In October, 2016, Jonathan Richardson of the Indiana University Media Digitization and Preservation Initiative contacted me and sent these two photos:
We have been reporting that this tape has been exhibiting a decrease in flexibility–it is becoming more stiff. While this report seems to be an outlier, could this be the extension of stiffness in the mag coat that shatters when it is played on the Studer A810? Jonathan tried playing the tape on his A80 and did not see this level of shedding. He reported there was almost none. This could also be a slitting problem with this batch of tape. And, of course, the storage conditions are generally unknown for all tapes over their entire life (especially before they arrive at an archives.
We have reported that 206, 207, 208, and 209 do not need to be baked and are generally playing back well. This was a surprise.
Thanks to Mike Casey for providing permission for me to post this.
Please look at our Degrading Tapes page for the latest updates and my ARSC Paper on Tape Degradation.