Post

Lee Benfield
@benf.org

Anyone ACTUALLY restored a sticking/squealing tape? My original CPC Dizzy has lost it's mojo. I see reccomendations about using silicon lube, but also warnings not to! :( @breakintoprogram.co.uk ?

2 reposts6 likes

L Break Into Program
@breakintoprogram.co.uk

Not something I've had to try yet, thankfully. If the tape surface itself is starting to break down then it's probably a one-way ticket. I don't know much about tape materials, yet silicon lube sounds like a terrible idea. Assume you've just tried fast-forwarding and rewinding a few times?

L Break Into Program
@breakintoprogram.co.uk

Mmm... it's probably not sticking to the side of the cassette housing then. I was going to suggest re-housing the reels, but only if the original housing was screwed together. That probably won't make much difference in this case.

Sharpworks
@sharpworks.bsky.social

Oo, one other thing. It's unusual to have the tape stick to the side of the cassette housing in my experience. The cassette shell consists of a few component parts but one of the important parts is the slip sheets which go between the tape itself and the cassette housing.

Sharpworks
@sharpworks.bsky.social

I do a lot of re-housing into a new cassette shell to attempt a fix but usually that's for the purpose of a one-time 'read' for software I don't have archived yet. Then I replace the tape with brand new tape and re-write the data. You can do this with cassettes that don't have screws too but...

Sharpworks
@sharpworks.bsky.social

There's a really prominent YouTube video out there regarding using silicon lubricant on tapes to free them up a bit. It's quite a process and I wouldn't recommend except in a really last resort case. You can wreck the tape player and the lube needs to be left to dry for weeks apparently. Not quick!

JamHamster
@jamhamster.bsky.social

Silicon lube is ideal but you need to be careful where you put it. disassemble the tape and with a lightly impregnated cotton bud, wipe the mating surfaces. It's that or a new shell.

Sharpworks
@sharpworks.bsky.social

Yes indeed, I've fixed a few now. I repair a -lot- of tapes in an attempt to rescue Sharp MZ data, games and programs for my online archive. Rather than write the same stuff again, here's a link to a thread or two on the topic :) bsky.app/profile/shar...

Sharpworks@sharpworks.bsky.social

Well, this was the worst tape in my collection. Would not play, would slow down more and more the further it was played. It’s been in bits for a year while I tried different things including transferring to a new shell. Finally I’ve rescued it with the heat method!! It works! :)