RCA Victor New Vista stereo phonograph and AM/FM radio

I have an old RCA Victor New Vista stereo phonograph and AM/FM radio Model #VGT 54 L and need information regarding parts and repairs to the phonograph. I would like to get it back to original working condition, but have not been very successful in finding knowledgable repairmen, manuels or parts. I realize new parts are no longer manufactured, but I had hoped to find more info to guide me on my search. It seems that there is a part missing or broken from the cartridge area, the cartridge hangs down from the arm assembly and doesn't click or catch into place when pushed up into the arm. Also, the auto setting on the deck seems to be malfunctioning, the arm lifts, but does not move onto the turntable, instead it lowers back and shuts off. In Manuel mode the arm is very stiff and hard to move, since the cartidge is not in working order I cannot tell if this is normal or if it would be damaging to records. Would it be better/possible to replace the entire phonograph or just the arm assembly? The selector knob for the speakers cracked and doesn't make contact with the post inside (you can still turn the post with a tool, but if I'm going to fix it, might as well replace that too.) This piece is otherwise in perfect condition, just not sure if I can fix, or if I must accept it as a beautiful radio.

Often a screw or two are necessary for the cartridge.

It has no automatic single play function (RCA never had this). You must load the record up on the spindle and put the overarm on the record for the pickup arm to set down right.

Check for wires underneath rubbing on the arm parts. Also, after 30 years, the lubrication RCA put in the arm shaft is probaly turned to gunk. Their lube was a unique damping compound, and I never found out what it was.

The cartridge in some RCA models is supposed to pivot in the rear and float in the front on the record. There was a small piece of material (felt?) on thebottom of the front of the headshell which put the weight of the arm on the record so that only the weight of the cartridge was on the stylus. However this also created a lot, and I mean a lot, of skating error. Yours may be this model, hence the seemingly "loose" cart. They probably used the special lube that Record-Changer mentioned to counteract the skating force. This turntable needs a complete cleaning and re-lubing. I also do not know what they used on the tone-arm shaft but the rest of the mechanism is pretty straight forward. As far as getting a new turntable, that is up to you. You have to ask yourself... " Do you want to keep this unit original"?

The ones with the tracking pad also had a piano-wire spring underneath for the skating problem. Those were from the 1970s.