Step by Step: Repairing the Cracked Plastic Head Mount Bracket on an 8-Track Player

This is a thorough walkthrough of how to repair the plastic bracket that holds the sound head on 8-track players with the infamous plastic construction. In this example, we are working with a Realistic TR-169 player, but the procedure is largely the same on all players with a similar mechanism.

This process can also be used preventively – even on healthy brackets that haven’t cracked yet. Reinforcing with wire helps strengthen the bracket and reduces the risk of future damage.

Tor-Atle Kindsbekken

Procedure

Disassembly:

• Remove the feets to open the player
• Slide off the cover by pulling the front out of the chassis.

• Remove the E-clip ring and washer
• Lift out the small brown circuit board

• Remove the metal ring and spring beneath it
• Swipe the track change motor in the direction shown by the arrow

• Lift off the white plastic gear
• Remove the angled white plastic clip and the spring at the bottom

• Carefully remove the entire plastic bracket holding the playback head
• Unscrew the screw securing the sound head and remove the sound head from the bracket.

Reinforcement with steel wire:

• Wrap a thin steel wire around the plastic bracket and twist it into a “knot” in one corner
• Make sure the wire does not cross the screw hole — it must run alongside it

• Use a soldering iron to gently melt the wire into the plastic
• IMPORTANT: Be very careful around the screw hole. Avoid letting the soldering iron deform the plastic, and make sure the wire doesn’t block or interfere with the hole
• Tighten the knot with pliers as you go, to keep the wire under tension
• Once in place, add a drop of solder onto the knot to hold it in place

• Repeat the process with a second wire on the opposite side of the screw hole

• Once again: ensure that neither wire crosses over the hole — each should stay on its own side of the hole

Reassembly and Final Result:

• Reinsert the playback head into the bracket and fasten the screw
• Reassemble the track change mechanism, piece by piece, in the reverse order of disassembly
• The result is a much stronger construction — even more robust than the original bracket was when new