sticky tape

[user510]

To make a short story shorter:


1) I bought this 4-track 7.5 ips commercial tape off eBay
2) Blood Sweat & Tears: "Child Is Father To The Man"
3) When I receive it, I have the original commercial box for the album but inside, instead of the factory reel, is a clear plastic take-up reel with what appears to be lots of tape on it. More than one album's worth.

4) Turns out, the PO had combined the first two BS&T albums, spliced together, on one 7 inch reel.
5) I figured this out when the splice came apart during a re-wind.
The 2nd tape, the one that came "free" is the complete 2nd BS&T album and does not sound like a transfer, but another commercial 4-track tape.

Great so far but here's the subject of the post. This tape feels "sticky" when handled. The other tape it was spliced to does not. I'm guessing the 2nd album is from a later production run when the tape formula was "updated".

Anyway, I played this 2nd album thru both sides and then checked my heads and rollers for evidence of shed. Saw nothing...but I'd guess that this is really one of those tapes that should require "baking" before each play. Does this seem right?

-Steve

[fa8362]

Don't bake it unless you need to and it sounds like you don't need to. The tapes people bake are unplayable unless baked.

[niklasthedolphin]

Baking tape is something to do when you have to save the recording, stored on "falling apart tapes", by transferring it to other storing after baking.

You don't bake a tape again and again.

"dolph"

[Des-Lab]

Baking tape is something to do when you have to save the recording, stored on "falling apart tapes", by transferring it to other storing after baking.

You don't bake a tape again and again.

"dolph"

*check*

And for Gods sakes, do NOT bake them in a gas oven. Natural gas releases water vapor when it's burned-which is exactly what you are trying to remove. And as stated above. Baking is an emergency 'quick fix' only to salvage an otherwise imminent-loss recording just long enough to save it for a safety dub.

[user510]

OK that seems clear enough. However there is info out there in cyberspace that seems somewhat confusing on this very topic. Example: here are some advertised tapes at Irvington with the message: "Will require baking again in future".
http://www.irvmusic.com/catdir/ooo.htm

Either I'm missing something somewhere or this ad implies that baking is to be done with some frequency.

Stange.

-Steve

[niklasthedolphin]

OK that seems clear enough. However there is info out there in cyberspace that seems somewhat confusing on this very topic. Example: here are some advertised tapes at Irvington with the message: "Will require baking again in future".
http://www.irvmusic.com/catdir/ooo.htm

Either I'm missing something somewhere or this ad implies that baking is to be done with some frequency.

Stange.

-Steve

Just a salesmans trick.

Baking a tape is NOT a returning event.

"dolph"

[user510]

So the Irvington tapes in question are in dire need of an immediate transfer. Must be why they're "only" asking $45 for master dubs. Crazy.

-Steve