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Vintage Tape (Audio), Cassette, Wire and Magnetic Disc Recorders and Players Open-reel tape recorders, cassette recorders, 8-track players etc.

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Old 19th Nov 2020, 2:15 pm   #81
Martin Bush
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

Hi all

Now...

I have an 8 track cartridge and all the kit to refurb it (thanks to ebay and a very kind forum member). I even got it open quickly!

Just a quick question on cleaning the pinch wheel. To hand I have white spirit and IPA.

As this is not a precious cart I am minded to give a small amount of IPA a go. White spirit seems a bit oily from what I recall.

I know IPA is alleged to dry out rubber, but I think in this case I should be OK.

What do you guys think?
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Old 19th Nov 2020, 4:26 pm   #82
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

Quick update...

I have received my player and refurbed one cartridge.

Getting in was easy and I took the unusual step of seeking the foil join out by hand - it seemed more sensible than playing it and risking an unspooling. I may have to think that approach through next time as it took ages!

I have to say that my joining work felt a bit agricultural but it just switched tracks as I typed this and it's still going.

I cleaned the roller with IPA. The sponge pads replaced with felt ones from ebay and the edit reinforced with splicing tape provided by @restoration73 from this very forum.

The sound quality is not too bad. It's not HiFi but it's not woeful as some might expect. I guess the Carpenters' album I have on sounds as it would have when released. There's the odd bit of sibilance - not sure what causes that (any ideas?).
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Old 19th Nov 2020, 6:05 pm   #83
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

Just opened and repaired my second cart...

Different type of fastenings on this one so I used a small screwdriver and a bit of persuasion so as not to have to pierce the label on the back.

This time I played the cart until the head change so as to get the foil to the right position. Replaced the foil splice no problem... then a bit of a learning experience. I'd accidentally twisted the tape but wound too far on by the time I realised to simply redo the foil so resorted to cutting and making another splice elsewhere in the tape.

The good news is I know now to keep an eye open for that before I rewind the tape.

This second cart, 10cc Sheet Music, sounds good. There's the odd bit of sibilance but I'm still having fun with it.

I've also encountered the remix mode where the heads aren't quite aligned properly and you get two tracks playing at once. A simple press of the button on the front of the machine cured that.
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Old 24th Nov 2020, 9:44 pm   #84
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

Martin,

I think I know what your answer will be, but what is your final opinion?

Are 8 Tracks worth owning ?




Ian
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Old 25th Nov 2020, 11:09 am   #85
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

Without a doubt.

I have been lucky to get hold of a player that seems to have been looked after and serviced.

The sound quality is hit and miss due, I think, to how the individual carts have been treated over their lifetime. However I've enjoyed taking them apart and servicing them.

I credit getting back into vinyl (via the jazz LPs that came out a few years back) with getting me back into listening to music and improving my attention span. Similarly I find that 8 tracks are giving me a new listening experience and I am able to get into new music again in a new way.

I don't find the sound quality off-putting (this is a vintage format after all) and the clunk as the head changes track is just reassurance that I've repaired the splice properly

One thing I'm not keen on is having to respool the cartridge that I accidentally knocked on the floor yesterday while making a minor adjustment. I now have a pile of tape in a plastic box awaiting rewinding to the cart This was a cart that I bought cheap to practice on then found I liked it. At least I have learnt something and might get to use my spare turntable (although not to play records) later on today!

I think the sound and supposed hassle factor aren't really the point. If they were then we on this forum wouldn't bother with vintage radio, video, reel to reel and cassette and CRT TVs.
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Old 25th Nov 2020, 11:48 am   #86
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

Re-spooling the cartridge.

Don't worry, we have all been there!

I've had Cartridge Tape running up and down the entire length of the House
during Repair Jobs in order to save a Cart.

I had one Cart where the Tape had become reversed.
Yes, you heard that right. So the Magnetic side was against the Pinch Roller
and the Graphite side was against the Head.

I only ever had one like this, but apparently it can happen.
Somehow the Tape gets twisted over and then spools Topside Down.



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Old 25th Nov 2020, 11:59 am   #87
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Martin Bush View Post

I think the sound and supposed hassle factor aren't really the point. If they were then we on this forum wouldn't bother with vintage radio, video, reel to reel and cassette and CRT TVs.
So true it's all part of the fun (except when some tiny part pings off into outer space or you just burned your fingers again )

Now I starting to sort out the big store my 8 track stuff will re-surface over the Christmas period and I have all these joys to come again

Cheers

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Old 25th Nov 2020, 12:10 pm   #88
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

Happy days eh chaps!

Ian - I think the tape can reverse if it gets caught when the head moves.

Mike - things pinging off... on 8 tracks I sometimes end up breaking a clip. I think the age of the plastic combined with my early attempts to get them open isn't great

And I suppose an unspooled cart or broken clip is nowhere near as catastrophic as a scratched LP.

I've just received a sealed blank cart. Do I have a recorder? nope... but even so it's a really nice item to own. I do have a plan for it, yet I like its pristine look and intact branding. But I think that's a whole different interest
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Old 25th Nov 2020, 12:40 pm   #89
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

What Player did you get in the end ?




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Old 25th Nov 2020, 1:12 pm   #90
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

It is a Wien which I believe to be a badged BSR model. This one - https://www.radiomuseum.org/r/bsr_wi...o_t145mr2.html

It has been well looked after and came from someone who seemed to know their stuff as regards servicing etc. It was a choice I gave a lot of consideration to as it was a good price and also matched my budget.

