[peel] Cleaning tape heads

[Roger Carruthers]

The generally accepted method is isopropyl alcohol (you can get it from most
chemists; a 100 ml bottle will last you ages) via a cotton bud for the
heads, guides and the metal part of the pinch roller, and a mild detergent
solution for the rubber part - apparently alcohol will (eventually) harden
rubber, which is why you should avoid it on the rubber roller, though I
think you¹d have to use it over quite some time to do any significant
damage. Obviously you should make sure it¹s all dried off before using the
deck again. 
 You can, of course buy special cleaning tapes, though they¹re a bit more
abrasive than cotton buds/alcohol, and probably don¹t do as good a job.
If you want to be really thorough, you could get a demagnetizer for the
heads too, though you¹ll only need to use it very occasionally, and must be
very careful to follow the instructions.
 For what it¹s worth, I can¹t remember the last time I used my demagnetizer,
but if you¹ve bought a second-hand machine and it¹s had a lot of use, and
there is significant HF loss, it might be worth a try, especially if
cleaning doesn¹t do the trick.
Hth,
Roger


On 07/09/2008 22:11, "andrewthezmore" <AndrewThezmore@...> wrote:

>  
>  
> 
> I've noticed that the last couple of tapes I've listened to are
> significantly less sharp sounding than previous ones. Please can
> someone recommend an easy cleaning option for me? I bought this
> tapedeck off ebay for a tenner and have never cleaned the mechanism in
> any way since I've had it - I've never cleaned a tapeplayer ever in
> fact, if they don't work properly I've generally replaced them with
> something equally cheap and cheerful.
> 
> Cheers
> Andrew
> 
>  
>