Please do not use a cloth on the video head. Cloths have fibers which can catch on the head and might rip it out as you spin it. The correct way is take a small strip of copy paper and wet it with alcohol. Hold it against the Video drum and spin it counter clockwise. Do not put too much pressure against the head with your finger as you can damage it. Put enough pressure to make sure it makes contact with the head. Spin several times, check paper if its dirty get a clean sheet and repeat. Do this until the copy paper is clear.

Thank you very simple and not hardly anyone to show and tell what the parts are thank you. Got my sound back on my VCR. Number 1 video.

Thanks for the guide. You helped save my favorite VCR

thanks! easy to follow and fixed my problem with my picture. Was using old vhs tapes that were obviously dirty!

thank you it worked it cleaned up my VCR today! it means a lot for me!

I am hoping vcrs make a comeback just like vinyl records and record players, and cassette tapes have.

This is a fantastic simple video. Saved my Toshiba rdxv60.

Thanks for this video I have a had a VCR sitting around for the past five years and didn't know what to do with I ended up using a lens wipe

Thank You for posting this, I needed to clean mine for transferring old home vhs to dvd and it is hard to find vcr's to do that anymore. Thanks for this it was easy to follow and do !

Excellent, straight to the point. Thanks.

brilliant thank you! worked a charm...

VERY nice and helpful video. Thank you for making it.

This was very helpful. Thank you.

Should rubber renew be used on the roller to keep it new? Or will that affect the feed of the tape

Thanks for this. Needed this information to clean my vcr

Thanks this helps a lot I was just using a microfibre cloth before!

thanks for making it to the point !

This realy helped me thanks! Removed al lot of white artifacts from videos.

Very well done. Thank you!

Great video, I have a Samsung VHS player and it has an issue, the audio is perfect but the picture flickers and produces a horizonal lines across screen, I have tried to clean the tape path (head spools , I have also removed the tape cleaner, but the flicker persists), and ideas? It has auto tracking and this does not remedy, It was working fine until a few months ago, clear picture etc. Many thanks.

Fantastic work!!!

tis worked for me. all parts cleaned using wound cleaner. for a skin burn? i had no alcohol , including that clear part

HI. I'm trying to transfer some vhs film to dvd. Problem I have with a cpl of tapes? is that the audio is either very poor or it is just a buzzing/humming noise that I get. If you have any idea's on how I might be able to sort it out? I'd be really grateful. Many thanks.

just wanted to say ' Thank You '

What about methalated spirits.?

I'm actually trying to sort mine, as it seems to play/stop by itself. I checked other VHS tapes and it's defiantly the VCR that needs a repair. Will cleaning it like this help fix my issue!?

Nice job and TYVM.

Is there a way to remove the erase head? Or should you just make sure the tape itself has the tab removed?

In the last part of you video you took of the small yellow head cleaner. Your was fairly clean so you put it back on. Mine is really dirty. Do you have suggestion on what I can do? Can I clean it or do I need to replace it?

I used to do this as a kid. I don’t even know how I knew to do this. I think I might have just went off a hunch because it worked for Nintendo’s cartridges.

Dude! I am working on that exact model of vcr! Thank you for the video!

Hi, thanks for this video, I was able to bring my machine back to life. However, my head cleaning pad (roller) has disintegrated. Any suggestions on what I can use as a replacement? Or where I could get a replacement? Apparently running a tape without only last for a minute or two.

thank you

Do you know what is the purpose of the thin lines on the drum surface? Thanks.

yeahhhhhh this actually worked for me!

Always used a small piece of chamoi leather (smooth side), less chance of getting fibres stuck in head mechanism from a cloth. Q-tips (cotton buds) and cloth for other parts absolutely way to go. Camera lens blower also useful ;) Isopropyl or any other alchohol cleaner for electrical components is fine. Pity we don't have more straight forward to-the-point videos like this anymore.

should i bother cleaning the heads if the picture and audio only have trouble on really old tapes? i'm trying to digitize some old tapes, but on a few of them the audio gets really low and the picture gets a little fuzzy. but with new tapes, or just tapes that weren't used very much, everything is fine.

Thank you sir!

Hi there. Last night we were watching a few old videos from holidays as kids etc, they were working fine. Then I tried a different video and it sounded terrible, really muffled and muddy. So I went back to the tape we originally watched and the sound had gone muffled on that too. I have tried to clean everything but the sound just will not clear up on any tape. Is there something I am missing?? Thanks in advance.

Mucho helpful, Thanx.

I cleaned the head with paper and 99% rubbing alcohol but the paper continually is dirty and the dirt is not diminishing. I don't know if this is a good or bad sign or what I should do.

