I bought a series of blank VHS tapes to record one of my videos onto, and half the tapes wouldn't even let me record on them. After watching your video I took apart one of the tapes, simply spun the reels forward a little bit so that the tape went around the second reel, put it back together and bam, now it works!
Duuuuude --- you failed to notice that this particular tape-reel had a bayonet-type fastening for the clear upper disc... the upper disc wasn't heat-riveted in place on the center-hub the way most VHS tape-reels are!! You could have just rotated the disc counter-clockwise and removed the disc, then easily accessed the center-hub to re-attach the end of the leader-tape, and then re-mounted the clear disc onto the side of the center-hub again --- you didn't need to try to awkwardly finagle the taped end of the leader 'way down between the reel-discs and onto the center hub like that!
I didn't learn about that until after posting this video - and have since still used tape. For those with the manual dexterity to pull it off, what you describe is the right way to go about it.
Thank you. I needed the visual aid. I've had this tape I needed to dub for my mom sitting in a tupperwear disassembled since this happened to it in 2016. It's being recorded now.
Hey Scott I have a problem I have tried to record content from my VCR onto DVD but it won't record anything other than a blank screen and it has been doing this for the past couple of days and I don't understand why it is doing that for it plays a signal just fine but when it comes to recording it plays for a second then turns off
Hey thanks man! I had a brand new unopened tape that was stuck, never seen that before. I remember taking apart a tape as a kid and having the guts explode on me too! So thanks for teaching me how to properly open a tape, some 30 years later. I got the tape to advance a little by hand and it played well enough to transfer! Oddly enough, now it's fine to replay too. Seems like the factory rewound it to a death grip or something, and poking the brake wouldn't release the take up reel, so taking it apart was key. Nice video!
Using tape there is a really nice trick! I used to pull off the retaining tab inside the reel, put the tape on it and then press the retaining clip again to clip the tape in the reel. Slow, painful but effective. But this trick can save a lot of time, especially in a one-shot digitizing job. I'm digitizing all my old VHS and all of them are just one shot - I will never read them again, as there's no need for that considering that I now have them in digital format (with a LOT of backup, all you people remember: DO A LOT OF BACKUP OF YOUR DIGITAL DATA! :) ) Thank you from a fellow youtuber :)
Just the video I needed. Also feels good in a way to know that I'm not the only one out there with this issue. I'm using the scotch tape because its a one off so I can digitize it. Best of AWA Wrestling, for the record. This may have already been addressed but I believe that that mold is actually oxidization? A few of my tapes suffer from varying degrees of it, whatever it is, and I'm transferring those last because I'm assuming its going to sacrifice my VCR to the cause. Thanks very much for being one of those guys and sharing this!
I've had a few tapes like this in the past. Instead of sticking the tape back to the reel like you did, I took a reel out of another videocassette that I had already finished with. I cut off the leader that had snapped, and spliced the tape to the leader coming off the spare reel. Then I put it all back in the shell and was able to get a capture. Incidentally, the picture noise and sounds you are hearing on playback are most likely due to mold on the tape surface - it really should have had a proper clean beforehand!
I'm sorry but I have to point this out to you. You didn't put the tape back together the right way. When you wound up the slack around 6:54 , the tape on the right side wasn't lined up through the guides properly. It was on the outside of them. That more than likely was the reason you may have heard the tape crunching inside your VCR.
Thanks for noting that! That was my first time threading a VHS tape. Next time, I'll make sure to have a template image standing by for reassembly, and make a point of noting the correct way.
In what way can I get that QUASAR TAPE sealed somewhere, like was there sealed ones of it in USA? because i really like the style of quasar but i just cant find that tape sealed (for recording on) anywhere!
You can get that mold off with a old vcr and silk cloth, then get to reel to opposite side and clean spool with isopropyl alcohol, reverse process and done.
thanks for the video. quick question. I've got all my VHS cassettes over to digital except one. It has been giving me issues. The cassette itself is not healthy, and the reels don't spin freely, the vcr plays some, then stops and spits it out. Can I cut the leads off of each end of the tape, and use splice tape to connect it to the reels of a healthy cassette that I prepare? I imagine winding the tape to the new reel will be slow and tedious, but is that a viable option?
Good evening/morning. I have a few questions for you. What happens when the tapes play a few minutes of footage and stops playing the footage so you just see a blue screen playing? Have you had tapes like this and were you able to repair them? What do you need to do to repair the tapes like this? Thanks.
