Pioneer RT-707 reel to reel decks

"...One thing... I had to replace the counter belt on my deck. Now I have a high mechanical aptitude and must say that the amount of screws and parts you need to disassemble in order to get the belt in place is ridiculous. If it ever breaks again, I'm just leaving it broken.

I know this is an old thread, but there may be other 707 owners that visit in the future... I'm in the process of restoring a 707 and have been doing some work on the inside. I decided to replace the counter belt as part of the process. There is an 'easier' way to replace the belt without removing too much. I replaced mine just yesterday and was stumped at first, but then came up with solution.

0) Remove the left tape base and brake strap guard.

1) Luckily the counter spindle pulley itself is open so the belt can slip over from the back. This is the first step. This step can be time-consuming, but this is the end you want to put on first. You should not have to remove any of the counter assembly to do this. It is a bit tricky, but can be done.

2) I was able to guide the belt back behind the counter mechanism from the front using my hand. Once I could see the belt from the back, I then took a long screwdriver, and gently slipped it over the counter pulley from the rear. This did involve my son holding a flashlight as my third hand.

3) Next, from the front of the deck bring the other end of the belt under the right lower side of the brake strap and proceed to stretch it up and around the left tape base between it and brake strap. You will have to stretch the belt a little, but you can work it around the tape base and strap, by having a third hand moving the brake level/mechanism to loosen the strap as you work the belt around the tape base.

4) Once the belt is behind the tape base spindle that last step is putting it into the small pulley. Voila!

Sorry I didn't take any pictures of this process, since both of hands were busy. :) My bad.

The only Pioneer Deck that I'd place at or above either the x0x decks are the RT-1050 or RT-2022/44's. Pioneer decks made after 1973 are sleepers in general. Parts are plentiful, might they might not always be.......but that having been said, they last nearly, virtually forever. I've been restoring them since the early '90's and I've only had two that had component failures and they were NOT well cared for.

The RT series was an economical alternative to most all other consumer decks of the day such as Tandberg and Revox. The spec wars were in full swing which spawned the big Technics. Solenoid operated transports were a boon to reliability.

There was another war in progress in those days. The over population of buttons, switches, lights, and tool accessible heads. The Japanese products were especially adorned.

I purchased a 909 to play the quarter inch dupes from the studios main board outputs. Unknowingly, the 909 became a great party mix devise when used at a slower speed and auto reverse is selected. People were far more frighted to touch a ten inch reel to reel compared to turntable in those days.

J-Corder chose it for their 7" machine and the auction prices tell the story.  (Up to $1500, if realigned/restored.)  Arguably the best Quarter 7" track machine ever made.  I've always been seriously underwhelmed by the Scandanavia "Uber Alles" mentality.  I know it's closely tied to Stereopile, which was biased against anything Japanese for many years. Lots of controls (all necessary) and lots of illumination to give user feedback which I also prefer.  So folks who don't like technology (or outstanding analog sound) might not like them, but that's not most audiophiles.  Like I stated before the XoX's, the 2022 or 2044 are the top of the line for good reasons.  The 10x0's are unjustly overlooked (Patrick H. Donleycott gave a VERY positive review of the RT-1050 in TAS, issue 6, and you can get a quarter-track head stack for it if you have deep enough pockets) and all mine have held up like new since my first machine in 1991.  I had to restore/align them, but the sweat equity I could afford.  I had (then at least) more time than money.  Well worth the price, IF they've been well maintained.