The before and after on my grandpa's 1972 Sony reel-to-reel after 3 weeks of cleaning
I picked up my grandpa's old Sony TC-377 from my mom's garage in Boise, and it had been sitting for 22 years with the belts turned to goo and every switch crusty. After 3 weeks of swapping belts, cleaning the heads with 91% isopropyl, and lubing the capstan, the difference was wild: the tape speed went from wobbly to dead steady and it went from muddy to clear enough that I could hear him cough before he started singing. Turns out old grease turns to glue and that's what kills these things, not the electronics. Has anyone else had a deck come back like that, or do you just part them out when the pots get scratchy?