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V6Ga t1_iugd3vt wrote

I am not saying it is true in this case, but when the tape snaps the tension from the supply reel slaps the end pretty quickly on the the take-up reel, or vice versa.

I did recording for my stuff on a reel to reel, and scrambling to get to the stop button before the tape slapped itself apart was just a thing you had to do, with old tape.

It is not that the plastic backing fails repeatedly, but that oxide gets slapped off the backing as the reel slaps the broken end on the other reel.

30-40 bits of oxide falling off is entirely reasonable.

I cannot imaging you could actually get it back into playable shape though.

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