Pinch wheel

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Pinch wheel or pinch roller is the term for the "rubber" wheel which forms part of the drive mechanism in many forms of tape recorder and player. The magnetic tape is squeezed between the "capstan" (a precision shaft driven at constant speed) and the pinch wheel and so is drawn past whatever combination of record, replay and erase heads the "tape deck" employs.

The pliability, surface, and other physical characteristics of the "rubber" material from which the pinch wheel is made is critical to the steady progress of the tape, and usually degrades with time, and may result in speed fluctuations, causing "wow and flutter", various noises and even damage to the tape. Pressure of pinch wheel against the capstan is usually removed when not in operation, to reduce incidence of "flat spots" on the rubber surface. [1] Replacement of pinch wheels is a common maintenance problem. [2]

A similar situation applies to some record players, where a pinch wheel is the intermediary between the spindle of the drive motor and the rim of the turntable, with the same maintenance issues.

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9 track tape

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An idler-wheel is a wheel which serves only to transmit rotation from one shaft to another, in applications where it is undesirable to connect them directly. For example, connecting a motor to the platter of a phonograph, or the crankshaft-to-camshaft gear train of an automobile.

EIAJ-1 Standard for video tape recorders

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Tape transport

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Sabamobil Audio tape format

Sabamobil was a magnetic tape audio cartridge format made by SABA that came to the market in 1964. It used already-available four-track ¼ inch tape on 3-inch reels (7.62 cm), with two mono channels per side, using a tape speed of 3¾ ips (9.5 cm/s), and was compatible with reel-to-reel audio tape recording except the against remove secured ends of the tape in the reel. The cartridge could be opened without the need of any tools by removing two holding clamps. Tape head and capstan were placed between the reels.

Sanyo Micro Pack 35

The Sanyo Micro Pack 35 was a portable magnetic audio tape recording device, developed by Sanyo in 1964, that employed a special tape cartridge format with tape reels atop each other.

George H. Eash was an American inventor of several magnetic tape audio cartridges having a single tape reel. In 1950s he worked next desk to Bernard Cousino, who invented the endless tape loop, using it at first on an open reel. Eash created further cartridges using this tape loop like the Fidelipac, also known as "NAB-Cartridge" or even "cart" and used in broadcast, and as a consultant of Earl "Madman" Muntz the 4-Track cartridge, known as the Muntz Stereo-Pak or CARtridge. With the Lear 8-Track cartridge Eashs patent plea failed.

References

  1. "Reel to Reel pinch rollers". Peter J. Vis. Retrieved 29 October 2020.
  2. "Pinch rollers". Fix Your Audio. Retrieved 29 October 2020.