Zenith repair question

 

Al456
Unregistered guest
I have an old late 1980's Zenith. Now, when I put a tape in it just shuts down. What part is defective ? I know it's cheaper to just buy a new one, but how can I fix it ?

Thanks.
 

Silver Member
Username: Reinhart

Post Number: 235
Registered: Nov-05
"I have an old late 1980's Zenith. Now, when I but a tape in it just shuts down. What part is defective ? I know it's cheaper to just buy a new one, but how can I fix it ?"

JVC had OEMed VHS VCRs for Zenith in the 1980s. Considering the age, it is most likely that all rubber belts and, if the mechanism is old enough, the idler tire inside your VCR will require replacement.

The shut down may be due to a failed belt which is supposed to drive the advance mechanism. This advance mechanism also moves a mode switch, which is the part that tells the VCR SYSCON where it is mechanically. If the SYSCON doesn't detect the desired switching from the mode switch within the programmed time allocation, indicating that the VCR has loaded the tape successfully, then the SYSCON will timeout and put the VCR in standby mode as a failsafe to keep the deck from possibly damaging itself and the loaded cassette due to the mechanical failure.

You may not have access to the correct replacement parts to proceed with the repair. You may have to hire the services of a reputable technician to deal with the repair for you. - Reinhart
 

Gold Member
Username: Samijubal

Post Number: 1938
Registered: Jul-04
By the late 80s, they were Goldstar, not JVC. If it says made in Korea, it's Goldstar, if it says made in Japan, it's JVC. If it's Goldstar, it probably has a bad mode switch, and/or the pinch roller load gear is out of alignment or some of the teeth on the gear are stripped.
 

Silver Member
Username: Reinhart

Post Number: 241
Registered: Nov-05
"By the late 80s, they were Goldstar, not JVC."

Not too sure about that myself. Although Zenith did have VCRs OEMed by GoldStar, the only examples I've seen of GoldStar OEMed decks bearing the Zenith brand were from the early-mid 1990s and up. That's not to say that what you've indicated isn't so, but I've yet to see a Zenith deck from the late 1980s that was made by GoldStar.

"If it says made in Korea, it's Goldstar, if it says made in Japan, it's JVC."

Forgot about that point.

"If it's Goldstar, it probably has a bad mode switch, and/or the pinch roller load gear is out of alignment or some of the teeth on the gear are stripped."

It depends on the chassis.

Late 1980s GoldStar decks, or at least the decks I've seen from this era, did not use a pinch roller load gear akin to an elevation/actuation mechanism ala the Matsushita G-chassis but, rather, a lever-action pinch roller actuation mechanism that was directly driven by the main advance/timing gear. The advance/timing gear would be part of an advance/timing assembly which also contained an advance arm that pulled a slider which actuated the reel spindle brakes and the clutch on the idler, the mode switch for syscon feedback, and the drive motor. They didn't stop using this chassis until the early 1990s.

But, a problem prevalent in essentially every GoldStar VCR: soft, cheap plastic that was known to crack or break over time. This means that any part that was subjected to pressure from, say, a spring torsion present on the gears of the loader carriage, would eventually break.

Another, of course and as you've mentioned, would be the mode switch. A faulty mode switch can cause all sorts of wacky things to happen.

On the GoldStar chassis that I'm thinking of, a fault in the mode switch could, for one thing, cause the advance mechanism not to allow the backtensioning pulley to fully engage when put into play or record or when taken out of pause in the aforementioned modes. - Reinhart
 

Gold Member
Username: Samijubal

Post Number: 1942
Registered: Jul-04
I've got an 89 Zenith Goldstar downstairs in the parts heap. You are right about the chassis, they went to the other style in 90, I've got one from then down there too. The 89 style still had load gear problems, but the gear is located on the bottom.
 

Silver Member
Username: Reinhart

Post Number: 246
Registered: Nov-05
Cool.

So Zenith did a transistion from JVC to GoldStar sometime in 1989 according to your parts supply. - Reinhart
 

Gold Member
Username: Samijubal

Post Number: 1965
Registered: Jul-04
The mode switch is dated 7/15/89, the carriage is dated 7/29/89. One of them may or may not have been swapped from another VCR. I didn't see those clock type things that they use to date most VCRs.
 

New member
Username: Emeel

Birmingham, Alabama Usa

Post Number: 1
Registered: Dec-05
I have a Zenith tv model #B19A21d.I know I can buy a new one for a few hundred $ but I just want to repair this if I can. The tv went black & no sound. If anyone can tell me what the problem is & the part # please let me know! If you know what the problem usually would be. The most likely part that needs to be replace. Thank you "E"
« Previous Thread Next Thread »



Main Forums

Today's Posts

Forum Help

Follow Us