VCR ejects mangled tape?

[Dead Christmas]

I have a Sanyo VTC-9100A, and it keeps ejecting the cassettes with quite a bit of tape left outside of the shell itself. I have to hold the cassette's door open, and manually re-wind the tape back into the shell. Any idea what could be causing this to happen?

Thanks!

[lordsmurf]

The VCR obviously has an issue. It's the transport. But the transport has many variables, and varies from brand to brand, model to model. I'm not familiar with that exact Sanyo, so all I could do is guess.

NJRroadfan may have an idea here. PM him a link to this thread, asking for his input.

[Dead Christmas]

I'll be sure to send NJ a message asking for help, thanks for the tip.

Here's some extra information: It doesn't always eject the cassette wrong, only every so often. Also, it's a top-loader, I've found that if I prevent the transport from immediately rising, that it will always eject the cassette as it should.

Thank you for replying.

[lordsmurf]

Ah, that's a Betamax unit.
I wonder if the rubber belts/bands are dry-rotted. Ever have them replaced? That may be it.

Example: http://www.videokarma.org/showpost.p...58&postcount=6

[Dead Christmas]

I'll take a look at the belts in a few hours. I can't right now as the floorboards in my house are insanely loud, and will wake up my parents if I move around.

Should I lubricate the belts if they aren't damaged or cracked?

[lordsmurf]

Lube won't really help belts. In fact, it may make the issue worse.

[Dead Christmas]

Thanks for telling me that.

New rule of thumb for me: Only buy VCR's that you can get the service manual for.

[lordsmurf]

We all learned that lesson the hard way. Mine was just a decade or more ago.

[NJRoadfan]

Sanyo units usually need belts and an idler, although I am not familiar with the older top loading chassis. Studio Sound Electronics has (had?) parts for the later top loading chassis. They may or may not fit the older units, its best to call before ordering to verify. Its also very likely they are out of stock on the replacement parts. These units are well over 30 years old now and parts stocks are going to be hard to come by.

http://www.studiosoundelectronics.com/mbk-56.htm

Some basic how-tos here: http://www.colin99.co.uk/extras/reel...sanyo_beta.htm

[Dead Christmas]

These parts look fairly in-depth. I tried accessing the belts via guide of the VTC-9300's service manual, and the design isn't quite the same. I don't feel confident continuing any further with the repair, especially not for Sanyo BII machine...The video quality/stability is absolutely sub-par at this speed, worse than VHS. This unit just isn't worth the effort. I do appreciate you guys giving me your time to help, thanks again for that!

Time to pick up that 40$ BR-8600U.

[NJRoadfan]

Sanyo Betamax machines were never all that great. Video quality was subpar all around, not representative of the format at all. The only thing they were good for was durability. Outside of the belts and idler, Sanyo Betamax machines seem to run forever. Sony machines were much better for video quality and features, but had their fair share of mechanical problems.

[Dead Christmas]

I'm curious, what kind of mechanical problems would the Sony machines have?

Would you agree that the older machines were built better all around? Units like the SL-7200 look on par with early U-matic VCR as far as build quality goes.

Thanks!

[NJRoadfan]

The later "slimline" units (basically the SL-2700 onwards) had problems with the capstan and associated electronics. Later models would have power supply failures in a STK module. The front loaders had all kinds of problems with broken gears, loading the tape croaked, etc. The biggest problem on high hour machines is drum wear since Sony machines didn't thread the tape back in during REW/FF operations. Sanyo machines always threaded the tape back in for those operations like period VHS machines. Sanyo used a completely different threading system from all the other Beta makers, its likely one reason why the machines seem to run forever.

The SL-7200 might be tough to find. Those early Beta I only machines are highly collectable now. Video quality should improve due to the faster tape speed though.