I'd love a high end one like an Akai, but they cost a fair bit more and of course there's also the necessary investment in blank carts. Part of the fun for me is playing carts where I have no choice of what order the tracks play in nor what the content is to a large extent.
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Old 25th Nov 2020, 2:15 pm   #91
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

I've never re-spooled an 8 track cartridge (fortunately) but I've had to re-spool endless loop tapes used for the outgoing message in old telephone answering machines. The only way I managed to do it was to undo the splice, wind up the tape (correct way round!) and then re-splice the tape after winding.
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Old 25th Nov 2020, 2:37 pm   #92
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

I think that's what I am facing Tony.

Thing is, which way is the right way up when it all ended up off the spool?

My only clue, I hope, is looking at my splice. I seem to think, because of how I did it and the angle at which I stood, I might get a clue from the foil.

Sadly I only have full 1/4" spools so will have to improvise (presuming the best way is to wind it onto one spook first then carefully back onto the 8 track spool).
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Old 26th Dec 2020, 4:29 pm   #93
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

Reading this and your other recent 8 track Threads (plus other older 8 track Threads) had got me interested in getting an 8 track, so have just purchased a Wien 8TD3 which from older Threads I understand is a rebadged/cloned BSR T145 MR2.

As it is only for general interest and a bit of fun only went for a fairly inexpensive model rather than one of the expensive 8 tracks.

Have never owned an 8 track but well remember them from the early 70s, being a passenger in a couple of my mates cars driving around with the windows wound down and rock music blaring out, thinking we were were really cool.

Must have a look in some charity shops (or will they now be closed due to Tier 4 !!!) for some tapes.

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Old 26th Dec 2020, 6:30 pm   #94
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

You have the same model as me and I think mine is ace.

Only issue I have is sometime is sometimes carts dont sit quite right so the sound is muddy. It could be the pressure pad though - I've repaired a few carts and am still learning.
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Old 27th Dec 2020, 12:23 am   #95
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

Quote:
Originally Posted by DMcMahon View Post
Must have a look in some charity shops (or will they now be closed due to Tier 4 !!!) for some tapes.
When the restrictions are lifted (could be a while!), I'd be interested to know if you have any success with this. I've never come across 8-track tapes in charity shops, although I was successful in getting a 'job lot' off Freecycle one time.

I occasionally watch videos of people "thrifting" (mainly in America) on Youtube, and 8-track tapes seem much more readily available - not surprising since I understand the format was much more successful in America than the UK.
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Old 27th Dec 2020, 7:31 am   #96
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

If you ever get down to the Beaulieu international autojumble thats the place to get 8 track carts.
There are boxes of them everywhere, ive had a few over the years myself.
Despite being predominatly an Autojumble ive had shed loads of Radio/tv associated goodies from there.
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Old 27th Dec 2020, 10:19 pm   #97
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

I was not interested before but did see 8 track music cartridges now and again at car boot sales. When they re-open I will look out for them but almost guaranteed will not see any then when want to find them.

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Old 28th Dec 2020, 1:51 pm   #98
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

Although I saw 8 tracks in use in the 1970s I didn't become interested in them until the late 1980s when someone gave me a player and a cartridge to repair. The tape was Motown Chartbusters Vol. 3 - I enjoyed it and soon acquired a copy of my own, along with an Amerex music centre with built-in 8 track player from a secondhand shop. I still have the player and tape, which have given me a lot of entertainment.

Back then, 8 track stuff was fairly easy to find. Nobody else seemed to want it. During the 1990s I acquired a lot more tapes and some players / recorders from car boot sales and even the council tip. Certainly I come across 8 track stuff less frequently nowadays, but there is still some out there. I've even seen some at radio rallies.

A hint if you're searching for 8 tracks: take a cartridge along with you to the boot sale and ask the sellers if they have any others like it. Most people have forgotten about them, but sometimes the sight of a tape will jog their memory, and they'll say "I've got some of those in the loft / garage / shed". Ask everyone you know. Sometimes you'll get given them. This has worked for me a few times. It's definitely worth asking at your local household waste dump too. They may not allow you to have electrical items such as 8 track players, but they may let you have the tapes if you offer a bit of drink money. Again, show the staff at the dump what a tape looks like. Anyone under the age of fifty is unlikely to know what an 8 track cartridge is.

For me, part of the fun has been discovering music in boxes full of tapes that I otherwise wouldn't have bought or listened to. Back in the '90s when CDs were £12 - £15 each, and I only earned £3.20 per hour, I had to be very choosy about buying a CD. A box full of 8 tracks offered hours of entertainment for less money. Ironically, secondhand CDs can be bought in car boot sales for pennies these days, and over the last few years I've been buying CD copies of my favourite music from the 8 track era, as well as more modern material.

As for the Wien / BSR 8 track player, I rate it as one of the best ones, thanks to its AC induction motor. Some Akai 8 track cartridge recorders also used AC motors. The car and portable players, as well as many home players, use DC brush motors. These often become erratic, running at the wrong speed or giving wobbly sound. The DC motors are usually sealed and don't survive any attempt to open them, making it almost impossible to repair the player unless you can find a replacement motor.
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Old 28th Dec 2020, 6:48 pm   #99
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

I refurbished a couple of NOS tapes today. In one the felt pads had dropped off the metal spring and the other snapped at the splice as I played it.

I usually play a cart to the splice as otherwise you can be hand winding for ages.

Both play well now although i am still learning about the various carts and how they come apart. I have good technique with the most common sort, but managed to snap two clips on an A&M cart earlier. No big deal really. As the other cart was NOS I didn't try to undo the rivet, instead carefully renewing the splice and pads from the front.
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Old 28th Dec 2020, 6:54 pm   #100
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Default Re: 8 Track players - worth owning?

I see there are loads of online video clips on opening up 8 track tape cartridges, including these that looks quite good.

https://www.8trackavenue.com/opening-a-cartridge

David

Last edited by DMcMahon; 28th Dec 2020 at 6:56 pm. Reason: Update
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