A video cassette recorder includes an arm for connecting an intermediate gear driven by a capstan motor and an idler gear, a reel sensor for recognizing whether a supply reel table rotates or not, and a lever for selectively limiting the shifting movement of the idler gear to the supply reel table. The lever is provided on a deck so as to selectively come into contact with the arm oscillating toward the supply reel table in response to the movement of a sliding plate, or the presence or absence of a record tab on a loaded video cassette tape when the video cassette recorder is in a record mode and to keep a non-contacting status with respect to the arm when the video cassette recorder is in another operating mode.