Thanks 6or7. What kind of cleaner/lubricant should I use then? I am a Comptia Certified A+ Computer Repair specialist, so I am confident I can handle this but didn't realize WD/40 broke down rubber. I'll ensure the belts are wiped off. Should all the nylon parts be kept dry too or should I use a light petroleum jelly on them? While I've got this apart I might as well perform some preventive maint, but as all my stereo equipment has functioned well up till now, I never had a reason to do this kind of repair. I would like to do it right but haven't had much exposure. I tried taking my deck to the local authorized Sony repair place and they wouldn't touch it unless it was a CD/DVD or VCR deck. They complained they'd have to order a service manual for it then look up the part and then order the part and then get the part in and put it back together and it would be more work to them than they thought the deck was worth. The deck is a 5 cassette carousel--rather unique I thought when I got it in '96. I paid $335 for it and it's given years of good service, all I need is the capstan drive to repair it. Thanks also for the tip on the Sony Part #. I will order it from them, as the only other place I could find was in Ireland and they wanted $49.95 for it so 30 bucks is a great price! Tom