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Hello, I am new here.
I have 10 VHS-C tapes that are being rejected. After each of them have been played at least once, now every VCR and camcorder rejects them. The VCRs eject the tapes, and the camcorder just turns off after a few seconds. I even tried a new VHS adapter, but it didn't fix anything. The machines never ate the tapes though. Has anyone had this experience?
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While this should not affect playback (although I have never tried it), have you inadvertingly put the little 'Rec' switch to the 'off' position ?
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I can't find a switch on these tapes.
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Turn the gear wheel on the bottom by hand to take up any slack and see if that fixes it.
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The switch should be on the back of the cassette. It functions like the tab on a full-size VHS (break the tab and you can not record unless you cover it with some tape)
So there should be something there. -
I tightened it using the gear wheel but no results. I just broke the switch, but that didn't seem to do anything either.
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Hmm. Next thing I would do is open the cassette shell and look for problems inside. Do this very carefully to avoid losing parts. You may want to take a picture immediately after opening so you know how to put it all back.
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What would the problems look like?
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In general, the tape should be smooth and flat with no wrinkles, creases or tears. Obviously, it should be in one piece and connected to both reels. When you release the reel locks, the tape should move easily through its path. I'm not super familiar with VHS-C, so I would find a known-good cassette and open it up for visual comparison.
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You say that the problem happens not only in multiple VCRs, but also in VHS-C cameras. This would seem to eliminate the VHS-C to standard VHS adapter.
You say that you have multiple tapes that have the problem. This would seem to eliminate the possibility that there is something wrong with a single, specific cassette.
I would sure refrain from breaking anything more, or opening up cassettes and doing some real damage. Stop for a moment and try to do some more tests.
First, can you get regular cassettes to run in each of your VCRs? Insert a regular cassette into each VCR, and play it for at least one minute. Also, fast forward and rewind these cassettes after you successfully run them.
Are you sure that the VHS-C tapes are being rejected by a VHS-C camcorder? Make sure to try that again, and do so with at least three of the VHS-C cassettes. This is important, because the VHC-C adapter is usually the culprit.
Do NOT tighten up the cassettes. That is a bad thing to do.
I would not, however, start taking cassettes apart, or keep pushing and pulling on parts, possibly making things worse as you break more things.
If you do the above tests, and everything works except the VHS-C cassettes, you have to ask, "what could have been done to these cassettes?" One idea is that they might be rewound all the way (either all the way to the end or all the way to the beginning) and be wound so that the VCR or camera can't spool the tape out during the initial load sequence, when the tape is pulled around the spinning drum. Are each of these cassettes wound all the way to the end? If this is the case, and you have an old VCR that doesn't preload the tape, you might be able to fast forward, or fast reverse the tapes in one of those VCRs, and this might cure the problem.Last edited by johnmeyer; 6th Mar 2015 at 11:31. Reason: added: "the VHC-C adapter is usually the culprit."
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It is possible to remove the tape spools from the VHS-C cassette and wind the tape onto replacement spools for use in a regular VHS cassette (I know this works, I have done this a number of times). This isn't quick or easy to do - I would have to walk you through it. It is a last ditch effort, and is only good if the cassette/spool is the culprit and NOT the tape itself (also NOT the player/recorder).
Scott -
I think this is unlikely. Reel tension is released during tape load; the mechanism pulls tape from either or both reels. So if the tape is wound to the stop, it gets pulled from the other side. Otherwise, good recap of the clues. My guess would be that these tapes were last played in a machine that damaged them all in the same way.Originally Posted by johnmeyer
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[QUOTE=JVRaines;2378481]
But what damage would cause them to fail to load? I've seen tapes crinkled on the edges from bad alignment problems, and while they no longer produce a picture, you can still load them, press "play," and do rewind and fast forward. Apparently the OP cannot do any of those things.Originally Posted by johnmeyer
That's why I was trying to think of what could have happened to the cassette.
I don't see how a VCR could actually physically damage the cassette. However, it could be a storage issue. If the cassettes were all stored in the same place, and got super hot, they might warp. Small children have been known to do strange things ...