Same sort of process to stick the two pieces together. Get a nice clean cut to match the two ends, and stick them together. Wind that part onto the take-up reel so it doesn't go over the sensitive tape heads.
Hello, I seen a-lot of people put tape on the hub spindle and that's really wrong. Like you said putting scotch tape is bad but splicing tape is great but can rip apart again, On the spindle hub there's a plastic piece that holds the tape when the tape rips it slips out of that plastic piece and rips but all you have to do is remove the plastic piece thread the tape back on the inner part of the insert for the piece and put the piece on top of the transparent part of the tape, it should be good. Thank you.
But how do you get that little plastic piece out? I have a VHS cassette just like this one and there is not access to that little tab in order to be able to pop it out and thread the tape properly. Help!
@@donnasweetpurplejune6335 th-cam.com/video/08GhX3aWR-U/w-d-xo.html I have seen 12voltvids do it in this video, or just tape it on the hub in order to just play it one time.
@@CMILF Thank you for responding! I've watched that video, but he is using a different kind of VHS cassette in that one. His has a little access window to be able to pop that tab out, but the cassette I have (and which is featured in this video we are commenting on) does not have a that access so there seems to be no way to get to it. Since I was up against a deadline I did just go ahead and use tape. I applied a longer section of it, hoping that would reduce the chance of it snapping again when I rewind it. I've converted the whole thing to digital now, and that's what matters! :)
@@donnasweetpurplejune6335 There's usually a small hole on the reel's base-disc (i.e., the one with the sprocket-holes) that you can use to push out the tape-securing tab using a straightened-out paper clip; you then lay the leader back into the reel and snap the tab back onto the hub again, using a flat wooden ruler or other slim-but-stiff stick to press the tab back into place.
I just happened to stumble across your channel, regarding your VHS repairs. My Grandparents and father passed away from Covid about a year ago, and finally had the courage to clean out their stuff. That's when i discovered their wedding on a VHS. The VHS barely shows the video and is pretty much pure static, with a mixture of high pitched voices (distorted audio probably from the wedding). Thought it was the plastic casing, so I swapped it with another VHS cassette. I just don't understand how this VCR / VHS Technology works at all. Is there anyway I can repair the VHS, or am I out of luck?
Sadly mine are 8mm tapes and it broke in the middle so ordinary tape won't work also you contaminated that VCR with MOLD it could get fibers in the heads too I wouldn't have put that in an expensive vcr like that. You should of cleaned it or used a throwaway vcr.
I know your comment was 7 months ago, so this might not be helpful. I had the same problem when I had my VCR hooked up to my TV. It turned out to be a problem with the VCR and the TV connection. I just hooked the VCR up to my laptop via "Elgato Video Capture" device and it's working great and I am converting my old VHS tapes to digital.
There's usually a small hole on the reel's base-disc (i.e., the one with the sprocket-holes) that you can use to push out the tape-securing tab using a straightened-out paper clip; to re-assemble, you lay the leader back into the reel and snap the tab back onto the hub again, using a flat wooden ruler or other slim-but-stiff stick to press the tab back into place.
@@mikel4510 Ummmmmmmm... not sure what you mean...? I said that you use the end of a paper clip to remove the hub-clip for securing the end of the tape; I then told you how to re-attach it, as well. What was your confusion?
6:00 "I should have noted the tape path before I took it apart." when you opened the cassette box, the tape was completely wound around the pick -up spool
Good VCRs haven't been made for years now. Everything great is now old and replacement parts often don't exist. I'm fortunate to have gear that still works.
I capture with Virtualdub2, which is free. The software is only there to record the material coming into the computer -- it has very little to do with the quality of the result.
I have Top of the Pops' Christmas 1985 Special with Minder on the Orient Express recorded from a blank cassette and the tape snapped off after rewinding it. I think I could fix it!
Hey, I know its a 3 year old video, but you made many mistakes in this video. Let me list them. 1. You threaded the tape wrong; it is supposed to go over the metal guides on the top of the tape, not under them. 2. You should NOT remove the reels while the lock is engaged. Simply push the lock back and then remove it. If you take it out with the lock engaged, the lock will grind against the reel teeth and could possibly damage or snap a tooth off. [one tooth missing could lead to issues during playback, as that reel could lock incorrectly and snap the tape [again] 3. You don't usually need to do this, but when putting the top plate back on the shell, open the door slightly so that when opening/closing, it doesnt catch on the tape and wrinkle it. Cheers, and I am aware its for an emergency tape. The 1st one could have been the reasoning for the sounds in the VCR as the guide was stretching the tape in the wrong place.
