GC Panasonic Q: Any trusty EU based repair center/person?

[Tchoin]

Hi folks, long time... I'm not very active in the hobby lately, other than the odd buying here and there, and organizing my shelves

I've been putting aside consoles I have in need of repair, among them 2 Panasonic Qs which I don't dare open up myself.

Both have tray issues, and one in addition has the front panel buttons screwed up with mixed commands (e.g. the "eject" button changes the "game/dvd" mode). I haven't been lucky finding any repair center/person in Ireland, so expanding now my horizons... but it is a scary endeavor to ship these beauties out for repair.

Any advice?

 

[deadlegion]

The tray is "stuck" on both of them?
Probably a bad belt.
Belts in all sorts of players stretch and harden over time, it's a common issue with Laserdisc players for example.

No idea about the buttons issue though.

I have never had one of these unfortunately so I haven't pulled one apart, but I would give it a go if I was in your position. That's just me though, I don't find disassembling things that daunting really.
Sourcing new belts might seem difficult but it's just a matter of measuring existing belts and looking online for a size match, looking for an actual Q replacement belt would be harder than that I guess (I'm basing my assumption on experience with Laserdisc and VHS player belts. Also, I don't live in NA or EU).

 

[Tchoin]

Hey, thanks for your reply, one of them is stuck, and the other comes out half-way through, sometimes all the way.

I'm aware that Panasonic Qs suffer from drive belt and drive tray rail issues (rails become brittle and brake). I have experience replacing drive belts on other systems (e.g. Twinsharp) but taking apart the Q is a whole other dimension afaik. The issue with the button mapping would also be beyond my ability.

I guess I might have to give it a try on the tray issue myself, maybe trying on the one with the screwed up button mapping which is the one in worst shape.

 

[nold]

I've worked on one Q so far, replaced the whole drive with a 3d printed one, replaced belt & installed Qoob.

I'm also from Europe, so hit me with a PM if you want to have a chat.