OLD tube tape recorder !!

[imaradiostar]

I'll give you a number of a friend in Nashville that might be willing to do transfers if needed.

jamie

[olddawg]

Usually people ran these things until they quit. That means trenches heads, worn capstan bearings, and worn motor bearings. None of these are usually available.

[km6xz]

Be sure to find out what type of tape it is before running it on any machine. If it is later tape that has important material on it, say from the late 70s to early 90s it might have a binder than is hydroscopic and has turned gummy. It would also bind up the deck if played with a black dirt adhering the the guides and heads.

If it is that style(old Ampex 456 was the worst for this problem and also most common from that period), you can salvage it easily. Bake the tape if on metal reel flanges at about 135F for a few hours in a convection oven(not a gas or electric element type that can set short term temperatures rise much too high in their effort to keep to a 135f average) for 1/4 inch tape.
That will remove the absorbed water and leave the binder hard and the magnetic material in tact.
If the tape is on plastic flange reels, bake at a lower temperature for longer, say 125F for 5 hours. The tape and program will be OK for a while but tends to absorb moisture at a faster rate than the first time but you still have a few years in storage before it turns to gunk again.
If the reels, box or backing does not identify the brand and number of the tape describe its color, any backing markings let me know and maybe I can identify it. You can also cut off a small piece and try stretching it, to see what what happens. That would show whether it was Mylar or Acetate backing. Really old acetate tape does not have this problem.