Beogram 4004 (5526): A New Arrival From New York State - A First Look

A Beogram 4004 (5526) arrived for restoration from New York State. Shipping went well, and I had a first look:

This spring revealed itself during unpacking:

Looks like one of the two springs that hold up the mounting screws for the hinge in the back. The unit has decent aluminum panels without major damages, the keypad is also in pretty good shape:

So are the plinth corners up front:

Like most 400x we receive, this unit also has a scratched up hood:

Unfortunately, the MMC 4000 cartridge that came with it is missing the tip:

I took a look under the aluminum panels:

As far as I can tell at this point things look pretty original. That is always a good starting point for a restoration. 

I plugged it in, and pressed START. The carriage started moving, but passed by the LP set-down point and went all the way across to the center and then returned. Since the 33-to-45 switchover occurred during this trip, the carriage position sensor seems to work. This suggests that the record detection circuit has an issue. Another obvious issue with this deck is the DC platter motor. It emitted a knocking sound while it was running, a clear indication that the bearings need to be re-infused with oil. This is a common issue with this Beogram vintage.