Capturing composite video--need a frame sync device

[Charles Papert]

I'm in the long overdue process of transferring all my legacy videotapes to digital, starting with 33 yr old VHS home movies (and yes, they are playing immaculately--go figure). My plan is to dub all of the analog formats (VHS, SVHS, 8mm, Hi-8, 3/4, 3/4SP) to DVCAM as I still have two working DVCAM decks from the pre-HD era, and I believe they will make a solid backup for enough years to come (I will likely also capture from them down the road onto hard drives, as part two of the lengthy process).

I'm finding that some of the VHS suffers from just enough tracking and servo error that the DVCAM deck is hiccuping on capture. Shots where I was running with the two-piece VHS camera and deck are definitely an issue. So, I think I need either a TBC or a frame synch to aid with those. Who can suggest an inexpensive solution? I would think at this stage of the game, yesterday's high end stuff is today's virtual scrap heap in this arena. I tried a Hotronics AP41 TBC that I picked up at a local used broadcast dealer for $75, but it seems to require genlocking as the picture develops jitter and loses sync by rolling after a time, and none of the decks I'm using have genlock capability. Is a frame synchronizer like the Datavideo TBC-1000 what I need? Any other suggestions?

Thanks.

[Peter Manojlovic]

VCR's with TBC built in would be the first step..
I've got a Panasonic1980, but any of the SVHS decks with TBC built in would be my first try.

I've found this website an absolute must for transfers...