I ate two peanut butter sandwiches in the past day before realizing that the bread was blue. I don't dispute what you're saying. I probably have too slack an attitude about mold.
Oh wow this video is fresh! Good timing because two of my tapes snapped today. Thanks !
I bought a series of blank VHS tapes to record one of my videos onto, and half the tapes wouldn't even let me record on them. After watching your video I took apart one of the tapes, simply spun the reels forward a little bit so that the tape went around the second reel, put it back together and bam, now it works!
i ones got a vhs movie tape of one of my fav movies white rewind it the tape broke so i have to ask my dad to fix tape i know how that feels
Duuuuude --- you failed to notice that this particular tape-reel had a bayonet-type fastening for the clear upper disc... the upper disc wasn't heat-riveted in place on the center-hub the way most VHS tape-reels are!! You could have just rotated the disc counter-clockwise and removed the disc, then easily accessed the center-hub to re-attach the end of the leader-tape, and then re-mounted the clear disc onto the side of the center-hub again --- you didn't need to try to awkwardly finagle the taped end of the leader 'way down between the reel-discs and onto the center hub like that!
You're entirely correct about that! I didn't learn that 'til after.
it's normal that it makes noise, you didn't put the tape properly on those upper rollers. you didn't put well either on the left or on the right off
5:30 why not remove the channel pin from the hub and lock the leader tape into the channel and reinsert the hub pin?
I didn't learn about that until after posting this video - and have since still used tape. For those with the manual dexterity to pull it off, what you describe is the right way to go about it.
@@scottthemediahoarder for a one time tape salvage simple solution, your way is better.
Now I know how to avoid everything springing out like a Tom and Jerry cartoon! Thanks very much!
Thank you. I needed the visual aid. I've had this tape I needed to dub for my mom sitting in a tupperwear disassembled since this happened to it in 2016. It's being recorded now.
Hey Scott
I have a problem I have tried to record content from my VCR onto DVD but it won't record anything other than a blank screen and it has been doing this for the past couple of days and I don't understand why it is doing that for it plays a signal just fine but when it comes to recording it plays for a second then turns off
Hey thanks man! I had a brand new unopened tape that was stuck, never seen that before. I remember taking apart a tape as a kid and having the guts explode on me too! So thanks for teaching me how to properly open a tape, some 30 years later. I got the tape to advance a little by hand and it played well enough to transfer! Oddly enough, now it's fine to replay too. Seems like the factory rewound it to a death grip or something, and poking the brake wouldn't release the take up reel, so taking it apart was key. Nice video!
Thank you! Even with care, I have things pop out on me now and then, and I'm still shook when it happens.
Using tape there is a really nice trick! I used to pull off the retaining tab inside the reel, put the tape on it and then press the retaining clip again to clip the tape in the reel. Slow, painful but effective.
But this trick can save a lot of time, especially in a one-shot digitizing job.
I'm digitizing all my old VHS and all of them are just one shot - I will never read them again, as there's no need for that considering that I now have them in digital format (with a LOT of backup, all you people remember: DO A LOT OF BACKUP OF YOUR DIGITAL DATA! :) )
Thank you from a fellow youtuber :)
Thank you for this video. I am copying my home movies to dvd for my family. 3 have broken. This helped me get back together again.
Just the video I needed. Also feels good in a way to know that I'm not the only one out there with this issue. I'm using the scotch tape because its a one off so I can digitize it. Best of AWA Wrestling, for the record. This may have already been addressed but I believe that that mold is actually oxidization? A few of my tapes suffer from varying degrees of it, whatever it is, and I'm transferring those last because I'm assuming its going to sacrifice my VCR to the cause. Thanks very much for being one of those guys and sharing this!
I've had a few tapes like this in the past. Instead of sticking the tape back to the reel like you did, I took a reel out of another videocassette that I had already finished with. I cut off the leader that had snapped, and spliced the tape to the leader coming off the spare reel. Then I put it all back in the shell and was able to get a capture.
