On 4/5/19 4:15 PM, Grant Taylor via cctalk wrote: > ACK > > I'm getting the mental impression that it's somewhat like a spring form > pan. The latch opens and releases tension off of the strip that goes > around the tape reel. When it's latched, it cinches against it. When > it's unlatched, there's enough play to allow the tape reel to come out. > > Am I remotely close?
You're very close--same idea. When I get a chance, I'll do some close-ups on the mechanism. But same idea--the latch puts the band under tension. That works fine, so long as the structural integrity of the band is maintained. Failures commonly occur around the "holes" punched in the vinyl, but I've seem some bands that are neatly split down the middle. > I wonder if some of this could be 3D printed. I don't know--and I don't know if it would be economically feasible. At less than $6 for a poly "can" that completely encloses the tape, that's a tough target. The nutty thing is that I remember when CDC Sunnyvale went to the vinyl band "hangers" in their facility rather than the wire "racks" that held the reel and its acrylic case (tremendous variation there). I recall seeing dumpsters full of the acrylic cases. Maybe somewhere there's a landfill stuffed full with them... I wonder how long it will be before no non-senior adult remembers CD jewel cases. I recall getting rid of several boxes of Plextor-type CD caddies only a couple of decades ago. --Chuck