How To Repair 8 Track Tapes

Just the basics on repairing 8 Track Tapes
Repair Kits can be found on eBay if you search.

[@hal9k2k6]

You didn't put the flat plastic ring in properly at all, the tape goes through it, it doesn't just sit on top. Its in Warner carts and a few others and stops the pack from raising up in the middle. I'm guessing you repaired the splice that broke with this part out. Right now, that cartridge is not going to play properly, and will be compressing the tape as it come out the centre of the hub.

[@ToddFun]

Great catch! I missed that. I'll pin this for others to fine. Thanks.

[@daviddavidson1372]

Live in the country when i was young.people would throw them out on the side of the road.fixed a bunch of 8 tracks doing this same stuff.great video.took me down memory lane..

[@ToddFun]

This was a way back machine kind of video for me too. Glad you liked it.

[@kennethwallace4338]

I tried fixing one 23 years ago ended up with the tape eating itself to death from the inside. Took it apart only to find the tape all thin out stretched wrapped around the inner core. Never tried it again. Excellent video

[@gravedigr12]

thanks for that nifty trick to tighten the tape you just saved my led zepplin 8 track.

[@artisticsquid]

Cool, found one of these in the river today and was wondering how these things work so I could try to patch it back together and play it. I've done it with several cassette tapes from the river, but never an 8 track before.

[@tarheelbilly]

Thanks for the informative video! Your explanation of how the tape maintains tension because of the different diameters of the output (inner) and takeup (outer) parts of the reel was a revelation... I had some that had been pulled out and had no idea how to take up that slack. Duh...

[@morrismckinnon6047]

I've repaired a few of these. They can be a nightmare! I still had to run the tapes in the machine for an hour until it played properly due to the tape being too tight or too loose. You get some interesting sound effects as the tape slips and slows down! Lol

[@ToddFun]

Yes, it is a ton of work but you just can't replace these old 8 tracks unless you can find a good one on eBay.

[@REXXSEVEN]

4:09 Not sure what kind of Krazy glue you were using, but generally you cannot let Krazy Glue (cyanoacrylate) come in contact with cotton (such as a Q Tip or other cotton swab). Additional info: Super glue (cyanoacrylate) reacts with cotton to produce enough heat to start a fire. This rapid chemical reaction can cause minor burns. .

[@DasBucket]

I have read 8tracks were invented by the inventor of the Karaoke business. He had to use reel to reel machines in the beginning and use the tape counter to get near the beginning of a selection then fast forward or reverse a few times to find the beginning of a selected song. big reels equal's time to find song so divided by 4 and make a continuous "shorter tape" same amount of songs just a 1/4 of the length of tape. however the 8track cassette is a self defeating design and will self tighten to the point of self destruct etc etc

[@kevinclancy.]

thanks great video

[@jean-francoislafaurie4697]

Merci beaucoup ! 😊

[@gphuang67]

Great demonstration!

[@DarrenGlen]

Genius thanks

[@ESmithStringSlinger]

Had a few 70's 8 tracks separate from the track splice tonight. I'll try this. After a few of repairs,I'll be an expert? I hope.

[@ToddFun]

Let me know how that works out for you. It isn't easy.

[@stevenhoog1]

I never understood how the tape always comes from a smaller radius and always comes back on a larger radius and stays even. It seems like it should either loosen or tighten circling around at uneven speeds. I still don't get it.

[@GRCPinballOfficial]

First! Idea for a sequel: "Why To Repair 8 Track Tapes."

[@ToddFun]

First! LOVE IT! Thanks MAT. Why? really? You don't know me yet? After all these years? "It was fun" ;)

[@Chekmate99]

Because 8-Tracks sound superior to CD’s - in my opinion they are the best kept secret (as of Aug. 2020) for purchasing on the cheap with awesome sound quality. Similar with cassettes which are now starting to see a resurgence in value.

[@goldenstatepicker]

where do you find the drive wheels?

[@markcovington8159]

Hey there. If the 8-track tape were to look like that cartridge shown except if the back of the cartridge were to have a triangle shape on the back instead of the shape usually shown on the back of the Warner Brothers cartridge would it have the exact same holes all the way around shown or is there a chance it may have different holes shown on the spool itself? :)

[@jsciarri]

Excellent video as always Todd thanks. Just curious - how's that grandfather clock running since you restored it couple of years ago?

[@ToddFun]

Thanks. If you watched all the videos in the play list for the clock you would have seen I had two real bad pivot holes that need bushing. They finally got so bad that it would stop. I'm hopping to make a final video for the series that included a simple DIY bushing job.

[@jlkyn]

Dear Todd, what can be done if the amount of tape that come from inside is very long (say 3 m), I tried to compensate the tension pulling from inside hoping that sooner or later the difference in length will be compensated... after an hour of trying I renounced ... is there a remedy in such cases?

[@ToddFun]

Take it apart and re-spool. Takes about an hour too. However most times it gets all messed up and you can't get it back on. I was able to do it once but then the tape was later distorted by bad machine.

[@geanmarques7403]

Onde encontrar estes "feltros" para fitas cassete?

[@larrystohr8303]

The last foot of tape, I just close it up, jerk the tape on the feed side and it self winds into the cartridge.

[@christianjohnson7228]

Larry Stohr left or right side of the tape? Ive seen this done before.

[@larrystohr8303]

@@christianjohnson7228 The right side, as demoed on this video (the normal direction of tape). Just pull harder and quicker to get spool to spin. This is useful when tape is pulled out accidentally or was stuck on head (needs cleaning).

[@christianjohnson7228]

Larry Stohr nice, thanks!

[@denniskelley8974]

Yes! That's the reason I read through these comments, to see if anyone would mention that. It was actually one of the things I liked about 8-tracks (early/mid 70s). The things were notorious for getting "eaten" by the player, so after carefully pulling it out you'd have anywhere from a few inches to a few feet of tape hanging out. And it was actually FUN to reel it back in, using the trick you described... but you could actually do 2 feet or more, and it was almost a challenge to see if you could do it all in one pull. Ah... good times. :)

[@REXXSEVEN]

I saw a video not too long ago that illustrated that exact same thing. Not sure what the title was though.

[@TaylorThoughts]

Awesome! Thx

[@efrandsen72]

Thanks dude!

[@ToddFun]

No problem!

[@Bp1033]

I have one on my todo list that completely flipped the tape upside down. My only idea is to unspool it then respool it correctly somehow.

[@ToddFun]

I could see how that could happen. Maybe you could open it, flip it, manually roll it a few times to get the flip under a few wraps then put it back together and run it until it comes back out the right side around?

[@mikeharman797]

Great video,but this is ALOT harder than what it seems

[@ToddFun]

It is

[@andrzejsynowski2776]

Does not work like on the video.

[@billmimms]

Worst invention...EVER. I do appreciate this video. I'm actually surprised there's a video on these nightmare devices. This device was invented for all the wrong reasons. I think Lear was a Sadist.

[@Petertronic]

That's what makes it fun :)

[@beatleman69]

If the tape breaks, throw it away, not worth the hassel! Go online and buy you another one.

[@AxelWerner]

What a shitty cardridge technology. No wonder Philips cassets took over easily.

[@ToddFun]

Not easy to open at all but it is do-able.