How can I get VHS tapes to play?

You have not mentioned the make and model number of the vcr. Any way the problem is due to end sensor or related circuit. End sensors are photo diods which you can check the shorting with a multy meter.

There are any number of reasons why it won't play. The loading basket is jammed, the video tape has got tangled up in the mechanical section of the vcr or the loading gears are stripped. Unplug machine and remove top, [screws side and back] if the tape is spewed carefully remove by cutting it and clean tape particles, for any other problem have a technician check it out.

This is a problem of the mechanism vcr. loock into the vcr because may be the kids put some objet inside vcr. To check also all the vcr belts.

Hello,
The problem is not with your TV. I have had this problem as well and the older the VCR gets the harder it is for it to turn the tape. Does your VCR react the same way with other tapes? Try Fastforwarding the tape about halfway and then test it again.

My guess would be dirt on the rollers inside the VCR. They sesnse a jam and ejct. Try a VCR cleaner (with cleaning fluid) and see if that helps.

The same thing happened to me and it is the power supply. You can get a new one at [email protected]

VCR is set with blank tape..Bring up vcr control on TV with television set on Chanel #3, go to menu
Follows procedure for progamming date,time start,time finish,chanel and.speed and single recording.finally click on menu and turn vcr off. Vcr lights indicate set for taping,,.Does no start to tape at requested time and lights indication taping ready stays on ??????

Sounds like the idler assembly isnt working. Without this assembly, the system cannot get the tape to actually move, and most systems will shut down if the tape isnt moving to prevent damage to the tape. In truth, this can be a complicatred repair, requiring the machine to be taken apart quite a bit. I would suggest taking this kind of a problem to a repair shop, but with the cost of simple VCR's coming down constantly, and the upcoming switch to DTV making the machines tuner obsolete, it would probably be more economical to just replace the machine.

There are no such adapters that would allow 8mm, Hi8 and Mini DV tapes to be played in a VHS VCR. Only the old VHS-C tapes can fit and play in an adapter. There are several reasons why 8mm (or Hi8 and miniDV tapes) cannot be physically played in a VHS VCR: 1. 8mm (Hi8, miniDV) is a different format with different technical characteristics than VHS. These formats were never developed with the intention to be mechanically compatible with current VHS technology. 2. 8mm/Hi8 tapes are 8mm wide (miniDV is 6mm wide), while VHS tape is 1/2" wide, making it impossible for a VHS video head to read the taped information correctly. 3. 8mm/Hi8/miniDV tapes are recorded and played at different speeds than VHS, so even if the tapes could physically fit into a standard VHS VCR, the VCR still couldn't play back the tapes at their correct speeds. 4. 8mm/Hi8/minDV audio is recorded differently than VHS. 8mm/Hi8 audio is recorded in AFM HiFi mode, while miniDV audio is recording in 12-Bit or 16-Bit PCM digital audio format. So, even if the video could be played back in a VHS VCR, the audio could not be read properly. 5. 8mm/Hi8 video is of higher resolution than VHS and is recorded in a different bandwidth length (miniDV video is recorded digitally), so once again, a standard VCR still could not read the information correctly, even if the tape could fit into a VCR.