I do have a problem with a VCR I own what it will not release the tape cover and as a result, the cassette gets rejected, sometimes jamming in the process. However, this is a defect in this one VCR. (My solution is to put a piece of tape over the release button on each cassette before I insert it). I thought of suggesting this as a possible cause, but it would be unlikely to find that same defect in multiple VCRs. -
Well for one, if the player's end-of-tape logic wasn't working, it might have yanked the tape off the reel hub during fast wind. Though yes, it could certainly be a storage issue instead. Either way, there will be something wrong with the cassette and/or tape.
Silly question: are you sure you're inserting the tapes the right way, Hypersonic1?
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I don't know what to do. Right now I don't have a VCR. I will have to borrow one from someone next week. I just have this camcorder, but I have a feeling it will be the same result as using the VCR with the adapter. Is there a way to prevent these machines from shutting off on me? Also, the tape does have a little wrinkle on one of the edges, but I don't see it folding.
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I can't even rewind or fast forward them.Originally Posted by JVRaines
Well for one, if the player's end-of-tape logic wasn't working, it might have yanked the tape off the reel hub during fast wind. Though yes, it could certainly be a storage issue instead. Either way, there will be something wrong with the cassette and/or tape.
Silly question: are you sure you're inserting the tapes the right way, Hypersonic1?
There is only one way the tape will go in. The white reel on the tape matches up with the larger steel hole in the machine. -
Your camcorder is shutting down because something is going wrong trying to load or move the tape. It has internal sensors to tell it when things aren't moving right and it shuts down to limit the damage. If other cassettes work fine, then you know the problem is this batch of tapes. If you have access to another VHS-C deck, try that first. Sometimes a different player will overcome marginal bugs. Otherwise, you have to find and fix the problem with these cassettes:
1. Is anything obviously broken, looking from the outside?
2. Does the door open properly after you push in the door lock?
3. Do the reels push up inside the cassette with gentle pressure from the bottom?
4. Open up the cassette and take a look. Anything obviously broken? Is there dirt, mold, other contamination?
5. Is the tape in one piece and attached to both reel hubs?
6. Does the tape move easily when you turn the reels by hand? Does it stick to itself or catch on parts? -
That is different from what you initially posted, and it really changes everything. You initially said that the tapes were being ejected by multiple VCRs. Now you are saying you don't have any VCRs, just the camera.Originally Posted by Hypersonic1
That really makes it sound more like a faulty camera.
Borrow a VCR, and tell us what happens when you try several of the tapes in that machine. -
I had access to two VCRs when I was living in a different house. Both of those VCRs were ejecting the tapes, but they would play a regular VHS tape just fine. Now I bought a camcorder from eBay because I no longer trusted those VHS adapters. However, the camcorder is also not playing the tapes.Originally Posted by johnmeyer
That is different from what you initially posted, and it really changes everything. You initially said that the tapes were being ejected by multiple VCRs. Now you are saying you don't have any VCRs, just the camera.Originally Posted by Hypersonic1
That really makes it sound more like a faulty camera.
Borrow a VCR, and tell us what happens when you try several of the tapes in that machine. -
I just got an email back from the seller of the camcorder. He claims that he played a new tape, and it worked. He said my tapes might be demagnetized, but he is not 100% sure.
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Demagnetized tapes are ~= new empty tape. That wouldn't cause a camcorder to not load. I say, "bullshit"!
If this camcorder was just purchased and you have yet to get it to work correctly - at all - get your money back.
Scott -
The information is making less and less sense ...
Demagnetization is total bunk. What's more, it is actually extremely difficult to do. Even a strong magnet held fairly near the tape will usually not erase its contents. Demagnetizing a tape usually requires a bulk eraser or degausser.
And, as already pointed out, even if the tape was erased, it would still load just fine.
It is looking more and more like you simply have a malfunctioning camera. -
Agreed. Since no tapes have been successfully played on the eBay camera, it can't be ruled out. You might have had bad adapters and now you have a bad camera.
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I just sent back the camcorder, and I got a working VCR now. Right now I am trying one of the tapes, and it is playing, but when I rewind to the beginning, the VCR shuts off. Then when I turn the VCR back on, the tape will eject. It did the same thing with the other VCR too. I don't know why it is doing that. The tape is not being eaten by the VCR.
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I think some VCRs are designed to shut off after the tape is automatically re-wound when it plays all the way to the end.
If the tape is playing and you can do your transfer, I wouldn't worry about the automatic shutoff.
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