Advice for tape drive repair / maintenance

[Gordon JC Pearce]

Curtis H. Wilbar Jr. wrote:


> turned to goo...  the one thing I've found that acclerates this (and 
> damages
> some plastics too), is certain vinyl? cabling...  this type 5 probably 
> had a

Many many years ago, one of the regular contributors to Television 
magazine described how he'd managed to wreck the casing of a TV set he 
had in storage by leaving it with the PVC mains cable coiled up on top 
of the polystyrene cabinet.  It seems the plasticiser leaches out of the 
cable, and attacks the polystyrene.  I wouldn't be surprised if it 
attacked other plastics.

Incidentally, if you use expanded polystyrene wall insulation, this is 
why you need to wrap up mains cables in polythene (which isn't 
attacked).  Otherwise the PVC jacket goes brittle and crumbly...

Gordon