I am the archivist for over 12,000 reels and they are stored in an ideal temperature- and humidity-controlled environment. When we first started the project in 1984, all of the reels were taken off of 7" reels, leadered, and slow-packed onto 10" plastic reels. They were then put into plastic bags and into reel boxes. This project took approximately 9 months and the only time these reels have been opened and rewound is when the actual transfer to digital was made, and that process has slowly been going on over the last 19 years. We have not found any physical problems with the reels. Gary Higgins -----Original Message----- From: Association for Recorded Sound Discussion List [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of [log in to unmask] Sent: Monday, October 27, 2003 5:47 AM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] environment controls We have heard some people indicate that it is a good thing to rewind while others have stated that they have played old tapes that have not been regularly rewound with no problems. There is no one answer for every tape as everyone is aware. However, as stated by Hannah Frost in an earlier post, resources are limited and therefore is this a practice that should go to the top of a resource limited to do list that many institutions are faced with? Quick summary: Advantages of rewinding: -prevention of interlayer sticking -debris trapped between layers of tape becoming bonded -reducing print-through in audio tapes -retensioning tape pack so that it has the ideal tension Disadvantages of regular rewinding: -time consuming and manpower drain on an institution -if performed on poor quality or dirty equipment it will do more harm than good (introduce dirt into tape and tape pack will not be ideal after rewind) -overhandling of tape I believe that if tapes are properly prepared (cleaned and wound to the correct tension) before going into storage and then stored properly (cool and dry - ideal about 25% RH and less than 20 degrees Celsius and in a proper storage container than keeps out dust and debris) then rewinding is not necessary. The tapes are clean (which will take care of bonded debris) and cool and dry storage will deal with the interlayer sticking because binder degradation is slowed considerably. If you are concerned about print-through then this is another issue and perhaps a different strategy should be adopted. If the storage conditions are poor (high RH and greater than 25 degrees Celsius with wide fluctuations) then rewinding should be considered. Final comment, are any institutions actually rewinding tapes on a regular basis? I would like to hear from people who know of institutions doing this. I doubt anyone is doing it every three months. Joe Iraci Canadian Conservation Institute Jerome Hartke <jhartke@MSCIENCE To: [log in to unmask] .COM> cc: Sent by: Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] environment controls Association for Recorded Sound Discussion List <[log in to unmask] > 24/10/2003 05:13 PM Please respond to jhartke Do as you wish. Interlayer sticking is well documented, and can actually rip out pieces of the magnetic coating if tapes have been stored for a long time. In addition, any debris trapped between layers can become bonded over time. Layers of a pancake are under significant pressure. Some tapes have severe problems while others do not. You are fortunate if you use high quality tape, or have never experienced problems. Others who had better things to do with their time have been confronted with unrecoverable disasters. Jerry Media Sciences, Inc. Hannah Frost wrote: > > At 08:21 AM 10/24/2003 -0400, Joe Iraci wrote: > >Retensioning on a regular basis in many cases will have no value > >and in fact may damage tape if the rewinding is performed on cheap > >rewinders or equipment that is dirty or not properly aligned. > > Not to mention that the process of retensioning a tape archive takes a > great deal of precious staff time. When you factor in the risk involved in > unnecessary handling, it becomes clear that there are more productive > things that can be accomplished to care for the collection in the time it > takes to retension: surveying for materials at risk, grant writing, > reformatting, and so forth. > > Hannah Frost > Media Preservation Librarian > Stanford University Libraries > > > if storage conditions are good and there has not been wide > > fluctuations in storage conditions, then I don't think it is > > necessary to retention tapes every three months.