Entertainment Center: TVs, Stereos, VCRs and DVDs - Weird Happenings With The V.c.r.'s

Hi everyone. I am new to the site and looking for some guidance regarding my v.c.r.'s. There is no long story short here - but i'll try. I have two 4 head v.c.r.'s: 1 Sharp & 1 Symphonic. My wife had to view "Death of a Salesman" for a college course. We rented it from Hollywood Video. I put it in the Sharp v.c.r. and would only get distorted audio and gray snow for video. I tried the Symphonic. The tape played momentarily then never again. Since that night, I have tried various ways to determine what happened. They are listed below:

1) Switched v.c.r.'s to different t.v.'s
2) Changed r.c.a. cables to coaxial connections
3) Tried various other prerecorded videotapes
4) Took off the cover and used canned air to clear any dust
5) Cleaned the heads using a dry cassette cleaner

Both v.c.r.'s were working prior to this incident. I was regularly recording "The Office" and "My name is Earl" due to the conflicting schedule with C.S.I. on Thursdays @ 9p.m. Anyway, I am now stumped as to how 2 v.c.r.'s of different brands purchased at different times could both lose their picture on the same night?

Misc. info.: both v.c.r.'s still power-up and all start-up menu's are accessable (i.e. clock, date, cable std., etc...).

If anyone has any insight, it would be appreciated! Thanks for taking the time to read.

P.S. - As they say on "My name is Earl" - I feel like Karma's *****;)

And the tape is not at fault ... why?

I would bet that tape hasn't been played in many, many years.
1. Its an old movie, B&W isn't it? Not many releases of old movies were ever watched, especially B&W movies.
2. Very few VHS tapes are rented nowadays. Most people use dvd.

Being an old movie with limited appeal (yes, it is a classic, but we're talking what people will buy) it probably didn't get the quality recording it deserved. I'd bet the tape was old. Fast forwarding to the end and rewinding would have helped a little.

BTW - you might want to clean the heads soon.

Hi. Thanks for responding. I purchased a dry vhs cleaning cassette, but I have since learned that may not fix this problem. I have taken the case off the Sharp v.c.r., but really didn't know what to clean. I sprayed some canned air to make sure visible dust wasn't present, but probably need to do more. I just can't believe when I insert any video tape into the two v.c.r.'s they have absolutely no picture now - just a gray snowy screen. At the same time, if I push the tv/vcr button the picture is fine. Again, this all happened on the same night. I have always taken good care of my equipment and it is KILLING me to not know how this happened!!! Thanks again for reading and responding. I welcome any advice or suggestions. Sincerely, Brian.

Is the vcr picture bad with all tapes now? If it is, then the heads need to be cleaned with more than a cleaning tape and/or canned air. Do your units even have tracking adjustments? Don't the new units omit that?

And, yes, I still think the rented tape caused it. Don't blame the vcrs.

Thanks for the input. I am going to assume it's the dirty rented tape. If I take the cover off the v.c.r. what do I want to clean? Also, what is definitely off limits to an amateur trying to fix his equipment? Any instruction is appreciated. I am not electronically inclined, but I am a perfectionist like "MONK", so if I am given directives - I will follow them. Thank you once again everyone! Sincerely, Brian.

You need to get foam covered or chamois video head wands and head claning fluidfluid.

Clean everywhere the tape goes. When you clean the video heads (on the rotary drum) , hold the cleaning wand to the head an turn the drum around a couple times. Never go up-down on the video heads.

Thanks for posting. I will trek to the Radio Shack or electronics store sometime this week to acquire the necessary supplies. Also, thanks for the tips on how to clean the different parts. I will provide an update once I have a chance to perform the "exorcism" - I mean cleaning on the two units. :) Sincerely, Brian