It ate my tape!

[Patrick Smith]

I let a buddy borrow my mini dv optura 300, and i put a tape in and ti ate it! what did he do!!!?

[Rob Lohman]

There can be different "reasons":

1. he mis-handled it

2. the camera is old and worn

3. the camera is defective (the tape part at least)

4. the tape wasn't good

5. consumer versus pro-sumer/professional gear

etc. etc. I never let anyone touch my tapes. If they want something I give
it to them on another medium like DVD, CD or a harddisk. My masters are mine,
nobody else's.

[Ron Evans]

Looks like one of you used Sony tape and the other didn't. This issue of mixing tapes was supposed to have been fixed but I doubt that. Most of my gear is Sony and I only use Sony tape in them. I have one camera used only for non Sony tape and this has seemed to solve all my tape problems. I also do not loan my equipment to other than family and I supply the tapes with the camera!!!!

Ron Evans

[Chris Hurd]

I would have to say that if you loan out your camcorder, be sure to include one of your own tapes as well. The most likely culprit for this particular issue is inadvertantly mixing tape brands.

[Patrick Smith]

ya. i didn't think about the tape issue. its just my small back up camera, i rarely use anymore since my purchase of the gl-2. but i called him and he said he was using different tapes then me.

i just cleaned the heads and then it seems to nbe workin fine now. just good thing there was nothing on that tape

[J. Stephen McDonald]

Originally Posted by Patrick Smith

I let a buddy borrow my mini dv optura 300, and i put a tape in and ti ate it! what did he do!!!?

Just apply all the guidelines of safe sex to the interchange of tapes and equipment with other people. I never put anything into any of my good equipment that's ever been in anyone else's. I also keep my own tapes away from the one tainted VCR I maintain, to play back cassettes of questionable repute.