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(just for fun) Can you watch Scotch for ever?

GrimmyGrimmy Posts: 521
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in TV and Home Entertainment Technology #1
Talking about old telly adverts today.
I can remember one from the mid 80's that went

"I'm gonna tell ya how it's gonna be
With Scotch's lifetime guarantee
Tape what you want, both night and day
Then re-record, not fade away (re-record not fade away)
You can watch Scotch forever...."

I'm unsure what happened to the author of that great work after he narrowly failed to gain the title of poet laureate. ;) But what happened to the tapes?

Anybody still using a Scotch tape from circa 1986. Did they really last that long, or were rules on advertising claims more liberal back then.

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    WiddyWiddy Posts: 2,001
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    #2
    I find it highly unlikely that ANY video tape that is used faily since the 80's is still working!
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    TV DUNIYATV DUNIYA Posts: 6,772
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    #3
    i,ve got scotch tapes dating back to the mid-eighties,they're not used on a daily basis,but i do view them every few months,and the picture quality is still excellent.
    that ad always used to get me toe tapping at least :D
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    [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 2,359
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    #4
    I remember a video engineer coming to fix the family video back in the 80's. He could tell we'd used Scotch tapes as there was a layer of oxide on the bottom of the machine.

    The seemed to just bung on lots so that it would last longer.... but then it clogs up machines - some you could literally sweep it out!
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    [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 1,032
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    #5
    When I bought my Betamax machine back in 1986 (It still works perfectly by the way), I bought all available makes of tape, to compare them. I had Sony (2 varieties), Fuji, and Scotch (2 varieties). After about 2 or 3 years, ALL the oxide fell off the Scotch tapes and I scrapped them, as they just had continuous dropouts.

    The Sony and Fuji tapes, despite being used for years as timeshift tapes, are still as good as new.
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    dodgygeezadodgygeeza Posts: 6,350
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    #6
    Are the aforementioned Betamax tapes still in use? :eek:
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    kevkev Posts: 21,075
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    #7
    My parents still have some Scotch tapes, which are still in working order - but alas they arn't used much,

    They also have some Konica tapes, with Live Aid on (taped live on a Logïk VCR!) that are still in good order.

    However i've had some konic tapes that didn't even last a month, and some scotch ones literally fell to bits - mainly cause our Sony VCR had a habit of trashing none Sony stuff before dieing after a year.

    I've been using the same Maxell tape since starting uni, recording daily, and it's still in working order, although the sounds starting to drop out :(
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    [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 1,032
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    #8
    Originally posted by dodgygeeza
    Are the aforementioned Betamax tapes still in use? :eek:
    Well, I have moved with the times and now have a DV machine. But the Beta still gets an outing occasionally when I play an archive tape or if I want to record 2 things at the same time. I'm keeping the machine (Sony SL-HF950) as I believe it will be a collector's item (if it isn't already). It still knocks spots off any VHS I've seen. And it will record in the presence of Macrovision. :cool:
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    kevkev Posts: 21,075
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    #9
    Originally posted by David Robinson
    And it will record in the presence of Macrovision. :cool:
    Not that you do that of course ;)
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