VCR image only when fast-forwarding (tried cleaning heads)

tim: Either the heads are still dirty or clogged..... or the heads are damaged or broken. An improper or haphazard cleaning can easily damage the fragile head chips. A quick examination by a service shop tech can give you the answer.... many times a small shop can give you a fairly inexpensive diagnosis for the price of a cleaning or less.... and if it just needs to be cleaned, it will be done properly and safely by a shop tech.... and of course, expect to be charged for a cleaning.... and then your VCR will work properly. electricitym . . .

DON'T touch the alignment! I'd quicker go with clogged heads if it's a 4 (or more) head VCR. Then, a different set of heads is used for normal play and FF, and for different speeds. Have you tried playing back tapes recorded at both SP and EP speed?

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Don't fiddle with those unless you know exactly what you're doing and have the necessary equipment. You'll only make things a lot worse.

Are you sure you're actually cleaning the heads, not just polishing the drum? Again, if you don't know what you're doing, don't do anything. A professional clean is cheaper than new heads.

damage

answer....

for

of

will

chrome posts,

tool,

DON'T touch the alignment! I'd quicker go with clogged heads if it's a 4 (or more) head VCR. Then, a different set of heads is used for normal play and FF, and for different speeds. Have you tried playing back tapes recorded at both SP and EP speed?

--- sam | Sci.Electronics.Repair FAQ Mirror:

Repair | Main Table of Contents:

+Lasers | Sam's Laser FAQ: | Mirror Sites:

Note: These links are hopefully temporary until we can sort out the excessive traffic on Repairfaq.org.

Important: Anything sent to the email address in the message header above is ignored unless my full name is included in the subject line. Or, you can contact me via the Feedback Form in the FAQs.

damage

answer....

for

of

will

I'm not taking this thing to a repair shop. It was junk right out of the box, and the person who bought it didn't keep the box or receipt. I suggested taking it back a week after it was purchased (again it's an ESA). It would constantly not fully rewind tapes, you would have to stop and then hit rewind again a couple times on most tapes. The time it takes to spit out a tape is extremely annoying, who know what the

*** it's doing before it just ejects the stupid tape. About 4 months later is quit recording - everything came out as just noise, like you are tuned to a non-existant channel - and we had recorded with it infrequently. Now it has quit playing our daughters cartoon tapes, which is its main use. (It's only a few months old.) I'd just throw the thing away right now, except the TV gets broadcast channels better when the antenna goes through the VCR - the ONLY thing that still works. I'm looking for a replacement. If I can't easily fix it, it's going in the trash.

There doesn't seem to be a way to adjust that. Like the heads, I can't find a picture of "guide posts" with Google. Are you talking about those two pieces that move to push the tape against the cylinder? Those seem to be fixed, and I don't see any other parts that could effect the tapes position on the cylinder.

The VCR quit recording 3-4 months ago, and there isn't another VCR around to make a tape to test SP/EP. This VCR was junk right out of the box - see my reply to the first reply in this thread.

I don't know. That's why I included all those details. Are the heads

180 deg apart in the middle of the drum? There are only two "holes" in the drum, and it's supposed to be a 4-head VCR.

????? why would anyone tell a non-technical person who is having difficulty with a simple task of cleaning the heads tell them to adjust the roller guides or alter any other critical alignment???? More than likely the heads are still dirty or clogged.... or have been damaged by improper cleaning or a defective tape?

-- Best Regards, Daniel Sofie Electronics Supply & Repair

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tim snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com ha escrito:

snip

if you aren't sure on how to clean the heads manually, then just get a new 3 hour tape, recorded on or not, doesnt matter, and leave it playing through till the end. This works mostly for light clogs but you never know in your case it may work also. The dirt works itself out eventually due probably in part to the mildly abrasive nature of the videotape. worth a go!

-Ben

Bad advice. Unless one understands the principles of operation quite well, tweaking alignment on a VCR is almost certainly not going to solve a problem. If the guides are loose, that needs to be fixed, not just adjusted. Likely still a clogged head or a damaged head.

Leonard

The problem you described certainly sounds like dirty heads, and guck that gets into heads can sometimes be difficult to remove, so it's not all that unusual that your first attempt at cleaning didn't do the job.

Try

and search for vcr heads.

Yes, that's where the heads are. As you guessed, many 4-head VCRs have two openings with two heads each.

I've personally found the "dry paper" method very effective for removing really stubborn dirt. In the usual version, one presses a dry strip of plain white (copier or laser printer) paper against the drum and applies moderate-to-strong pressure while turning the drum by hand back and forth to bring the heads across the paper horizontally.

In the "I don't care if I break this crappy VCR" variation that I use, I press the strip of paper against the drum while the tape is playing and the drum is spinning normally. In using this version, one must pay attention to which way the drum is spinning (because catching the edge of the paper with a head would be bad) and to the pointy bits on top of the drum (which are flying around at 1800 RPM ready to shred an unwary knuckle).

Try:

and search for "vcr heads". Also, see the VCR FAQ here:

which has a whole chapter devoted to video heads including a description of the dry paper method.

--
Kevin

tim snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@g49g2000cwa.googlegroups.com:

Sounds like you've got it figured out :-)

I would bet money (a dollar or two only) that the heads or their associated wire leads or amplifiers have died. As one poster pointed out, there are separate heads for different speeds, which would explain why FF & REW still show a picture.

Looks like it's time to find a new one and hope it's better made.

Gino

--
Gene E. Bloch (Gino)
letters617blochg3251
replace the numbers by "at" and "dotcom"

To get those heads clean put in a good movie get it playing then hold an ordinary pencil erasor against the gap on the spinning heads somewhere at the back where no tape is in the way .

Hi Ken...

You have a real good name, but I'd sure like to disagree with you anyway :)

I suggest that if you do that, you'll instantly destroy both the heads and the 'good movie'.

Clean them properly and thoroughly instead. Piece of chamois, little bit of isopropyl alcohol. Clean gently, look at the gap with a good magnifying glass and flashlight. Repeat as necessary.

Give it a few minutes to dry before putting a tape in it.

Take care.

Ken

Agree fully. A pencil eraser on the heads, spinning or not, will usually result in destroyed head chips..... electricitym

You are both wrong . I have done this more times than i can remember on very stuborn dirty heads . You dont force the erasor in there like shoveling dirt .. you set it on there very light and let it rub for a bit and watch the picture come back . Have you ever tried it ?? no .. so you dont know . It does not hurt the movie tape either .

Alcohol is useless to clean anything its just like using water .. throw it out and forget it thats why many people dont get vcr heads clean .

The little heads on vcrs are only a problem if the rub up &down across the gap instead of with the gap or push to hard and gouge . They will not melt or absorb anything . I have repaired vcr`s sence the beginning of the boat anchor top loads and work on brand new stuff of today and not a drop of alcohol around .