why a wide cut foam pad is better

this is a few pics of the earlier Alice Cooper Killer tape from the
recent college dorm lot of tapes- this one broke at the splice- and
gave a good opportunity to see the improved spring type pads that fill
the entire void in the cart from top to bottom- notice how the pads
extend beyond where the tape rides, on top and bottom

this is why a hand cut square foam pad is superior to the thinner
earlier pads- if/when the tape moves around as the tape head moves to
switch tracks, the tape can't move off the pad. Most tapes getting
"eaten" can be traced back to the tape tangling around the capstan at
channel switch. It's also another reason why tapes "turn over" and
start winding on the reel, with the graphite side out.


The tape makers knew about this in the 1970's, and improved their
spring pads to make them wider. Early RCA carts also have wide spring

pads.


see pics below


http://i7.tinypic.com/24enl8o.jpg


http://i8.tinypic.com/24enntg.jpg


wide cut pads- the only way to fly- for discriminating trackers who
know better !

On 12 Aug 2006 07:01:31 -0700, "Dwight D. Eisenhower" (the president
who got us into Viet Nam) wrote:

this is a few pics of the earlier Alice Cooper Killer snip

Sock puppeteering again, Noodles? That's a sign of mental illness,
you know.