Guide roller including a pair of bearings having bearing flanges for retaining a pair of firm disk-shaped annular flanges

A recording and/or reproducing device including a guide assembly comprising a plurality of guide rollers each of which guides a tape having both edges at opposite ends thereof, wherein each of said guide rollers comprises:

• a hollow cylindrical-shaped roller portion for guiding traveling of said tape;
• a pair of disk-shaped annular flanges, disposed at opposite ends of said roller portion, for controlling positions of the both edges of said tape;
• and
• a pair of bearings for rotatably supporting said roller portion on a shaft portion of a roller shaft,
• wherein each of said bearings has a bearing flange at one end thereof, said pair of disk-shaped annular flanges being made of material firmer than that of said hollow cylindrical-shaped roller portion, said disk-shaped annular flanges being mounted on an outer peripheral surface of said hollow cylindrical-shaped roller portion at opposite ends thereof, said disk-shaped annular flanges being retained by said bearing flanges on press-fitting said pair of bearings in said hollow cylindrical-shaped roller portion.

A method of manufacturing a guide roller, comprising the steps of:

• preparing a hollow cylindrical-shaped roller having a pair of flange guides at opposite ends of an outer peripheral surface thereof;
• inserting, in the pair of flange guides, a pair of disk-shaped annular flanges having an inner diameter which is substantially equal to a diameter of said flange guide;
• and
• press-fitting a pair of bearings each having a bearing flange in an inner peripheral surface of said roller portion to retain said pair of disk-shaped annular flanges by means of said bearing flanges.