[Coco] if your tapes are old and won't load, bake them

[Dennis Bathory-Kitsz]

Hi all,

I restore tapes regularly in all types and formats.

The baking process works every time for sticky reel-to-reel tapes that 
are mostly from the 1980s. The slurry breaks down and sticks. A 
vegetable dehydrator (tray type) is best. 24 hours bake, flip tape, 24 
hours bake, turn off, 24 hours cool, and transfer within a few days.

This is usually NOT the case with cassettes, which typically stick 
because the manufacturing was low quality, the tape case distorted from 
poor storage, or the slip sheets were absent or damaged. To fix a sticky 
cassette, get a new one with screws and slip sheets. The only thing you 
keep from the old cassettet is the tape pack and hubs. Swap the tape 
pack and hubs into the new case; there are YouTube videos for this. Make 
sure the tape slips correctly between the felt pressure pad and the 
case, the hubs aren't pinching the slip sheet, etc., etc. Wind forward 
and back a few times to loosen the tape back, and it's like new.

The other problem with cassettes is that the felt pressure pad glue 
dries out and it falls off. It can jam the mechanism or it can just 
cause failed contact with the tape head. Again, the best route is a new 
case.

I have hundreds of brand new, high-quality cassettes if anyone needs 
some. Email me privately.

Dennis