Tom's Blog
Thoughts and Musings from our founder Tom Grant
Our Proprietary Thread Motor
All of our refurbished Panasonic AG1980s now have our proprietary designed K-GRIP™ thread motors installed. The new K-GRIP™ design solves many of the threading problems that were previously associated with the original thread motor. The K-GRIP™ gives a strong, direct transfer of power throughout the threading mechanism. If you're sending in a Panasonic AG1980 for repair, we always install the K-GRIP™ thread motor upgrade during the repair process.
Sony AV-3600 VTR (reel-to-reel videotape)
We just finished rebuilding another Sony AV-3600 videocorder. These reel-to-reel video recorders were a popular choice for schools and industry circa 1970. Our refurbished unit has been completely rebuilt, aligned and tested and comes with a 30 day warranty and a demo tape. If you have any questions about it, feel free to call Tom, our Senior Technician, at 330-391-0880
The Challenge of Transferring 100 Tapes
It's a big challenge when a customer sends you over 100 tapes to transfer! To get the best results during the transfer process you need to fast-forward all of the tapes. This allows any loose debris to fall off the tape. Another benefit is that signs of "sticky shed" syndrome will show up during the fast-forward & rewind processes.
The problem is that using your AG1980 to fast-forward and rewind tapes is a very time consuming procedure (it also contributes to video head and tape path wear). Using your AG1980 to check tapes this way, ties it up and keeps it from it's main function of playing back tapes!
There's a serendipitous answer to the problem!! Use a lower priced high-speed fast-forward VCR. These have modern mechanisms that slowly ramp up the fast-forward speed to an extremely high speed, As the tape nears the end of the cassette, the mechanism slows down, then for the last 20ft or so, it crawls. So there's no chance of snapping off the end of the tape! During our tests, our refurbished Curtis Mathes VCRs fast-forwarded (or rewound) a full T-120 cassette in only 60 seconds! T-160 cassettes take only 90 seconds! Quite amazing! So while your AG1980 is occupied as the playback source for your digital transfers, you can be checking other tapes on the "high-speed" VCR. It's a real time saver! ~ Tom G.
Step Back in Time!
Way back in 1977, Quasar debuted the Great Time Machine. It wasn't a Beta or VHS VCR, but it was an early contribution to the newly burgeoning VCR market! Now you can relive those wonderful memories! There's a variety of classic VHS & Beta titles available for sale online. So dial back the clock and watch a videotape from those early days of Disco! Admittedly, the quality can't rival DVDs, but somehow warm & fuzzy feelings come from watching those old videotapes! Curious about video formats from the past? Browse our website, or contact Tom!
Tape Rewinding
Unfortunately there's no easy shortcuts to quickly rewinding VHS tapes. Even though it's tempting to own a stand-alone tape rewinder that looks like a '57 Chevy, those cheap, one-piece VHS rewinders are dangerous. They rewind at a good clip, but they don't have any sensors to tell when the tape is getting near the end, and every so often they snap the tape.
You can reduce wear and tear on your expensive VCR by using a lower priced VCR for rewinding. The nice advantage of having a second VCR is that you can use it to fast forward a customer tape to make sure it doesn't have any tape splices or mold. Also, we have some super-fast rewind VCRs that take about two minutes to rewind a tape. They slowly ramp up to fast speed, then slow down before the tape reaches the end.
Our Reinforced Shipping Boxes
For the past several years we've been building our own custom-made reinforced shipping boxes for our Panasonic AG1980 VCRs. We build these boxes in-house and they feature double walled corners and extra support. Combined with our special padding methods, our special boxes help protect your Panasonic AG1980 during it's trip back to your home!
Cleaning a Panasonic AG1980 Capstan & Pinch Roller
Maintaining a good, clean capstan-pinch roller combination is very important in playing back a good, steady picture. Take a few minutes to read my new article.
Should I use an auto-head cleaner?
There's two schools of thought regarding auto video head cleaners. Take a moment to read my take on it! ~ Tom
Should I use my VCR's auto-head cleaner?
Panasonic AG-1980 video heads
Regardless of what people say, the end-all, and final determining factor in how well a videotape plays back, rests with the condition of the video heads. Worn video heads won't playback EP (slow speed) VHS tapes properly. Hi-Fi sound playback will be hard to achieve, and the video picture just won't track correctly. (You will, however, in most cases, still be able to play SP (standard speed) VHS tapes).
All of the "sale" refurbished Panasonic AG1980s that we sell, have high-quality, replacement video heads installed. Our video heads are "near-to-new", as measured on our waveform monitor. We currently stock over 50 video heads, and when we're rebuilding AG1980s, we only select the very best heads to install in our "sale" refurbished AG1980s. You can rest assured that you're getting the best possible playback when you purchase a TGrant Photo LLC restored Panasonic AG-1980.
Note: All AG-1980s sent in to us for repair retain your original video heads. If, after testing, we determine that your heads are in poor condition, we'll call you to see if you want better condition heads installed.
Panasonic AG-1980 vs. Panasonic AG1980P
This is a common question that comes up quite often. The name “Panasonic AG-1980 “and “Panasonic AG-1980P” are one and the same! The front of the VCR has “Panasonic AG1980” stenciled on it, while the serial number label on the back says “Panasonic AG1980P”. This is the same on all Panasonic AG1980s. The added “P” also appears above the serial number sticker on all Panasonic VCRs from that era. ie. Panasonic AG-1330P.
The Case of One Bad Tape
If all your other VHS tapes are playing well, except for one, then I'd expect that your "bad" tape has "sticky shed" syndrome, or it's missing oxide from being played too much. Other causes could be that the control track on the tape is damaged; or that the "bad" tape was recorded on an out-of-alignment VCR.
First, look closely at the audio/control head while the tape is playing (located just to the left of the rubber pinch roller) If the tape shows ripples at the very lower edge, then somehow the control track has been damaged.
"Sticky Shed" problems often can be temporarily cured by baking the tape in a tape dehydrator.
Unfortunately most other problems are very hard to repair. Often the "bad" tape has been recorded on an out-of-alignment VCR. This sometimes happens when someone has a jammed tape. They fight with the mechanism to get it out, and in the process, some of the tape guides get twisted. After that, they continue recording, and as you'd expect, the tapes recorded on that "damaged" VCR will play back okay as long as they use the same VCR. However, every other correctly aligned VCR will exhibit playback problems with that tape. The only way to watch that "bad tape" would be to diddle around with the alignment on a cheap VCR, trying to get it to match the playback of the "bad tape".
Transferring tapes isn't as easy as most people think!
~ Tom Grant October 2024
Introducing our new 3/4" U-Matic tape dehydrator
I'm pleased to announce that we've just added the Pro-Matic dehydrator to our line of videotape dehydrators. With it's deeper trays, the Pro-Matic dehydrator can accept up to eight U-matic video cassettes at one time. It also can dehydrate most audio and videotapes up to 1" wide and up to 12" diameter reels. The built-in digital temperature probe allows you to accurately monitor the internal temperature during the dehydrating process. There's more details here
Cold Weather Alert!
If you receive a VCR package during freezing weather, be sure to allow three hours until it reaches room temperature. The video drum will be very cold causing moisture to condense on it. This can make videotapes stick and jam up the mechanism!