What causes a dark picture on a Panasonic AG-1980 VCR?
 

Hi Lordsmurf,

First off I cannot say thank you enough for everything I've learned (so far. I have a long way to go) from this site. I've been reading up threads here for about a week now and have learned a lot. At first all this info. was overwhelming, but as I'm learning the technical terms, as well as what products and procedures are most recommended, the fog is getting clearer and I'm getting much more comfortable with processing all this valueable info.

That being said, I know that the first place to start is the right VCR. From what I gathered, the Panny 1980 is one of the best. I've chosen this model as my ideal not just because of opinions on this site, but because I've heard that JVC models tend to eat VHS-C tapes, of which I have about 6 that I want to record.

I understand that the normal price for a 1980 is in the $200-$500 range, and that to go lower means the unit is probably gonna cost much more in repairs, but according to this seller, the only problem with the unit is that the picture comes out dark. This is something that I've seen addressed here on the forum.

<< snip // just PM this part ;) >>

I appreciate your thoughts on this. Thanks!!!

- Steve

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Thanks much, and I'm glad to hear it! :)

If you just have 6, you can send those elsewhere. It overall costs less. Then you can have the option of the JVC VCR for other tapes. That's what I'd do.

You understand correctly.

Dark = issues with luma = likely bad caps. And that's anywhere from $200-400 to fix, but it should be good after that.

I've seen this here on our main deck, which was serviced by Jots for about $300, and now works perfectly. (We'd sent in at least 3-4 VCRs last year, and the total bill was around $800. I need to pull out the invoices sometime, and see the cost of each individual unit.)

All you have to do is:
- PM the auction/etc link.
- PM a link to the thread you make here on this site -- the tech question, not the auction link.

Asking question in the forum helps others. :congrats:

a dark picture is bad caps - most likely on the Y/C card

i have a good working AG-1980 available
i have it on ebay for $299, but will give a better deal to a forum member

another great deck to look for is a Mitsubishi hs-hd2000u

but i still think the best way to go with compact tapes is respool to full size
ive even had a AG-1980 eat a compact tape

Volksjager, do you have a how-to-guide for respooling? Or can you provide a link to one? The only experience I have with opening any tapes is opening a vhs tape that had the film come off the reel at the beginning. I simply reattached with a small piece of scotch tape that I cut to size, folded over so one end of the scotch tape was touching the reel, and the other end of the scotch tape was touching the beginning end of the film tape. I wound up the tape by hand and was able to record it right from the very beginning with no problems at all.

it is easy.
just rewind the tape all the way on the the non-geared spool.
dissemble both the compact tape and the donor VHS
then snip the leader and clip it on to a full size VHS reel.
then assemble the VHS tape with the 1 little reel on the feed side.
then fast forward all the way to the end , then swap the feed reel as well.

So basically, open up both tapes. Remove the film tape from the donor so that its reels are empty. Snip the beginning of the vhs-c tape off and scotch tape it to the empty vhs reel. Remove the other donor reel and place the vhs-c film with it's reel in its place. Re-assemble vhs, fast forward to the end. Re-open vhs tape. Snip the other end of the film tape off its vhs-c reel, and scotch tape this end to the original donor vhs reel. Now the vhs-c tape footage is connected to the reels of the donor tape.

Correct? TBH, I figured there was a more advanced way of doing this. Should I get double sided scotch tape for this instead of just folding it over like I did with one of my vhs tapes?

no dont use tape!!! pop out the little retaining clip and clip the new tape leader to the reel

the only PITA of the process is removing all the tape from the full donor reel
the easy way around this is to use another donor tape - (i get boxes of them free at yard sales)

Ok, I've been googling and youtubing to find some diagrams and instructional videos on how to do this but I'm not finding anything in regards to retaining clips. However, one page where someone had the problem of the tape coming off after it was rewound too quickly was given these 2 solutions:

"A lot of tapes will snap right at the point where the little bit of clear leader attaches to the reel hub. If that's the case, there is a little piece of plastic on the hub that can be popped out (it will likely fly out), then the leader can be placed over the hole and that plastic piece can be forcibly pushed back into place. Good as new."

