Reel to reel tape?

[drewl]

Hey all,
Anyone know of a trusted source for some 1/4" reel to reel tape?

Tuning up a TEAC 6010 for someone.
Found service manual, all I need is some tape. Thought I had some somewhere around here, but no.

[mhuss]

You can still get it from pro sound distributors, but it won't be cheap, e.g.,
ATR Magnetics Studio Master Tape - Vintage King Audio $72/reel

[The Dude]

You can still get it from pro sound distributors, but it won't be cheap, e.g.,
ATR Magnetics Studio Master Tape - Vintage King Audio $72/reel

OUCH!

[drewl]

Yikes!
Ouch is right!

[The Dude]

So, I saw the 72 bucks and had to investigate. Full Compass has tape at a substantially lower price. I cannot testify to the quality of this tape- never used it, but for testing purposes I couldn't see spending $72.

Here's one link:

RMGI-North America SM911 34110 1 4 x 600 ft Recording Tape on 5 Plastic Reel | Full Compass

They also have larger size reels if you need.

[TimmyP1955]

I have a couple of NOS 7" reels, IIRC it's Maxell UD. One is sealed, one has been opened but never put on a machine.

[The Dude]

I would hesitate using anything too old. Tape oxidizes over time. You can actually see it come apart on the heads. After only a small pass, the heads will be gunked up and brown. It really doesn't matter how much it's been used as much as it matters the age of the tape. Results will vary based on age and storage conditions.

[Enzo]

Iron oxide oxidizes? Who knew?

[The Dude]

OK, smarty pants. I get no pass for using incorrect terminology. In more technical terms, "The brown stuff comes off". Are we square?

Edit: So put in a better way, the iron oxide separates from the tape?

[Enzo]

Oh, I am sure there is some official term like "delaminates" or something.

I have some reel tapes of my radio shows from, OMG...50 years ago. They were done on cheap tape at the time, a while back I was reading how the oxides fall off the tape as it ages, and you might find a reel full of clear mylar or celluloid with a pile of brown dust in the box. However, I found the tapes intact and playable. That was 20 years ago, but even that was a 30 year old tape.

[The Dude]

I have a bunch of old tapes around myself from my early multi-tracking days. They will play, but doing so requires constant cleaning of the heads. It doesn't take long for the heads to turn brown.

[drewl]

Old cassette tapes of my old bands have lost alot of the sound.

Never got around to transferring some of them, now lost to the ether