I have a Panasonic PV-V4521 VCR that recently caused a tape to pucker along the bottom edge, even though the capstan washer hadn't ridden up the shaft and the tape didn't seem to ride too low in the groove around the stationary drum (bright reflection when flashlight shined on it). I cleaned the tape path by hand but didn't see much stuff come off (had been cleaned by hand a month ago). The tape recorded when the puckering occurred caused my TV to show a blue screen when played at normal speed but the sound was normal (I think it wasn't hi-fi sound). When I played the tape at fast speed, the picture was partially folded-over. Does that sound like way too much back tension?
I notice that the brake on the take-up reel has white grease on it. Is that normal? This grease is opaque white, unlike the transparent green grease found elsewhere in the mechanism.
Also I'm probably going to buy one more VCR before switching to recordable DVDs. The only Japanese brands I see that don't seem to be made by Funai are Sanyo and Panasonic. Which of those should be more reliable?