Incidentally, the picture noise and sounds you are hearing on playback are most likely due to mold on the tape surface - it really should have had a proper clean beforehand!
nice appropriate use of a Panasonic VCR with a Quasar VHS tape [Quasar is a brand of Panasonic]
I'm almost disappointed that Huey Lewis: Heart Of Rock 'N Roll did not come up afterward as a suggested video.📼
I'm sorry but I have to point this out to you. You didn't put the tape back together the right way. When you wound up the slack around 6:54 , the tape on the right side wasn't lined up through the guides properly. It was on the outside of them. That more than likely was the reason you may have heard the tape crunching inside your VCR.
Thanks for noting that! That was my first time threading a VHS tape. Next time, I'll make sure to have a template image standing by for reassembly, and make a point of noting the correct way.
its supposed to go in between the white and silver guides, right?
@@rickyiglesias5384 Yes, it is; I am surprised that he didn't "Google it" to see what the correct tape-path was.
Great video we need more of your videos
In what way can I get that QUASAR TAPE sealed somewhere, like was there sealed ones of it in USA? because i really like the style of quasar but i just cant find that tape sealed (for recording on) anywhere!
You can get that mold off with a old vcr and silk cloth, then get to reel to opposite side and clean spool with isopropyl alcohol, reverse process and done.
thanks for the video. quick question. I've got all my VHS cassettes over to digital except one. It has been giving me issues. The cassette itself is not healthy, and the reels don't spin freely, the vcr plays some, then stops and spits it out. Can I cut the leads off of each end of the tape, and use splice tape to connect it to the reels of a healthy cassette that I prepare? I imagine winding the tape to the new reel will be slow and tedious, but is that a viable option?
how to put back the so called interlocking thing, one in black and one in white?
Good evening/morning. I have a few questions for you. What happens when the tapes play a few minutes of footage and stops playing the footage so you just see a blue screen playing? Have you had tapes like this and were you able to repair them? What do you need to do to repair the tapes like this? Thanks.
See here's my problem. That taper reel is left stuck inside the other reel. What do I do??
How about if a tape snaps off in the middle of a home movie ? Is there anyway to fix that ?
Same sort of process to stick the two pieces together. Get a nice clean cut to match the two ends, and stick them together. Wind that part onto the take-up reel so it doesn't go over the sensitive tape heads.
Hello,
I seen a-lot of people put tape on the hub spindle and that's really wrong. Like you said putting scotch tape is bad but splicing tape is great but can rip apart again, On the spindle hub there's a plastic piece that holds the tape when the tape rips it slips out of that plastic piece and rips but all you have to do is remove the plastic piece thread the tape back on the inner part of the insert for the piece and put the piece on top of the transparent part of the tape, it should be good.
Thank you.
Thanks for the help on that!
But how do you get that little plastic piece out? I have a VHS cassette just like this one and there is not access to that little tab in order to be able to pop it out and thread the tape properly. Help!
@@donnasweetpurplejune6335 th-cam.com/video/08GhX3aWR-U/w-d-xo.html I have seen 12voltvids do it in this video, or just tape it on the hub in order to just play it one time.
@@CMILF Thank you for responding! I've watched that video, but he is using a different kind of VHS cassette in that one. His has a little access window to be able to pop that tab out, but the cassette I have (and which is featured in this video we are commenting on) does not have a that access so there seems to be no way to get to it. Since I was up against a deadline I did just go ahead and use tape. I applied a longer section of it, hoping that would reduce the chance of it snapping again when I rewind it. I've converted the whole thing to digital now, and that's what matters! :)
@@donnasweetpurplejune6335 There's usually a small hole on the reel's base-disc (i.e., the one with the sprocket-holes) that you can use to push out the tape-securing tab using a straightened-out paper clip; you then lay the leader back into the reel and snap the tab back onto the hub again, using a flat wooden ruler or other slim-but-stiff stick to press the tab back into place.
I just happened to stumble across your channel, regarding your VHS repairs. My Grandparents and father passed away from Covid about a year ago, and finally had the courage to clean out their stuff. That's when i discovered their wedding on a VHS. The VHS barely shows the video and is pretty much pure static, with a mixture of high pitched voices (distorted audio probably from the wedding). Thought it was the plastic casing, so I swapped it with another VHS cassette. I just don't understand how this VCR / VHS Technology works at all. Is there anyway I can repair the VHS, or am I out of luck?
