Vintage Baird 8930 Video Cassette Recorder - First Look

Here's my childhood video recorder, well not the original one, but an identical model my Dad rented from Radio Rentals back in the day.

[@HowardB54]

Baird 8930 - 👍🏻 I worked as a field engineer for RRentals 1979-1995 and serviced these regularly. May even still have some bits in the garage Lots of common faults at the time and had a wired remote control that if you didn’t trip over it , you wound the cable around the remote so tight it caused no end of random faults if left plugged in. Front push buttons were dodgy too - always pushed in by over zealous use. The hard eject was caused by the “butterfly “ soft opening mechanism , which could also jam and stop it ejecting . Quick fix as an engineer if you didn’t have one was remove it and Chuck it away The tape won’t spool up around the heads because there is a sensor in the middle that will have gone - the recorder “thinks” that no tape is inserted . It’s like a white plastic thing right in the middle that the tape drops over and covers the sensor

[@pootle2768]

That was a lovely trip down Memory Lane. I forgot we used to rent our TV! 😊

[@DisneyMarkUK]

Remember how fun it was numbering the tapes and writing the details in your book, I still have my book in the loft :)

[@richardmitchell3136]

So interesting! I'm certainly old enough to remember when a VCR was the most advanced piece of technology we had in the house. Although I never used one quite this vintage 😂. Hope you can get it working again. Reminds me of when I was a toddler. My parent proudly bought their first VCR into the house, which I promptly proceeded to deposit a slice of buttered toast into. Don't think I was very popular that particular day!

[@natashamorgan4553]

Wow this brings back so many memories. I was born in 1984 but can remember from a very young age 4/5 using our VCR and can remember when we upgraded to a twin deck so we can record from a video to a video making multiple copies. Also recording 2 channels at once. Think it had to be 1 terrestrial channel and 1 sky channel. Remembering also not being able to record if the cassette tapes had the tabs removed but it needed you could tape a piece of card over where the missing tape was and it could then be used to record on again.

[@AlistphotoUK]

Yes, this is a JVC also branded Ferguson Videostar. Dolby B, most videos actually sounded better with this switched off since it always made the sound muffled. The tape counter-memory works when rewinding/forwarding and would stop at the 0000 position as far as I remember (so you can return to the same place on the tape) - same as a cassette deck. I also seem to remember when switched on it made a little beep sound. The AUX was used if you had a video camera or two video recorders to make copies of rented videos! Using the Video In/Out connectors on the back and DIN socket for audio or could be used for a monitor. The flap on the top right has all the tuner controls for each of the 8 channel selectors on the front (the switch inside the panel is AFC). This is probably from around 1982 so predates SCART connectors, you would have only used the Aerial and RF Out (to back of your TV). To use now, either have a vintage TV/video adapter or capture card for your computer and would use the video out socket and DIN adapter for audio. If you have any original TV recordings and playback on a vintage Teletext TV the Teletext will still work! most would have been used subtitles but other Teletext pages at the time of the recording will also be available to view. Found this out by accident when I reviewed old recordings. This was the more upmarket model, it had Dolby! Your machine will probably need belts and some recapping. Nice video, look forward to watching more retro tech stuff.

[@potc33awe]

This reminds me of the Granada vcr that my mum rented from Granada when I was 12

[@BaumeisterKnese]

Sounds Like a Job for "my Mate vince". Very nice UK guy on KZbin with a repair Channel. He also knows a Lot UK repair Channels personally. Would be funny to see your vcr at His blue mat. Greetings from Germany

[@AntLino]

wow retro old school but awesome

[@jamie7056]

Remember this size of VCR being wheeled out on a huge trolley with a massive tv(probably a 26”) at primary school.Seem to recollect it was for BBC Schools programmes “Words and Pictures”and was it called “Picture Box”with that creepy music?

[@joepineapples7774]

I remember Picture Box with it's velvety music. Also 'Joe & the Sheep Rustlers' and 'Cloudburst' (early to mid 70s'). Happy days.

[@janeclark4643]

I love retro electronics

[@davidfarrell7318]

i used to have one of these exact model loved using it rented from der of course the display was flashing because the clock wasn't set

[@domfjbrown75]

Summer 1988 by any chance? We had the black fascia version and a 21inch Ferguson TX teletext telly from June 1988. I was 13. I loved it lol

[@Boodieman72]

Remote pause would be used when you are dubbing tapes to have one machine pause a second one and the video in / out would be for connecting two machines together.

[@jdrelectricaltelford8896]

That wouldn’t pass a PAT Test lmao...and impressed with you choosing the correct rated fuse 👍🏼

[@The-Elfin-Knight]

There’s a forum called UK Vintage Radio Repari and Restoration. There’s a thread on this with a PDF to help repair. I tried to link it but KZbin seems to have deleted it

[@RogersBitsDoings]

I found the forum thanks. I think I may try and find someone who could restore it as I don’t know if I’m up to it.

[@mrglobemcglobeglobe]

I just bought on of these on ebay for £30. We had one in the family when I was younger and used to use it a lot! I'm not electronically minded and my VCR also has buttons that do nothing (definitely got power as the display works)... This is an interesting parallel! Have you had any progress on this? I'm minded to strip mine down and try at it myself. It looks like a missing spring to the top loader for the soft close - again, my one does the same!

[@planetconker1104]

I dont know how much help this will be, but I would start by photographing all the connections and taking the whole thing apart. I would then soak all of the electronics in a bath of isopropyl alcohol for a few hours to clean it up. (don't put the time display in isopropyl alcohol as It can seperate glued displays) After that I would take the circuits out and look at all the black and silver capacitors at the top. They should all be flat at the top and if they are bulged then they would need replacing. I would then run a continuity test between all of the other components to make sure they are ok. If they beep then they are ok, if they don't then they need replacing. you could use a multimeter set to ohms to test the resistance of the resistors to make sure that they match the resistance they are set for. You can find the band colours for resistors online easily. Thats where I would start. Failing that I would personally take it to a DIY shop that deals with electronics. I hope you get it running.

[@YAmateurP]

We had rented a TV from Granada in the 80s.

[@cantliff9]

Our VCR had a remote like a calculator. To program recordings (which I think stopped working). It was a Ferguson video star. It loaded at the front unlike this one You also used the remote to set the time, and I think it used to annoy me the time wasn't set on it and I couldn't figure it out. Early sign of my OCD I guess....

[@Deb.-.]

Shouldnt the Timer switch be pushed to the bottom Off postition? Just a thought.

[@RobotOnLine]

The light sensor in the middle has blown so it thinks there isn't a tape inside and won't spool up.

[@georgejoneseuout8101]

Yes change cassette lamp

[@DisneyMarkUK]

They certainly don’t make beautiful machines like this any more Rog. My Mate Vince on KZbin may like to fix it for you.

[@dysonmike69]

Thats a thon