I am not trying to be a smart ass, but regardless of the price of the VHS player, it's nice that it works when we want it to work. Highly recommend you DO NOT use the q-tip vertically on the heads horizontal with the head surface and isopropyl alcohol is no bueno. Use denatured alcohol which has no water in the mix. Thanks for sharing your video.

When I took mine apart, there was a disintegrated piece of foam where yours had that spongy bit you called the head cleaner. What happens if there is nothing on it? My foam just blew away when I sprayed air in it.

I got a buzzing noise in the right hi-fi channel after doing this.

i found this gunk, i believe it was a greenish color, in spots around my vcr. Not a crazy amount of it was in there. Any idea what that could be?

QUESTION: I cleaned the VCR heads similar to what is done in this video. I used paper and the 91% rubbing alcohol. The tapes played with improved video and audio. Everything seemed fine. But then I put the cover back on the VCR and the video problems and audio problems returned. I then cleaned the heads again. This time when I put the cover on the VCR the video problems no longer existed, but there was still a slight "static" hiss type of noise. This happens EVERY TIME. I have tried this over a dozen times and the moment I place the cover onto the VCR while a tape is playing, the static "hiss" starts to be there. What is causing this and how can it be corrected?

What about oiling?

COTTON CLOTH? BAD ADVICE!

When you wipe the head at 1:56, is the cloth wet or dry?

I've had a Sharp VC-H993U 4-Head Hi-Fi Stereo VCR for 2 months now, and the Hi-Fi Audio on the right speaker seems to be completely crackling while the left speaker is alright, since it is Hi-Fi Audio, its coming from the video drum, but will cleaning it fix the issue, P.S. the picture is completely fine

Would dirty heads cause a vcr to lose power when pressing play?

Did you notice a difference in the picture,? I'd like to do it myself but need to know that it does make a noticeable difference.

Could you use vinegar if alcohol isn't readily available?

Already did the q-tips and rubbing alcohol, still has lines when a tape is played like the tracking is bad off, I adjusted the tracking but that did not help. it looks exactly like the lines you see when the fracking is off-kilter.

How can I clean a VCR that is built into the TV? Thanks.

I need to clean my vcr so I can watch my Night Court tapes

The inside of a VCR is wild

How come every time I try to do this I f- up the whole machine to the point it wont even work any more. I must have ruined a dozen vcrs trying to clean the internal mechanisms.

What we're the two types of Alcohol?

OK ...it's not a mater of age (old Fart stuff) it has to do with access to VHS tapes we still need our VCR machine to be able to play certain tapes that are not on DVD.. or maybe to transfer the source on VHS to DVD .. you get it now pinheads .. ok

If you have one...use one of those cleaning cloths they give you when buy news glasses to clean the video heads. No lint or fibers with those. Oh, and remove and throw away those automatic head cleaner things some VCRs have. The whole arm unclips, throw it all away.

already clean the head few times,but when put tape for play it will play few seconds and then no more picture only showing- problem head status-,what to do?

the VSH movies are better quality than DVD, they last longer, more romantic

your cleaning it at first and cleaning the other parts with the same q tip

That's an Emerson VCR i have one

WRONG never use cloth or qtips on video head use paper with alcohol ccw wise

For goodness sake... at least use 91% or 99% alcohol... and don't use a cloth with fibers. Texwipes are the best, and paper is a good second choice. A rubber cleaner and conditioner is also a good idea for the rubber roller which is most likely shiny and cracked after sitting around for a few decades.

सर आपका कांटेक्ट नंबर क्या है

Perhaps you should change the title to: HOW NOT TO CLEAN YOUR VCR. ...You used Q-Tips & a Cloth for the Video Head???????

Zulfiqar pitafi 🇵🇰🇵🇰

if only people still used VCR's...

Il sistema autopulente toglilo,non serve a nulla,toglilo,le testine vanno pulite manualmente,come tu hai fatto,ma non con quel panno,con un pezzo di carta imbevuto di alcol isopropilico

Sit down and give your mind a rest.

REMOVE THE VCR HEAD CLEANER!! It can damage your VCR!

Bad advise

Bad video. Cotton cloth can rip video head. Clean sheet of paper won't.

a damp with alchohol cotton cloth IS PERFECTLY FINE, chill.

Why TF are there never non-debated solutions?! Why can't people get their fracken' facts straight?! I took my VCR to professional who said he's been doing it "for 37 years" and he used acetone on cotton swabs and a cotton cloth. Is that now wrong after reading comments of people who haven't done it "for 37 years" saying to use paper?!