| honinbou |
| Multipurpose 3M scouring pads are great for stainless steel cookware. But has anyone tried on tape heads? |
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| Conrad Hoffman |
Very rarely am I at a loss for words...
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Actually I've lapped tape heads quite successfully using metallurgical lapping film in the sub-micron region, on a sheet of plate glass. I suppose scouring pads would be useful if you've got burnt on scrambled eggs or maybe pot roast, but I don't think they'd cut it in the geometry or surface finish department. ;) |
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| rcavictim |
| quote: | Originally posted by honinbou
Multipurpose 3M scouring pads are great for stainless steel cookware. But has anyone tried on tape heads? |
If you are after loud sound effects steel wool will be better than non magnetic synthetic polishing pads. Don`t have the playback volume too high first time as you could easily blow out your speakers.
Personally, I would not do this on my own deck. |
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| sreten |
Hmmm.......
Seems to me the concept of relapping is not understood.
And scouring pads are the last thing you would use ......
They are also the last thing you would use for normal "dirt".
:)/sreten. |
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| gto127 |
| How do you lap heads? I thought you shouldn't use anything abrasive on heads |
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| honinbou |
I experimented with a junk set of heads after my post. I start with heavy duty scouring pads (that's what I have at home) to remove the oxidation on the heads. It's very good in removing some rusted spots, but you damage the glossy surface on the head.
Then I rub the head on the scouring pad for another 30 minutes. The wear is less "angular" now but hey this is taking forever... and besides it is eating away the plastic faster than the metal. So I begin to sand the surface with 180, 360, 600, 1000 grit sandpaper.
rubbing the head ~30 times on 180 grit sandpaper restores the head contour. Then progress to higher grit sandpaper to polish the surface.
I tried with 1000 grit and the surface is still not smooth. So I have to get higher grit sandpaper before continuing this "head reconditioning" thing.
So to conclude - don't waste your time with scouring pads
:whazzat: |
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| Conrad Hoffman |
| For those who haven't put a lot of hours on a tape deck, the heads will eventually develop a wide shallow groove where the tape runs. Ideally one would replace the heads at that point, but some are difficult or impossible to get, others are studio heads that are actually designed to be reconditioned. The curved head surface is, I hate to use the word, sanded such that the groove is removed, and polished back to a mirror finish. IMO, nothing you can buy at the hardware store is fine enough for this sort of work. Maybe 1200 or 1500 grit paper would be a starting point, but after that you want a precision lapping film, I'm guessing 12 micron, followed by 9, followed by 3, followed by 1, and maybe finer. The downside is that as you remove material from the gap area, it gets wider, and the high frequency response deteriorates. Usually the cheaper the head, the worse the problem, so you wouldn't put this kind of time and effort into a cheap head. No doubt people who do this for a living have a far more rigorous process than I've described. |
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