Regarding those old tapes mentioned by RA. I would say it's still worthwhile trying to hear them. Old tapes do become brittle sometimes but once spooled should be ok to play and if they break scotch tape will work for a temp splice. 

Regarding the speed issue I will offer a tip that was given to me years ago on the old old old version of this very board by Peter The K. Use audacity to record and then easily adjust the speed after the recording is complete.

I love going through old tapes and have acquired some dating back to the 1950's and have found all kinds of interesting recordings on them including air checks.

I have never really had any problems with the tapes I used for recordings that range from 1972 into the 1990's. Just one tape developed this strange problem where it would develop an echo and record over material.

With the tapes that I have acquired there's 3 main problems.

1. Sticky shed on tapes from the late 1970's and early 80's mainly. As soon as this problem arises best to transfer to digital ASAP if possible and never use the tape again. Can do damage to tape heads.

2. A fluffing problem where the tape plays fine but fluffs up and you may notice the take up reel getting filled up half way through the tape. Best to just cut the tape half way to avoid a tape spillage mess. I have found this on just a few tapes from the late 60's and early 70's.

3. I have a bunch of Sony tapes from the 1980's that squeal intermittently and it's not just a mechanical problem as it comes through on the transfer as well.

Keep a bottle of Isopropyl alcohol 99% handy along with q-tips to clean the heads.

You never know maybe there is a recording from CHUM from 1964.

Last edited by Fitz (May 9, 2021 2:50 pm)

Is this what you're talking about?

I don't know how old that page is, but it says you can have it for 99 cents! Not to get all Drew Carey on you, but if you really want one of them, the price is right!

My late grandfather had a good quality reel-to-reel tape player along with a large collection of reel tapes and a stereo system from Germany. I think it all dated from the early 1960s. Sadly it was all destroyed by an oil leak.

Greetings All.

For those of you that have old tapes and they are starting to shed, here is a way to reduce or even correct the problem.  The issue is called Tape Stiction or Sticky Shed Syndrome, and can be corrected by "baking" the tape for many hours at a low temperature, like around 120 to 140 degrees F (50 to 60 degrees C).  We did this at CHUM many years ago when we digitized many of our old tapes that were 20+ years old!  We used a food dehydrator and then let it do its magic overnight.  We were then able to get the audio from the old tapes.  You will only get a few tries to get the audio in reality, but it does work for most tapes!  This may not work very well on some of the thinner tapes but it worked great for all of the professional Ampex type tapes we had (406, 806, 456, etc).  Didn't try this with video tape but it should work with this as well.  Just may take longer in the "oven".

Here is a link to read more about this issue.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sticky-shed_syndrome

 

I should clarify regarding my post up thread. The reel to reel tapes that I recorded on from 1972 to some point in the 90's are almost all problem free. I have only had one bad tape. The sticky, squeaky and fluffy problems that I have encountered have been on tapes that I have acquired from antique shops,  garage sales and thirty shops. 

Was never brave enough to try baking but was more or less able to successfully transfer before complete oxidization disaster.

Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky Mick and Tich would be happy and I'm pretty sure I have "Bend it" recorded on reel to reel from a radio station.

Last edited by Fitz (May 11, 2021 4:04 pm)

Had to call a business place today. I accidentally called the FAX line. Din't know anyone even used FAX anymore.