[CJB]

I've heard that Basf reel2reel tapes can benefit from this - but what
is it and why so please? Thanks - Chris B.

[Dave Platt]

In article . com,
CJB wrote:

I've heard that Basf reel2reel tapes can benefit from this - but what
is it and why so please? Thanks - Chris B.

Briefly: many tapes manufactured in the 1970s were made with a
polyurethane binder (the chemical which binds the magnetic particles
to the plastic tape) which attracts moisture. Eventually the binder
becomes gummy, causing the tape to stick to the tape-deck heads when
you try to play it... this causes squealing, chattering, irregular
playback, and in the magnetic particles can even be shed from the tape
and end up on the deck's heads.

Needless to say, this is Bad.

There's no long-term cure for sticky-shed. It is temporarily
reversible by "baking" the tapes under controlled conditions - heating
them gently, enough to drive the moisture out of the binder but not
enough to damage them. This will often restore the tapes to playable
condition for a few weeks.

See the following URLs for a more complete discussion:

http://www.audio-restoration.com/baking.php
http://www.geocities.com/Vienna/3941/stickyshed.html

--
Dave Platt AE6EO
Friends of Jade Warrior home page: http://www.radagast.org/jade-warrior
I do _not_ wish to receive unsolicited commercial email, and I will
boycott any company which has the gall to send me such ads!

[[email protected]]

Here is my favorite webpage on this topic:

http://www.tangible-technology.com/tape/baking1.html


CJB wrote:
: I've heard that Basf reel2reel tapes can benefit from this - but what
: is it and why so please? Thanks - Chris B.

[CJB]

On Oct 24, 12:29 am, wrote:
Here is my favorite webpage on this topic:

http://www.tangible-technology.com/tape/baking1.html

CJB wrote:

: I've heard that Basf reel2reel tapes can benefit from this - but what
: is it and why so please? Thanks - Chris B.

Thank you very much for the links and info. Interestingly my BASF and
EMI tapes date from the 1960s and appear to be OK so far. They've
played OK on my AKAI 4000DS reel2reel and I now have digital versions
using Audacity and Behringer's U-Control. Also I'm digitising a load
of cassettes from the 1970s and these too appear to be OK. Maybe I'm
just lucky - so far!! Chris B.

[Peter Larsen[_2_]]

CJB wrote:

I've heard that Basf reel2reel tapes can benefit from this

Do they at all need it? - I haven't checked my few BASF tapes in archive
(yet, will rsn), but I have yet to hear of a BASF tape with sticky shed
problems.

- but what
is it and why so please?

Hopefully the follow-ups you already have on this are sufficient.

Thanks - Chris B.


Kind regards

Peter Larsen