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Thank you for the info! I managed, with a considerable amount of force, to get the pinch roller assembly off. Cleaned it, greased it and the post it pivots on, and it's still stiff, although not as bad. The mechanism is now able to engage it, but it's still too stiff to retract upon unloading. It would seem to me that the metal has perhaps expanded/contracted over the years? I found another thread on here from someone who had the same problem on the same VCR.
I also discovered that the pivoting post immediately after the capstan and pinch roller, right before the take-up reel, is also very stiff and unable to move on its own. It's held on with a nut and has a spring underneath, so I'm afraid to remove it in case it's an alignment-critical part, until I hear otherwise.
At this point, I believe this VCR should be able to engage play mode, but mine still isn't - it loads all the way, then unloads. Looking at a video shot by the other person who made a post about a VFT650 on here, it looks like the solenoid is supposed to kick the pinch roller into place after loading, but mine doesn't. So I'm wondering if my mode switch is still dirty. I did spray it with contact cleaner from the outside, but maybe I'll have to take it apart to give it a deeper clean.
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