8mm cassettes won't load? (Video8/Hi8 VCR)
 

I have a problem with my Sony EV-S3000 Hi8 VCR. About half the cassettes I insert won't load. They go all the way down, nothing visible happens for about 1/2-second, and then the loader pulls them back out. After much experimentation, I believe there is a problem with reel unlocking. The cassettes that load have lighter pawl springs and the levers sit a bit closer to the rear of the cassette. After removing the pawl from one of my problem tapes, it loaded just fine, so I think I have pinpointed the bug.

There is a tapered pin in the transport that pokes into the lock lever well and pushes the lever back as the shell comes down. I can't see anything wrong with the shape or position of this pin. It is firmly mounted and appears to be perpendicular and perfectly rotated. So I am stumped. Could this simply be a design flaw of my VCR? That would be ironic, since a majority of the tapes that won't load are Sonys.

This is why I hate Video8 and/or Hi8 VCRs. Cameras rarely have such problems.

Do you see any similarities and contrasts? For example, all problem tapes same brand/type. And all non-problem tapes from others brands/types/models? That's how VHS tends to work, too, when you run into bad tapes. For example, an MGM brand VHS tape is always going to have several issues, while a BASF brand is usually perfect.

I chased brands and tape formulas for a long time, but could not find a consistent trend. The only consistent trend is stiffer pawl springs, which are most notable on Sony MP cassettes. I'm thinking maybe the stiffer springs are actually hanging up the rear of the cassette and keeping the reels locked. To check that out, I'll have to remove the transport and wind the loader down by hand. These are 25-year-old tapes and maybe they have changed just enough dimensionally to accentuate the problem.

My cameras sometimes kick out a tape, but will ingest on 2-3 retries. The culprit is generally physical defect, often a hardening of the mechanics (ie, stuck gate, rusted spring, etc). I've gotten to where I now manually open gates and hand-wind past the visible leader.

For now, I have made a cheater plug from a bit of paper clip. There's a way to wedge it into the reel lock release button to keep it open. When I have some free time, I'll remove and inspect the loader. I have a feeling it's not traveling far enough or with enough force to overcome these stiffer springs.

Without knowing the details of the machine insides or mechanism I will offer a speculation. It sounds like there is a belt or clutch that is slipping and thus not operating the mechanism to release the reel lock in cassettes with the stiffer spring. It may be the mechanism is moving too slow and times out, moves part way until the pressure becomes too great and it stops, or not moving at all. If belt driven, the belt may have stretched over time.

Evil old belts are not at work here. The reel lock is released as the cassette sits down on a fixed pin. The loader cage is supported by four pins traveling in L-shaped tracks and driven by two rocker arms attached to a gear train powered by a single motor.