Video

The foil splice goes on the side of the tape that contacts the head. Sorry I am just responding now (a month later), I am just now seeing your comment.

That was very big of you to do that. Not many would

It will likely be tucked in at the center of the hub. There are two methods of retrieving this end of the tape. One, using a toothpick at the center of the hub to pull the end of the tape up. Or two, if you have an empty cartridge wind the tape onto the empty reel but make sure you leave some of the tape sticking up as when you transfer the tape back to the original reel you will be feeding the original reel from this area of tape. I will make a video on this process over the weekend

Thank you!

Started fixing tapes in my pre-teens... crowding 40 now. Started collecting when I was nine...I believe

Make sure that your screen is facing a mirror, then watch the video again by looking at the mirror. There...fixed it.🤣🤣🤣

You are most welcome. I am glad that my video helped. Happy tracking

It'll either be on top of the player or on the bottom. Usually it's a slotted brass screw.

If you have trouble, send me photos of the disassembled unit and I should be able to help out by looking at the photos

I am glad this video was helpful. That is definitely one of my goals with these videos.

I am one of the few that doesn't. I tried once and ended up fudging the tape up.

You might be able to get away with cutting the tape so you can untwist it. When you are ready to put the ends of the tape back together' you can use scotch tape on the graphite side of the tape to fuse the ends back together

@@8trackfm Thanks for the advice. I just did that. Did a decent splice and put back together and it's playing in my Panasonic Dynamite player. I did notice that the tape doesn't come off the supply side easily. I wonder if that's due to it's age/ potentially not having been played for a long time/ having too much tape - it's a Time Life (Jelly Roll Morton) with a long play time. This has turned out to be the most reliable of the 3 machines I bought - the others being the Centrex RH60 and a realistic portable stereo player. The Centrex seems to struggle (slow) with the cartridges with more tape eg the Time Life whist a shorter tape seems to play ok. The Realistic had bad cross talk - I opened it up and it's due to the plastic casing around the head cracking in one corner. I think it's a common-ish problem, and I'd seen some people using a ziptie to fix it. I had no such luck getting a zip tie around and superglue didn't work either.

@@choboutube I use a soldering gun to melt the two broken parts of the head shell together. I have had great success with that. You just have to be very gentle so you don't over melt the plastic.

You can also use gorilla glue but I have found the plastic weld method to be better

LOL there is something about the geometry of 8 track that is defeating me. As I was playing the 'splice-rescued' cartridge, it got to the track change/ metal stripe, so I decided to redo this bit. I pulled out a bit of tape loop to allow me to put the tape onto the splicing tool. Somehow this introduced one extra loop. In the end, I had to cut again and splice (non metallic) again. Lucky I have extra copies of this tape. This is my 'learning tape'.

Sadly I can't remember. I think it might have been a Johnny Horton tape but i am not too sure

The World of Johnny Horton

8 track tapes had up to 90 minutes of play time. The "8 track" refers to 2 stereo channels spread over 4 programs or channels if you will

You are most welcome. I hope this video was helpful

There are a few things that could cause this. Dirty track change sensor, the bearing that the track change cam could be gummed up, some players have a rubber O-ring that is wrapped around the track change cam that may be dry rotted. I will make a video about this in the near future. Another issue that is common is if your 8-TRACK player has the plastic head bracket, these are known to break causing the head to float as opposed to move with the track change mechanism. This plastic head bracket can be repaired by various methods. Depending where the break is i will either use a soldering iron to melt the broken ends together or i will use crazy glue or jb weld to bond the broken ends. Thank you for your comment. I hope that my suggestions helped.

I found my roll of foil sensing tape on ebay. Here's the link www.ebay.ca/itm/363670148037?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=cZiRlmVGSVe&sssrc=2349624&ssuid=aP_LevwRRbW&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

You can also find some on Amazon as well JVCC MPF-01 Metalized Polyester Film Tape [Mirror-Like]: 1/4 in. x 72 yds. (Silver) a.co/d/iRsmKhS

Sounds like your tape is wound too tight. This happens often when the fast forward function is used on players equipped with this. If you are able to play the tape up to the foil splice, do so. Once the track change occurs, pull the cartridge out of your machine. You will then have to take the cartridge apart. Once you have opened the cartridge, you will need to cut the tape at the splice, then pull some tape from the center of the hub (I'd say 6-8 inches), then either tape the two ends back together with scotch tape (applying tape to the back side aka graphite side of the tape). Then start pulling the tape again from the center of the spool which will start winding the tape back onto the hub. If you should have any difficulties with this please let me know and I will gladly post a video of this process.

You are most welcome. I hope this video helps

You've peaked my curiosity. I will have to check this out. I could very well have missed this.

@@8trackfm Go to vinyl engine and download the service manual for the H-R100 (which is the same as yours but has Dolby).

@@frankm3945 I definitely will. Thanks for the info

It would most likely have a lower end setup in it. If you decide to try and tackle this yourself (which i think should be pretty easy) you can send me an email with pictures or video of anything that stumps you and I will happily advise you, but I don't think you should have any trouble. My email is mrboutilier@yahoo.ca

@@8trackfm thank you so much! Lol! I have always wanted to do stuff like this, but I just lack the confidence. If I come across any problems, I will certainly email you. I do have a few questions though. Can this crosstalking be caused by the A-Trak tape itself? I mean, if the tension on the tape is not quite what it should be, can the tracks bleed into each other in that instance? The reason I ask this is because The cross talking occurs on some tapes and not on others. Is it a matter of somehow tightening the innards of the eight track tape? I am a kid of the 80s so this is just a little before my era. Lol!

Sometimes worn pressure pads on the cartridge (located directly under the tape at top of cartridge) can cause cross talk but it’s usually from a misaligned head. The foam pressure pads are the worst for wearing out

@@8trackfm I have heard of this happening. I do know of a CZcamsr who has found a low-cost solution to this problem. I don’t remember if it was Databits, or Techmoan, but one of them discovered that you could tailor cut make up sponges and apply them with some sort of adhesive. You just had to apply some scotch tape or some thing on the side of the make up sponge that touches the tape so it won’t rub and produce make up sponge flakes. Lol! I wish I could remember who did that! Anyway, I think there are also eight track repair kits if I’m not mistaken. I don’t know. I think I would try the head alignment to. It wouldn’t cost me anything. Lol!

Sometimes it is necessary to take your player apart to access the adjustment screw. Some players have easy access from the underside, while others have to be taken apart. And sometimes even if a player has the access hole on the bottom, there is less struggle accessing the head adjustment by taking the player apart. I normally just disassemble. Less aggravation that way

Not yet. I haven't had to do a respool yet. But I will once the time comes

The pads used here are from weather strip. I don't remember where I bought this but as long as the weather strip isn't too stiff, any brand from any hardware store will work. The softer the material is the better. You can also use quarter inch thick sponge cut into quarter inch width. If you are looking for proper pre made pads, you can try 8trackavenue.com

Thanks brother

It is definitely disappointing when that happens. To be honest I hate the ebay auctions.

How much for what?

Sure thing

Yes my email is mrboutilier@yahoo.ca Also if you can, send me a picture of the model number