Video tape problems

[cedwards]

I have a Sony FX-1 and it has worked great for many years.
This year, I got an error message a couple of crucial times that I should put in a cleaning cassette. I didn't have one handy at the time, so took the tape out, blew into the compartment and re-inserted the tape. I continued to record with no problem....

That is until I got home and found out that all my tapes are completely blank!!!!! The tapes advanced in the camcorder, but nothing recorded. there isn't even timecode or anything. It is as if it is a new tape from the store. I have tried playing them through the camcorder and through a record deck I have.

Has anybody had a problem like this? Is it possible to somehow recover the tape (If anything even recorded)?

 

[Dan Robinson]

I had this happen once with my FX1. Try rewinding the tape all the way back to the start then playing it from the beginning. I don't know what happened or what caused the problem, but that fixed it when it happened to me.

 

[cedwards]

I'm glad that worked for you, Dan, but no luck for me.

 

[John Olexa]

Oh man that has to suck big time! Hope you figure it out, or I'd be scared to trust it again.

 

[cedwards]

I can't trust the camera anymore. Luckily, I bought a smaller camera for this year that recorded on flash memory. It has such good quality image and ease of use that I used it 90% of the time over the FX-1.
Still the moment I miss the most was east of Stockton, KS on June 1. We were next to a wall cloud with upward motion faster than any I have ever seen even in tornadoes.

 

[ngjere]

It's a tension issue. An arm in the tape path is adjusted accordingly
when the camcorder is in the play or record mode which snugs the tape
up close to the rotating drum. When in pause, tension is backed off and the
tape slacks along the head drum so as not to let the head maintain contact
with the tape while it is not moving.

At this point your best bet is to use it as a backup. When transports reach this
point, there's no reliable way to repair them...

 

[Jim Parsons]

Charles...I got some good footage of that inflow, if you want it. That was INSANE!!!!!!