"The hardest part will be reattaching the tape to the spool. There's a plastic clip that holds the tape end to the hub and getting that clip off and back in is a pain because the space between the spool sides is so narrow."

Is the retaining clip the "plastic piece/plastic clip" that these 2 people are talking about? The thing that perplexes me is that, if putting the beginning of the tape into the reel and then re-attaching this clip is a better (and possibly easier) solution to getting tape back on the reel, why do all the instructional videos on youtube (or at the least the ones that I watched) all suggest using scotch tape?

take apart a junk VHS tape and you will see.
it is easy to do, the clip is not really that hard to get in and out.
it slides up and off and that you just push it back on from inside the spool.
if i get time i should make a video.

you will need to use a screwdriver or other tool on the clip.

Regarding the donor vhs tapes, does which type of vhs tape matter (T-30, T-120, etc...)?

doesnt matter - the VHS-C tapes are all so short even a t-30 has enough spool room

I have to do this today. I'll see if I can take some pictures when I do it. :)

LS that would be great. I'm gonna buy some blanks to get some literal hands on experience and familiarize myself with the inside of these things before I even think of performing surgery on my home movies lol.

go to thrift stores and yard sales
also look on the craplist - people are always giving them away
i picked up a box on the side of the road with a free sign recently
had about 50 tapes - all episodes of babylon 5 someone recorded

Just a quick update. I just got my "blank" vhs tapes in the mail. I already have the extra VHS-C tape. Time to open up these bad boys and familiarize myself with the insides.

-- merged --

I've opened the vhs-c tape and figured out the retaining clip. Little orange piece. Not too difficult to take on and off. However, the vhs tape seems more complicated. The retaining clip doesn't want to pop out as easily. Assuming I do pop it out and put the vhs-c tape into the vhs hub and get that retaining clip back on as well, then what? I put the vhs-c reel with film tape into the vhs tape so that I can fast forward? How will the vhs-c reel stay in place inside the vhs tape?

**edit** Ok, I got the vhs retaining clip/anchor clip out of the vhs by using a small flathead screwdriver and popped out one end of the piece, then used the flathead to push the clip up and out (didn't wanna risk breaking off either of the ends of the piece). I also found a guide. Let me know if this is any good:

http://www.lunchmeatvhs.com/blog/res...s-minty-clean/

the small feed side reel (non-geared one) will stay in place during FF
the clip usally isnt hard to get in and out -(but this does vary brand to brand)

I use a pair of computer tweezers on the clip. Both taking out. and putting it back in.

Thanks for the tip kpmedia. While I was doing this transfer I found myself wondering how I'm gonna do this without ruining the tape, or touching it with my fingers. I've been using screwdrivers as additional "fingers" to help hold the tape in place when re-attaching the anchor clips, as well as feeding the film back in between the "runners" that the film goes through (those cylinder things). Speaking of which, should I use non-magnet screwdrivers (I know that magnets + film = loss)? I can probably use these tweezers instead, right?

Anyway, just tested out my JVC (though I'm still waiting on the s cables so I'm using composite for now). Everything works perfectly. I messed around with all the features I'll be using (audio, video) but not the recording/timer functions since I won't need it. Everything looks and sounds great. I just finished fast-forwarding my science experiment so that I can respool the other end. Gotta be honest, I was really afraid that the small vhs-c reel wouldn't keep the film in place, as that film comes out much easier since it's so much smaller than a vhs reel.

Now to figure out what to do with all the tape stock from the vhs donor I'm using that I need to throw away now lol.

Holding the tape with your fingers isn't ideal, but it's better than most option. The best would be those photo gloves and archivist gloves. Never, ever metal anything.

For the extra tape -- do what I do: give it to the cat to play with. That's hilarious to watch. :)