62vauxhall
Addicted Member
A couple of months ago I was given two milk crates of 7" tapes all containing materieal recorded by the owner. There are several dozen tapes, most of them BASF. The majority of those BASF are in what I thought were the typical gray plastic library cases of which I already have a number and consider them to be good tapes.
But some are in black plastic library cases and some are in black cardboard boxes. So far, I have played three of those end to end on both sides. The cardboard boxed reel is 1801' reel of LP35 with no issues and the other is a black plastic library with a green leader tape stamped TP / 3 (or 8) / H which also played without issue. A triple play so a long tape but it sounded fine to me.
A third tape in a black plastic library case was one I played today. It did not squeel but produced a definate noise which I thought to be the edge of the tape scraping against the inner surface of the reel flange as it was being drawn out. Turns out that was not correct.
After listening to 2/3's of side one, I watched and listened to the deck at close proximity and the noise was caused from the tape being pulled off the tape pack. The layers of tape were stuck togerther and the sound was eminated as it was drawn off the reel..
After discovering this, I did a brief online search and saw that later versions of BASF tape were subject to Sticky Shed or something called Sticky Oxide. It's definately no Sticky Shed I don't think. But I found that the description of Sticky Oxide was kind of vague but my imagination says that must be what I experienced.
Are there others who have noticed this Sticky Oxide Syndrom?
I won't be erasing this particular tape to reuse it for future recording nor will I ever play it again. I may just chuck it.
But some are in black plastic library cases and some are in black cardboard boxes. So far, I have played three of those end to end on both sides. The cardboard boxed reel is 1801' reel of LP35 with no issues and the other is a black plastic library with a green leader tape stamped TP / 3 (or 8) / H which also played without issue. A triple play so a long tape but it sounded fine to me.
A third tape in a black plastic library case was one I played today. It did not squeel but produced a definate noise which I thought to be the edge of the tape scraping against the inner surface of the reel flange as it was being drawn out. Turns out that was not correct.
After listening to 2/3's of side one, I watched and listened to the deck at close proximity and the noise was caused from the tape being pulled off the tape pack. The layers of tape were stuck togerther and the sound was eminated as it was drawn off the reel..
After discovering this, I did a brief online search and saw that later versions of BASF tape were subject to Sticky Shed or something called Sticky Oxide. It's definately no Sticky Shed I don't think. But I found that the description of Sticky Oxide was kind of vague but my imagination says that must be what I experienced.
Are there others who have noticed this Sticky Oxide Syndrom?
I won't be erasing this particular tape to reuse it for future recording nor will I ever play it again. I may just chuck it.
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