords betamax + no video / picture) . If you don't have the necessary tools just hire someone