Video Asylum

Posted by Victor Khomenko (M) on January 15, 2003 at 13:45:11

In Reply to: How many times can you use a VHS tape? posted by Big Dave on January 15, 2003 at 06:50:03:

Depends on two things: the tape quality and how hard the machine is on tape. Some recorders are much gentler on tape, especially those with soft start/stop from fast rewind/FF - does your machine do it? But without running a test no one would be able to give you the answer you are seeking.

My gut feel is that 25 times is not a bad idea... after all - tapes are cheap, but bad tapes can clog the machine so badly that simply using the cleaning tape will not undo it. On a couple of occasions I had to disassemble the machine to clean it... ain't worth it.