> I'm looking for information about how anyone here on the arsc-list has handled and transferred old acetate tapes that have begun to curl? > > Does anyone have a favorite machine that they use for playback, where one can gently increase tape tension to improve the tape->head contact? > At the Louis Armstrong Archive, I used an Otari 50-50, which is a constant torque machine, and held a cotton ball against the head while the tape played through. Since those machines were mounted vertically, it often became a test of endurance. use a light touch, just enough pressure to keep the tape in contact with the head, but not enough to slow it down. Try and find cotton balls that are dense, and not fluffy, or you may get wisps of cotton in your tape pack. -Matt Sohn