The Importance of VCR Back Tension
Nick Beer
Back tension in a VCR is the reverse force encountered by
the tape when threaded up. My reason for writing this short
article on the subject is to help engineers who may be
nagged by odd intermittent deck faults in playback/record
or encounter machines with a tendency to premature head
wear. The importance of correct back tension seems to be
either unknown or ignored. It's amazing how many
workshops that have a fairly large throughput of VCRs
don't possess any method of back tension measurement.
Back tension is provided by braking (the soft brake
band) on the supply reel and the back -tension lever, see
Fig. 1. Usually one or other of these can be adjusted to
obtain correct back tension.
Without back tension there would be no control over the
tape as it passes the entry guide to go round the head drum,
i.e. the tape would be slack, not taught as it should be. The
tape would therefore loop into the mechanism and the
picture would be severely impaired - in fact the machine
would be unusable.
Incorrect Back Tension
Very low back tension is not a common problem except
in the Mitsubishi Model HS303 where the back -tension
lever has a tendency to stick in its rest position, usually
giving the impression that one of the heads has failed (back
tension is still partially present due to the effect of the soft
brake).
Slightly low back tension usually means that the tape
snatches or loops as it passes the back -tension lever,
particularly in the forward search mode and just after
completion of threading.
Excessive back tension is by far the most common
condition. Unfortunately it often goes unnoticed because
the machine has come in for some other reason, for
example a worn head, though excessive back tension is very
often the underlying cause of the trouble. The reason for
excessive head wear is that the back tension opposes the
take-up torque. It therefore directly affects the pressure
exerted by the tape on the head drum, by determining how
tightly the tape is wrapped round the drum. Thus constant
operation with too much back tension
premature head failure.
Some Panasonic machines provide good examples of this
Entry guide
Meter probes
Erase head Head
drum
Impedance roller
Various spring mounts
to adjust throw ofd
back -tension lever
)Back -tension Capstan
lever swings
Take-up
Supply
torque
Take up
Brake band reel Soft brake
adjustment band
Fig. 1: Typical VHS VCR deck layout,
showing the main
mechanical components and the point at which to check the
back tension when using a Tentelometer. A shows correct
back tension, B low back tension and C very low back
tension (the tape would unravel round the drum). The usual
problem is excessive back tension.
746
sort of thing. When head wear is mentioned the NV730
springs to mind. This is a two -speed machine with super
still, so the heads are pricey - about £75 retail plus VAT for
a new drum, though MCES now do excellent rebuilds. A
high proportion of these machines have had to have new
heads after eighteen months to two years' use. Some are
coming in for head replacement yet again. In most cases a
check on the back tension would have showed the basic
cause. I'm not saying that incorrect back tension is in every
case the cause, but the machines I've adjusted haven't been
back.
In older Panasonic VCRs back tension is generally
25-30g, but with most of the NV730s I've had in it has been
between 50g and 60g! Only the other day one came in with
duff heads. The customer said he knew it was the heads
because he had had the same trouble 12-18 months
previously. Someone else had fitted a new drum and when
I measured the back tension I found that it was 56g.
Staying with the Panasonic range, I've had head failure
with a number of NV-G2 1s and NV-G25s - under
guarantee of course. In all but two cases the back tension
was over 45g. With these machines it should be 20-25g!
I must apologise to Panasonic for keeping on about their
machines, but they do provide good, well-known examples
of the problem - other manufacturers are guilty of
inaccurate setting up at the factory.
Measuring Back Tension
Having made the case for checking the back tension,
how do you measure it? We use the Panasonic Tentelo-
meter (see Fig. 2). It's a hand-held meter with three probes
through which the tape runs, as shown in the accompanying
diagrams. It comes with a calibration weight and instruc-
tions and is a superb device for the purpose. Place the three
probes around the tape, as shown, at a point between the
erase head and the entry guide. Take measurements with
an E120 cassette, approximately half way through, ensur-
ing that the meter's probes are kept vertical with respect to
the tape. The device works by calculating the tension as the
amount of force the tape applies to the middle probe and
will lead to this probe's movement with respect to the other two
probes.
There are cassette type meters like the type you use for
Exit guide fast forward/rewind and take-up torque measurement. An
example that's as good as any is available from Willow Vale
Audiokontrol head under part no. 20-998A - it's a Thorn unit. Use is by
playing the tape as usual and reading off the scale.
Pressure roller
Adjustment
Back tension adjustment is carried out by one or other of
the following methods - the service manual will tell you
reel
what to do:
(1) Adjustment of the supply reel soft brake tension.
(2) Adjustment of the landing position of the back -tension
lever, by increasing or decreasing the actuating spring
pressure for correct tension.
(3) As (2) but using a jig with marked graduations and
ensuring that the lever falls within a specified area - there is
no need for a tension measuring device in this case, which
applies for example with some Sanyo models.
TELEVISION AUGUST 1988