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Hitatchi VCR Problems
I bought a early 1980's-era Hitachi VCR (billed as a VTR on its
casing) and connections, dispays and buttons all work. Only thing not working is its heads (the most important part). Putting a tape in results in loud mechanical clanking sounds. The tape refuses to play, rewind, fast forward, or even rewind. The counter doesn't move, nor does the tape position. Does anyone have advice for repairing tape heads? -- |-----/ | Se7en / The One and Only! | l / | 0x73518A15BA3C1476 / | http://koolkidsklub.tech/~se7en/ |
#2
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Hitatchi VCR Problems
On Wed, 23 Aug 2017 02:14:44 +0000 (UTC), Se7en
wrote: I bought a early 1980's-era Hitachi VCR (billed as a VTR on its casing) and connections, dispays and buttons all work. Only thing not working is its heads (the most important part). Putting a tape in results in loud mechanical clanking sounds. The tape refuses to play, rewind, fast forward, or even rewind. The counter doesn't move, nor does the tape position. Does anyone have advice for repairing tape heads? Throw it away, go to Goodwill and get another one for $5 |
#3
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Hitatchi VCR Problems
On 8/22/2017 10:14 PM, Se7en wrote:
I bought a early 1980's-era Hitachi VCR (billed as a VTR on its casing) and connections, dispays and buttons all work. Only thing not working is its heads (the most important part). Putting a tape in results in loud mechanical clanking sounds. The tape refuses to play, rewind, fast forward, or even rewind. The counter doesn't move, nor does the tape position. Does anyone have advice for repairing tape heads? Things that fail in VHS VCRs: capacitors belts rubber rollers plastic levers, guides, etc that move tape in and out of the tape path around the helical scan heads. heads also wear out over time. also young kids like to jam stuff in thru the tape door. |
#4
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Hitatchi VCR Problems
On Wed, 23 Aug 2017 02:14:44 +0000 (UTC), Se7en
wrote: I bought a early 1980's-era Hitachi VCR (billed as a VTR on its casing) and connections, dispays and buttons all work. Only thing not working is its heads (the most important part). Putting a tape in results in loud mechanical clanking sounds. The tape refuses to play, rewind, fast forward, or even rewind. The counter doesn't move, nor does the tape position. Does anyone have advice for repairing tape heads? Is it one like this ? http://www.radiomuseum.org/r/hitachi_vtr_8000e.html Beta or VHS ? or some earlier unique cassette ? John T. |
#5
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Hitatchi VCR Problems
On 2017-08-23, (in message
) transcribed: Is it one like this? http://www.radiomuseum.org/r/hitachi_vtr_8000e.html No. It's a Hitachi Video Deck Model No. VT-1100A. It front loads Beta or VHS? VHS. -- |-----/ | Se7en / The One and Only! | l / | 0x73518A15BA3C1476 / | http://koolkidsklub.tech/~se7en/ |
#6
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Hitatchi VCR Problems
I bought a early 1980's-era Hitachi VCR (billed as a VTR on its casing) and connections, dispays and buttons all work. Only thing not working is its heads (the most important part). Putting a tape in results in loud mechanical clanking sounds. The tape refuses to play, rewind, fast forward, or even rewind. The counter doesn't move, nor does the tape position. Does anyone have advice for repairing tape heads? Is it one like this? http://www.radiomuseum.org/r/hitachi_vtr_8000e.html No. It's a Hitachi Video Deck Model No. VT-1100A. It front loads VHS. http://vintageelectronics.betamaxcol...lvt-1100a.html This link says that a belt kit is often required. ps: posted to alt.home.repair and alt.comp.hardware as per original message John T. |
#7
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Hitatchi VCR Problems
On 8/22/2017 10:14 PM, Se7en wrote:
I bought a early 1980's-era Hitachi VCR (billed as a VTR on its casing) and connections, dispays and buttons all work. Only thing not working is its heads (the most important part). Putting a tape in results in loud mechanical clanking sounds. The tape refuses to play, rewind, fast forward, or even rewind. The counter doesn't move, nor does the tape position. Does anyone have advice for repairing tape heads? Have you actually opened it up and watched what happens when you insert a tape? There are several actions involved but the most important thing is that the cassette door is popped open and the mechanism pulls a loop of tape out and wraps it through the mechanism and (partially) around the rotating video head. It is a very well-timed mechanical ballet when it works but when it goes even slightly awry... Wild guess is that you will find a stripped gear which drives the 'extraction' mechanism -- the plastic gears used there are usually total crap in consumer machines. Parts are probably impossible to come by unless you can find a couple of donor machines to strip. |
#8
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Hitatchi VCR Problems
John McGaw wrote:
On 8/22/2017 10:14 PM, Se7en wrote: I bought a early 1980's-era Hitachi VCR (billed as a VTR on its casing) and connections, dispays and buttons all work. Only thing not working is its heads (the most important part). Putting a tape in results in loud mechanical clanking sounds. The tape refuses to play, rewind, fast forward, or even rewind. The counter doesn't move, nor does the tape position. Does anyone have advice for repairing tape heads? Have you actually opened it up and watched what happens when you insert a tape? There are several actions involved but the most important thing is that the cassette door is popped open and the mechanism pulls a loop of tape out and wraps it through the mechanism and (partially) around the rotating video head. It is a very well-timed mechanical ballet when it works but when it goes even slightly awry... Wild guess is that you will find a stripped gear which drives the 'extraction' mechanism -- the plastic gears used there are usually total crap in consumer machines. Parts are probably impossible to come by unless you can find a couple of donor machines to strip. On my failed front-load Mitsubishi four head, the tape loading mechanism is controlled by a hardware sequencer. Rather than using digital electronics or an embedded processor, instead there is a wafer switch that rotates. The wafer switch had things like optical sensors connected to it. The wafer would advance from state to state, based on feedback from the sensors. There were two IR sensors that I could spot. I used an IR detector card (the kind sold at Radio Shack many years ago), to verify the IR LED on each was working. And putting a piece of opaque material in front of the beam, cutting it off, made the phototransistor output swing from rail to rail. So I knew that part was working. The motors used to advance the cassette, probably had overcurrent detection (to detect a jam, in-flight). But without a schematic, it wasn't possible to figure out the logic, or see what factors affected operation. The tape wouldn't stay in mine, and would be ejected again. At least some features of the hardware sequencer were working, but I couldn't figure out what input wasn't working right. I sent mine off to the recycler. And the $150 replacement (the only thing I could get locally), it's just not the same. Not worth owning one of those, as the heads aren't that good. Playback quality sucked. The last VCR factory, closed a year or two ago (there was a news article). There won't be any new machines, and what you see, is whatever stock is still on store shelves. And I wouldn't say I was "lucky" to get my $150 unit either. Yes, it "works" in some sense, but it isn't worth owning one unless you're desperate for entertainment (at the cottage, out of antenna range or no Internet etc). The mistake I made with my Mitsubishi, was turning off the power. For years, it sat there with power connected, and you could feel a tiny bit of heat from the vent. So it was a waster of electricity. Every time I stuck a tape in it, it worked. Then one year, I decided to unplug it. Thinking that nothing bad would happen. It sat without power for a year. And when I plugged it in, it would no longer ingest tapes properly. So much for the false economy of saving electricity. Paul |
#9
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Hitatchi VCR Problems
On 8/25/2017 5:03 PM, Paul wrote:
John McGaw wrote: On 8/22/2017 10:14 PM, Se7en wrote: I bought a early 1980's-era Hitachi VCR (billed as a VTR on its casing) and connections, dispays and buttons all work. Only thing not working is its heads (the most important part). Putting a tape in results in loud mechanical clanking sounds. The tape refuses to play, rewind, fast forward, or even rewind. The counter doesn't move, nor does the tape position. Does anyone have advice for repairing tape heads? Have you actually opened it up and watched what happens when you insert a tape? There are several actions involved but the most important thing is that the cassette door is popped open and the mechanism pulls a loop of tape out and wraps it through the mechanism and (partially) around the rotating video head. It is a very well-timed mechanical ballet when it works but when it goes even slightly awry... Wild guess is that you will find a stripped gear which drives the 'extraction' mechanism -- the plastic gears used there are usually total crap in consumer machines. Parts are probably impossible to come by unless you can find a couple of donor machines to strip. On my failed front-load Mitsubishi four head, the tape loading mechanism is controlled by a hardware sequencer. Rather than using digital electronics or an embedded processor, instead there is a wafer switch that rotates. The wafer switch had things like optical sensors connected to it. The wafer would advance from state to state, based on feedback from the sensors. There were two IR sensors that I could spot. I used an IR detector card (the kind sold at Radio Shack many years ago), to verify the IR LED on each was working. And putting a piece of opaque material in front of the beam, cutting it off, made the phototransistor output swing from rail to rail. So I knew that part was working. The motors used to advance the cassette, probably had overcurrent detection (to detect a jam, in-flight). But without a schematic, it wasn't possible to figure out the logic, or see what factors affected operation. The tape wouldn't stay in mine, and would be ejected again. At least some features of the hardware sequencer were working, but I couldn't figure out what input wasn't working right. I sent mine off to the recycler. And the $150 replacement (the only thing I could get locally), it's just not the same. Not worth owning one of those, as the heads aren't that good. Playback quality sucked. The last VCR factory, closed a year or two ago (there was a news article). There won't be any new machines, and what you see, is whatever stock is still on store shelves. And I wouldn't say I was "lucky" to get my $150 unit either. Yes, it "works" in some sense, but it isn't worth owning one unless you're desperate for entertainment (at the cottage, out of antenna range or no Internet etc). The mistake I made with my Mitsubishi, was turning off the power. For years, it sat there with power connected, and