Dirty VHS tapes

[Josh3B]

No... not that kind of dirty

I'm part of a group that has been shooting video since 1986, and most of the stuff up through about 1995 was on VHS. Well, time and such has done it's work, but a few of the tapes are genuinely crudded up, and need a cleaning.

Our plan is to get them cleaned, re-tensioned, and then get them all transfered over to digital so we can re-edit, remaster, and put them together better than they have been.

We're in the midwest, in the US. Our own city has no video services that do this, and the few I've emailed outside our area have been either expensive, rude, or both.

Anyone got any thoughts for a new guy on the boards? We'd really like to get these cleaned up so we can transfer them and get started working on them.

Thanks!

Josh
3B Entertainment

[stars]

Hi...

It looks like you have a lot of VHS to convert so if you have a pretty
fast computer (2GHz+) with a firewire connection and a DV device from Canopus approx 30EUR.

And a VHS, Vidoe8 ...(player/camera) with GOOD output.

Now you can transfer the VHS movies to your computer at approx 25Mb/s so you will need a big hdd.

When the movie is on your hdd you can go in several directions
pay a lot of money for professonal programs, pay some less for not so advanced programs or go for freeware.

The programs or directions requiers differnt levels of knowledge.

So this is only the begining of a huge project. Im sure everybody in this forum will help you and guide you
on the way, but first take a look in the forums and at the guides, for clues and hints...

regards stars...

[2Bdecided]

I think he means the tapes are physically dirty - i.e. they need washing.

[Josh3B]

Yes, 2Bdecided has it right- The tapes are physically dirty, and need to be cleaned of what appears to have been mold that may have dried inside the tapes.

But that's only a few of them. All of the tapes, no matter how dirty, will play, fast forward, rewind, and all that. And we're aware we're not going to be able to make these things like brand new. We're just wanting to get them in as good of shape as we can before we transfer them.

We know how to do the transfering, but thanks anyhow for the info, Stars.

Josh
3B Entertainment

[Des]

Just a thought, but you might want to contact 3M or Imation and see if they can offer any help/advice or assistance.

This article relates, kind of:
http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=11074

Good luck.

--dES