Universal QIC Tape Reader: Drive Wheel

Rubber Drive Wheel Decay

Problems with rubber drive roller wheels turning to goo? You are not alone. I've had this problem with most of the vintage drives that I've purchased. Here's some images of the roller wheel that came in the Archive 5945 that was in our original MightyFrame:

And here's what it might like if you ever try to run a tape in a drive with one of these bad drive wheels:

Here's some reasons why this might happen, if you're interested.

Many people have offered really good suggestions on how someone can repair these on their own, with parts from other systems, and such, but I am going to let you, the reader, find those on your own. Because I only have one personally recommendation, which is the only one I've ever tried, and has worked very well for me.

Terry's Rubber Rollers

And his website, right out of the 1990s!

www.terrysrubberrollers.com

His fees are quite pricey, ranging from $50-75 USD per roller wheel repair, but if you want solid hardware to work with, I personally think it's worth it. This helps with the speed regulation immensely, to know that you have a better-than-factory roller wheel, milled to spec.

And Order Form

And an image of his business card.

Plasti Dip?

In this YouTube video, we see CuriousMarc is using a "Plasti Dip" material for HP Mini Cartridge Tape Drives. While the capstan design looks very different than the drives I show here, it's an intriguing solution, worth mentioning here. I salute Marc's ingenuity here!

4mm Silicone Vacuum Hose

According to Chuck(G) on the VCFed.org Forum, "For what it's worth, I use 4mm silicone vacuum hose to replace the rubber on quarter-inch-cartridge drives. Easy and works fine as the hose is quite round. Somewhere years ago, I posted a photo of one such replacement on an Archive SCSI QIC drive. Apparently Tygon tubing works well also"

Archive 5945 Wheel Diameter

Whatever solution you choose to rebuild these wheels, I thought that some measurements might help, so I'm providing them here for the tape drive models that I've worked with. These are the measurements after Terry reconstructed them, and before ever installing them into the tape drive unit.

Wangtek 5099 Wheel Diameter

Whatever solution you choose to rebuild these wheels, I thought that some measurements might help, so I'm providing them here for the tape drive models that I've worked with. These are the measurements after Terry reconstructed them, and before ever installing them into the tape drive unit.