Reel-to-Reel care?

----- Original Message ----- From: "Brent Hilpert" <hilpert(a)cs.ubc.ca> 9-track tape? Is it still being manufactured or is everyone that still uses it relying on new-old-stock? Is the oxide coating stable if stored at the proper temp./humidity or does it turn flaky/icky after a few years regardless? sticks to itself slightly and as it goes through the drive an oxide goo starts to build up which causes the tape to bind and chatter. Granted this may all be a result of the environment the unit was stored in (an airplane hanger I believe). ) To the best of my knowledge, the fabrication of 1/2" tapes has seized. The last manufacturer was eMag, AFAIK. They are now even advertising a new service : recertification of old/used tapes. They are also largely out of stock now, with regard to new tapes. It is my experience, that tapes start to desintegrate after 15-20 years, even when stored properly. What you call "bind and chatter" is probably the thing called "stitching", i.e. 2 layers of tape glued together. Bill King has a solution for this, although it is very time consuming. He "bakes" the tapes, after which the tape can be read once (and only once). He did that for a customer of mine, who had a 20_25 year old tape he needed to read. Nico