Quote:
Originally Posted by site123a
When using a VCR to record TV shows (not for archival purposes but to re-watch for later), how many times can the tape be re-used before it should be thrown away?...
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I always figured about 100 passes through the VCR; 50 records and plays for example for someone who time-shifts TV shows, or replace the time shift tape every two months. That's what I used to tell my customers (I was in the VCR repair biz). Some people would admit running a time shifting tape for a YEAR before tossing it so they can go for quite a while. Usually it's the tape mechanism that eventually wears out the tape, not the other way around. The tape has to go through a couple of angled guides and around the spinning cylinder and that puts some stresses on the tape, depending on how well aligned everything is too.