In many instances, a splice is required to repair the videotape. The splice is very strong and should not break, but splices are made with an adhesive splicing tape and adhesives, by nature, will fail in one way or another over time and use. Also, due to the splice, the videotape is ‘thicker’ at that point on the tape. The splice will actually pass over the video heads which are spinning at high speed. Any slight deviation in the surface of the tape, such as a splice, especially one that is starting to separate, will sometimes destroy the fragile and very expensive video heads on your machine.
Therefore, if the splice is anywhere in the middle of the tape, the fix should be considered strictly temporary. The tape should be immediately duplicated and the original should not be used. Store the original somewhere so that in an emergency another copy can be made after having the splice inspected.
It can be
considered a permanent fix if the splice
is located at the very beginning or end
of a tape where it attaches to the clear
leader.
If you happen to have a damaged 8mm or Hi-8 video tape the chances
of a repaired tape damaging your camcorder or VCR are even greater. It is also more difficult to repair these tapes.
We recommend making a re-mastered video copy after repair.
