Have an old Beta or VHS recorder that does not want to play or rewind/fast-forward ?
A very likely fault is the idler wheel and/or the belts.
In this small instructable i will show you how to fix this with only screwdrivers and pliers.
For example I am using my Sanyo Betacord 5000, lots of other old vcr's have a similar construction which use an idler wheel and belt to drive the tape reels!

Step 1: Opening the Lid.

My Sanyo has a top-loader so that decklid will have to go first.
It has a black plastic strip that is held together with double sided tape and a small plastic plug that can be disconnected from the bottom with a small screwdriver.
Be careful not to break this plug.
Then just 2 screws and the lid comes off.
When done close the cassette loader.

Step 2: Opening the Top Cover.

This is really easy.
Just 3 screws in the back and slide the deck backwards and then lift up.
In the second picture we see the cassette holder, this will be removed in the next step.

Step 3: Taking Out the Cassette Holder.

Here we see 3 screws holding in the right side hinge of the cassette mechanism.
We have to undo these 3 then we can slide out the cassette holder to the right, lift it up and rest it on top of the head-cover.
Now we have full access to the reel and idler assembly.

Step 4: The Idler Assembly.

Now comes the hard part!
The idler wheels moves left and right on a tiny arm.
This arm is held in place with a tiny c-clamp, very very carefully hold it with one hand and with another hand use a tiny flat-head screwdriver to pry it off the shaft.
If you are not careful this little guy will fly off into oblivion...

Carefully take off the arm, the belt and the idler.
Next step is the idler wheel.

Step 5: The Idler Wheel.

Now we have the idler all to ourselves.
Take off the tiny gear and be careful no to lose the 2 washers inside it!

Then comes the hardest part of all...Taking off the idler tire off the wheel. If the tire breaks its game over!

We are going to take the tire off and turn it inside-out to get the good non-worn side on the outside!

I used the smallest screwdriver I have and very gently pulled off the tire.
This rubber is very hard and very easily damaged so take your time.

If you have successfully taken off the tire, turn it inside out so the shiny part is on the outside and place it back onto the wheel.
Keep turning the wheel and pressing with thumb and index finger so the tire fits completely around the wheel.

Step 6: Re-Assembly!

Follow back all previous steps you have taken to re-assemble everything.
If you have new belts, now is the time to replace them!
Your VCR should work back like it should!

If not the idler wheel is too much worn and you need a replacement... Google is your friend here.

I hope this has been useful to someone! Thanks for reading!