Tape drags toward end of reel

Question

I have a Fostex e-16 1/2" reel machine. I absolutely love the quality of the recordings I've been slamming to tape.This question may be more about my machine - but here I go...Issue: In about the last three-four minutes of tape, I found my machine dragging it - sort of like the sound of a warped vinyl record. Unfortunately, one of the best versions of a track I'm working is during that time on the tape. Now, it actually sounds kind of cool, for this particular track, but I am concerned that the spring mechanism on the arm just below the left reel is wearing in a bizzare way. Will this just get worse? Is there a handy fix it a reel machine novice can hack out?Mark GChgo [e-mail]