you could feel a tiny bit of heat from the vent. So it was a waster of electricity. Every time I stuck a tape in it, it worked. Then one year, I decided to unplug it. Thinking that nothing bad would happen. It sat without power for a year. And when I plugged it in, it would no longer ingest tapes properly. So much for the false economy of saving electricity. Â*Â* Paul If somebody just _had_ to buy a new VHS right now, it would be possible -- at least with deep pockets. For $700 you could buy a new "Sanyo DVD Recorder/VCR Combo" or a refurbished one for about half the price. Probably the guy who wound up with some of these "dead" products in the back of his warehouse a few years ago is feeling much better about it now. Ones from other makers like Funai are still hanging about too but I've never heard of some of them. I don't even know for sure where my last VHS machine disappeared to -- it is either in the "room of electronic mysteries" in the basement providing housing for unemployed spiders or it might have gone to the recyclers and I just forgot about it. |
#10
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Hitatchi VCR Problems
On 8/25/2017 5:11 PM, John McGaw wrote:
On 8/25/2017 5:03 PM, Paul wrote: John McGaw wrote: On 8/22/2017 10:14 PM, Se7en wrote: I bought a early 1980's-era Hitachi VCR (billed as a VTR on its casing) and connections, dispays and buttons all work. Only thing not working is its heads (the most important part). Putting a tape in results in loud mechanical clanking sounds. The tape refuses to play, rewind, fast forward, or even rewind. The counter doesn't move, nor does the tape position. Does anyone have advice for repairing tape heads? Have you actually opened it up and watched what happens when you insert a tape? There are several actions involved but the most important thing is that the cassette door is popped open and the mechanism pulls a loop of tape out and wraps it through the mechanism and (partially) around the rotating video head. It is a very well-timed mechanical ballet when it works but when it goes even slightly awry... Wild guess is that you will find a stripped gear which drives the 'extraction' mechanism -- the plastic gears used there are usually total crap in consumer machines. Parts are probably impossible to come by unless you can find a couple of donor machines to strip. On my failed front-load Mitsubishi four head, the tape loading mechanism is controlled by a hardware sequencer. Rather than using digital electronics or an embedded processor, instead there is a wafer switch that rotates. The wafer switch had things like optical sensors connected to it. The wafer would advance from state to state, based on feedback from the sensors. There were two IR sensors that I could spot. I used an IR detector card (the kind sold at Radio Shack many years ago), to verify the IR LED on each was working. And putting a piece of opaque material in front of the beam, cutting it off, made the phototransistor output swing from rail to rail. So I knew that part was working. The motors used to advance the cassette, probably had overcurrent detection (to detect a jam, in-flight). But without a schematic, it wasn't possible to figure out the logic, or see what factors affected operation. The tape wouldn't stay in mine, and would be ejected again. At least some features of the hardware sequencer were working, but I couldn't figure out what input wasn't working right. I sent mine off to the recycler. And the $150 replacement (the only thing I could get locally), it's just not the same. Not worth owning one of those, as the heads aren't that good. Playback quality sucked. The last VCR factory, closed a year or two ago (there was a news article). There won't be any new machines, and what you see, is whatever stock is still on store shelves. And I wouldn't say I was "lucky" to get my $150 unit either. Yes, it "works" in some sense, but it isn't worth owning one unless you're desperate for entertainment (at the cottage, out of antenna range or no Internet etc). The mistake I made with my Mitsubishi, was turning off the power. For years, it sat there with power connected, and you could feel a tiny bit of heat from the vent. So it was a waster of electricity. Every time I stuck a tape in it, it worked. Then one year, I decided to unplug it. Thinking that nothing bad would happen. It sat without power for a year. And when I plugged it in, it would no longer ingest tapes properly. So much for the false economy of saving electricity. Paul If somebody just _had_ to buy a new VHS right now, it would be possible -- at least with deep pockets. For $700 you could buy a new "Sanyo DVD Recorder/VCR Combo" or a refurbished one for about half the price. Probably the guy who wound up with some of these "dead" products in the back of his warehouse a few years ago is feeling much better about it now. Ones from other makers like Funai are still hanging about too but I've never heard of some of them. I don't even know for sure where my last VHS machine disappeared to -- it is either in the "room of electronic mysteries" in the basement providing housing for unemployed spiders or it might have gone to the recyclers and I just forgot about it. Get a TV card such as the Hauppauge hvr1800 for $25 or less delivered, from Ebay. Get the software CD from the mfg for $10 or use the excellent free, open source MediaPortal software available from sourceforge and watch, listen and/or record ATSC, NTSC, ClearQAM and FM signals for either simultaneous or later playback. You'll thank me later. https://sourceforge.net/projects/mediaportal/ http://www.ebay.com/itm/HAUPPAUGE-WI...pid=1700241170 |
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