Reel to Reel

Clarence Wilson · Post by **Clarence Wilson** » 19 Dec 2004 8:47 am

Years ago, I purchased an Akai recorder and proceeded to copy all my vinyl disks as I played them for the
first time, then put the disks away, most of whom are still in perfect shape.

Years later (1989), I decided to copy the reels to cassette, since cassettes had became the norm by this time.`

Many of these reels actually destructed as they were being played back after all these years. They would go
through the machine and and play but as they went past the roller, they would flake apart. Some of them were
saved on cassette, but most were lost. I had to burn over 30 of the reels.

What I am getting at is this: You folks who are saving reels, should check them out. The oil dries out after about
10 to 14 years. Not all, but some. I still use the Akai, as well as the modern cassette recorders and the Denon
disk player and the computers. I am in the process of converting everything to cd as time permits. ( don't have a lot
of time left, as I am 82 in March)

I use CD wave Editor to take the initial scratch from the recording where the needle first begins. Some times, I
use PopFix too, but it does not help much.

Saving all those vinyls from Tom Bradshaw, as well as Jerry Byrd's disks, and countless others, which I played
only once, as I recorded them, left me with some very fine records to transfer to CD.

CEW

Brad Sarno · Post by **Brad Sarno** » 19 Dec 2004 9:02 am

If you're pulling out old reels, dont forget to bake them. This will remove moisture and keep the oxide from shedding from the tape itself. There are instructions out on the net on how to do this. The common recommendation is at 120-130 degrees farenheit for 8 hours. Some say a convection oven, some say electric, never gas because of its high moisture. If you've ever seen your tape drag on the head and leave a nasty buildup of crud, that's your tape shedding. Bake at your own risk.

Brad Sarno

Alan Kirk · Post by **Alan Kirk** » 19 Dec 2004 9:20 am

Baking is good.

In the late 1990s I went through a bunch of stuff I recorded in the early 1980s. Certain batches of Ampex 456 were more prone to shedding than others.

You bake it. You put it on the machine. You run it once while making a copy. The tapes will still shed oxide but you should be able to get at least one pass for transferring before everything self-destructs. Sometimes you have to stop mid-tape and clean the heads and guides.

Ampex (Quantigy?) put out a bulletin on this a number of years ago.

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Donny Hinson · Post by **Donny Hinson** » 19 Dec 2004 10:20 am

The best advice I can give for tape storage is low humidity and cool temperatures. I have tapes I made 45 years ago that sound like they were made yesterday! The old acetate-based tapes did dry and flake, but the polyester and mylar types hold up very well. I also have 25 year-old VHS tapes that I've watched over 500 times, and while the quality isn't quite as good as it used to be, it's very "watchable".

If you're using an old machine, make sure the heads have been de-magnetized and cleaned, and that the tape guides and capstan are clean, and in good shape. Also, do a blank tape pass first, to make sure the rewind and tensioning mechanisms are working properly. Many a good tape has been ruined by one play in a bad machine!

Vernon Hester · Post by **Vernon Hester** » 19 Dec 2004 5:09 pm

In Broadcasting we have masive Videotape Librarys, (200,000 or more tapes). We have special air cond units to maintain 40% hum,72
degree temp.This is the ideal storage for tapes.
Vern

Ernest Cawby · Post by **Ernest Cawby** » 19 Dec 2004 9:53 pm

I have many reels that are more than 50 years old and never had a problem, as they all work well. I bought good ones and they are in cases.
I forget the name brand but about 60 of them still work well.
WE have the bible on reel to reel and Nan likes to play them when she irons.
I do need to buy a reel to reel recorder for her as the belst is slipping.

ernie

Alan Kirk · Post by **Alan Kirk** » 20 Dec 2004 6:17 am

Ernest,

Slipping tape machine belts can be cleaned or replaced.

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Al Marcus · Post by **Al Marcus** » 20 Dec 2004 9:46 am

Thanks for the info on the tapes. Too bad I didn't know this many years ago. Lots of my Reel to Reel tapes turned bad.....al

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My Website..... www.cmedic.net/~almarcus/

Dave Grafe · Post by **Dave Grafe** » 20 Dec 2004 9:56 am

Yes, baking can make your old tapes playable IF done correctly but will permamently destroy them if you don't have the proper equipment and technique.

I have many reels that are more than 50 years old and never had a problem

It is also significant that this practice is only applicable to tapes from the early to mid-1970's through the mid-1980's which were manufactured using early attempts at synthetic binder compounds (particularly with Ampex 406 and 456 stock). Tapes manufactured before the mid 1970's used organic binder compounds which were very stable (if properly stored) and after the advent of the high pressure gas chromatograph in 1984 (which gave the chemists an actual clue about what was going on) the bugs were pretty quickly worked out of the synthetic compounds.

For some useful facts on the subject and basic instruction check out the following information from Graham Newton's Audio Restoration site.
http://audio-restoration.com/baking.php

DO NOT TRY TO BAKE YOUR AUDIO TAPES UNLESS YOU KNOW EXACTLY WHAT YOU ARE TRYING TO ACHIEVE AND HOW!

Best of luck!

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<img align=right src="http://www.pdxaudio.com/dgsept03.jpg" width="114 height="114">Dave Grafe - email: dg@pdxaudio.com
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[This message was edited by Dave Grafe on 21 December 2004 at 10:26 PM.]