Sadly mine are 8mm tapes and it broke in the middle so ordinary tape won't work also you contaminated that VCR with MOLD it could get fibers in the heads too I wouldn't have put that in an expensive vcr like that. You should of cleaned it or used a throwaway vcr.
What capture card do you use for capturing VHS tapes?
Currently using the Startech USB3HDCAP through the S-Video path, into Virtualdub2.
Neither left nor right sides were threaded properly in this video. No wonder the noise...
The Vlogger misthreaded the right side; the tape should be between the tiny posts, not feed outside both of them.
I brought a movie called “Saturday Night Fever” on video cassette, but this morning the tape is broken. Please how can I repair the video tape ?
My vhs tapes are black and white, it's blurry what is the reason, are my tapes broken or my vcr?
I know your comment was 7 months ago, so this might not be helpful. I had the same problem when I had my VCR hooked up to my TV. It turned out to be a problem with the VCR and the TV connection. I just hooked the VCR up to my laptop via "Elgato Video Capture" device and it's working great and I am converting my old VHS tapes to digital.
How do you get the tape off the reels?
There's usually a small hole on the reel's base-disc (i.e., the one with the sprocket-holes) that you can use to push out the tape-securing tab using a straightened-out paper clip; to re-assemble, you lay the leader back into the reel and snap the tab back onto the hub again, using a flat wooden ruler or other slim-but-stiff stick to press the tab back into place.
@@Quacks0 You answered every question except the one I asked. 🤬🤬
@@mikel4510 Ummmmmmmm... not sure what you mean...? I said that you use the end of a paper clip to remove the hub-clip for securing the end of the tape; I then told you how to re-attach it, as well. What was your confusion?
@@Quacks0 I asked how you remove the tape from the reel. You owe your second grade teacher a refund for refusing to learn to read.
Good VCR may fabrid
6:00 "I should have noted the tape path before I took it apart." when you opened the cassette box, the tape was completely wound around the pick -up spool
Good point.
Good video
Glad you enjoyed
My problem is replacing my VCRs as they wear out , no-one seems to stock them any more .
Good VCRs haven't been made for years now. Everything great is now old and replacement parts often don't exist. I'm fortunate to have gear that still works.
Hi what software do you recommend using for the best capture?
I capture with Virtualdub2, which is free. The software is only there to record the material coming into the computer -- it has very little to do with the quality of the result.
So first step I will do is practice with a non valuable tape (like a movie that can be readily available anywhere)
I have Top of the Pops' Christmas 1985 Special with Minder on the Orient Express recorded from a blank cassette and the tape snapped off after rewinding it. I think I could fix it!
And I have fix it, it was easy!
📼
I'm planing toy make the cal show VHS, playsets, figures, plush dolls and diy kits.
On the full reel you did not put the tape correctly . you should have put it on the metal wheel.
Saved my ass with this video 😅
Oh man you shouldn't have put a moldy tape in that nice unit. That could leave mold in there and infect other tapes that go in and out of it.
you should not put a moldy vhs-tape in a vhs-player. that is a big NO NO!
Hey, I know its a 3 year old video, but you made many mistakes in this video.
Let me list them.
1. You threaded the tape wrong; it is supposed to go over the metal guides on the top of the tape, not under them.
2. You should NOT remove the reels while the lock is engaged. Simply push the lock back and then remove it. If you take it out with the lock engaged, the lock will grind against the reel teeth and could possibly damage or snap a tooth off. [one tooth missing could lead to issues during playback, as that reel could lock incorrectly and snap the tape [again]
3. You don't usually need to do this, but when putting the top plate back on the shell, open the door slightly so that when opening/closing, it doesnt catch on the tape and wrinkle it.
Cheers, and I am aware its for an emergency tape. The 1st one could have been the reasoning for the sounds in the VCR as the guide was stretching the tape in the wrong place.
Vhs tapes don't stop playing at all it's the people who stops playing it them self's
You talk about sticky tapes but you don't cares about mold. Mold can destroy the entire VCR head, apart from the bad capture-quality..
I ate two peanut butter sandwiches in the past day before realizing that the bread was blue. I don't dispute what you're saying. I probably have too slack an attitude about mold.
Like,no entiendo mucho ingles,pero igual comprendí el vídeo