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  1. I have two video8 tapes in need of repair for the fine folks at Videohelp to take a look at, please.

    Exhibit A: https://imgur.com/a/rVctT

    While digitizing this old tape, after only a few seconds of playing an error message occurred on my sony player. I hit eject and found the tape was just a little loose. Im not sure what happened, the player works fine since then and afterwards. Maybe its just a weak tape (it is over 30 yrs old), but its good that it didnt snap.

    From what I've seen online, I could just take it apart and twist the tape "dial" (not sure what to call it) back until the tape is taut (but not too tight!)

    I've watched some videos online and it appears to be pretty easy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uagYpzH2_WM

    Exhibit B: https://imgur.com/a/DyWNa

    This ones a doozy. I was given this "as is" from a family member. May have been in this position for 15 year or maybe 2 years, really no way to tell.

    Every place I've called has said they don't salvage tape if its crinkled - and that it is, to the maximum of crinkled - they just throw it away. The tape is unmarked, so theres no way to tell if these are precious moments lost in time, or some guy taping a blank wall, or nothing at all.

    I was thinking, maybe get the crinkled parts cut at a shop that does it for 25 dollars in town, digitize it losslessly, then try and tape it back together myself and see if it will play. Or if theres an item on amazon like this https://www.amazon.com/Wolverine-Super8-Digitizer-Film2Digital-MovieMaker/dp/B01KA32HH0 or service that will convert it somehow, I'm all ears.

    All input is appreciated, thank you much
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  2. If the tape isn't broken you can just wind it back into the cassette. There's no need to take the tape apart to do that. There's one button that holds the door shut. Pressing that button lets yo swing the door open. A second button locks the reels so they don't turn while in storage. Open the door, Press the second switch to unlock the reels, then turn them with your finger (or screwdriver, whatever) to wind the tape into the cassette. Make sure the tape has no twists as it is reeled back into the cassette.

    In this video you can see the wooden dowel that's used to hold the second switch open on a VHS tape: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsnUFL49peE

    If the crinkles in the tape are so severe that it keeps jamming in the player you'll have to open it up, cut out the bad section, then splice it -- like in the video.
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  3. aBigMeanie aedipuss's Avatar
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    i'd do what jagabo says for both tapes. if you take your time you can straighten out the origami section and get it back in the housing. then i'd fast forward/rewind both tapes a couple times to make sure the tapes aren't sticking together internally. if they can successfully be fully ff/rw you should be able to play them both back. the crinkled section will have trashed video but you may be able to save the rest.
    --
    "a lot of people are better dead" - prisoner KSC2-303
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  4. Member
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    The reason shops throw out crinkled tape is that it can damage the video heads. If you are feeling brave, you can try flattening the damaged sections by pressing them through a piece of paper with an iron at the lowest setting that works. Wear cotton gloves when you handle the tape. You may get enough picture out of these sections to determine what they are. Be advised that 8 mm tape is very thin and difficult to handle without damaging it further.
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