i was talking to jmbond111 about 8 tracks and tapes and got me thinking about this. i would like to find a couple Beach Boys 8 tracks if someone has any. i have a couple REO Speed wagon and meatloaf that i found.

 

I have The Elvis Presley Story right here. Got 20 of the big hits on it, RCA 77'.

 

I have a bugger batch of them. I use them in a player at my cabin, doesn't get much use and they last a surprising long time. Mostly old country, Willie,Merle and the boys. I pick them up at yard sales for almost nothing....Tedd

 

I'll see if I have any beach boys, I just donated probably 50 of them but they were mostly country and opera - yes opera

 

Wow- never realised the record companies offered opera or classical on 8-tracks. Mebbe because all of that I have has always been on vinyl...

Eric, in my 8-track days I didn't listen to anything as tame as the Beach Boys. I was into loud heavy 60s and 70s rock and roll, which truth be known sounded like *** on 8-tracks even thru the Craig Powerplay system I had, but all we wanted back then was noise.

 

I'm looking for a "Alice Cooper Goes To Hell" to stick in my player at future cars shows.

 

I actually have an Oldsmobile 8 track tape. I think its from the mid 70's? They used to give a complementry tape out if you bought a car with an 8 track player.
In the glovebox of my car I keep about 6 tapes. Have a box of about 30 but no Beach Boys.
Check the swap meets and flea markets. Maybe Ebay, You'll find one.

 

yes on ebay but your best bet is an old record store, they are usually a buck or two. I actually paid 4 bucks each for two Beatles tapes but other than that they are a dime a dozen. I even have an 8 track player hooked up to my house system, they sound awful!!!!! I'll take a look and post some of what I have as I will never listen to all I have anyway - at this point the stereo doesn't even work (once again it did before the body shop got a hold of it).

I think they produced everything in 8-track we just don't remember. I have found mostly classical, jazz and opera (Pavarotti up the yin-yang). I think either the rock is being horded somewhere or was buried with these cars as they got junked.

I too have an Oldsmobile tape but I think from 1974 - these are the ones worth the most - I see them $10 - $20 all the time occasionally someone thinks they will get $100

 

Question: Do all you guys have a pack of matches to wedge in between the tape and the edge of the player opening to **** the tape to keep it from dragging? LOL! I remember titles like; War: The World Is A Ghetto and Curtis Mayfield: Superfly "music from the movie," and Cat Stevens: Moon Shadow. etc. LOL! And don't forget that everyone had what we called a "lid" w/ them back then, which made the music sound so much better. Who said that the 8 tracks didn't sound GREAT??? Then in the early '70s, the "high tech" cassettes came out and in no time sent the big 8 track to the grave. I think it's great that you guys still keep them going.

 

It's been a long while since I looked at the titles but we must have 40 or 50 tapes. We had them for our boat but the Dynamic has a 8 track player and we may have to dig them out of storage. I was into hard rock back then if I remember correctly, my hubby rock & roll. If I find any we don't want I will post the titles.

 

Here are most of my 8 tracks... They have been in storage for 20+ years, not even sure they play well. Maybe it is time to hook up the 8 track system and see what they do.





BTW, if you REALLY want the Beach Boys on 8 track, find me a good blank or a known good tape I can erase and I can record one from the BB LPs I have...

 

Hey wow Rob, you have some really groovy tunes, Tarkus is the utmost...man.
Do you have pseudo Armadillo-Army tanks in Texas???


You can get just about anything but human parts on evilbay, the better sellers replace the pads and sensor foil tape and test them, 8 track tapes...not human parts.
You can fix them yourself using sticky backed weatherstripping foam chunks or and get the foil tape at Radio Shack.
You can get some brand new still in the cellophane on evilbay, mostly Trini Lopez and Ferlin Husky... but hey?
I got a like new with sleeve Beach Boys "Endless Summer" double length tape for 12 bucks including shipping. I have that and Sly and the Family Stone's Greatest Hits. I need to expand my collection or get an 8 track tape recorder, you can record over Trini Lopez and Ferlin Husky tapes.
I use my 8 track to cassette adapter then in that my cassette to MP3 player adapter hooked to my MP3 player too...or just turn on the amfim.
8 tracks use a 1/4 inch tape with 4 stereo tracks, not much room but if the head is clean and aligned right and all is good with the world they don't sound bad, better than AM radio?
8 track players are cool, as they say..."What else can you listen to two songs at once on?"

I saw an NOS 1969 Oldsmobile 8 track demo tape sell for over 600 bucks on evilbay, those '69 guys are almost as nuts as Mopar guys.

 

Great idea, I have an 8-track cassette adapter too, I should do that but maybe add the Cassette to CD adapter first then cd to MP3 adapter, about time I stik the last one in it will be in the back seat.

 

I picked up a console with a working 8 track. I found a bunch of tapes at a yard sale one time and played them. Half of them stopped working when the splice tape broke.

So, be forewarned, your favorite tape may break.

 

8Track.jpg

 

this fella over at v8buick just posted a few for sale http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?t=217013

 

Cool thread...I was all cheesey and happy when I heard my 8-track working.
I have 2,Poco and Three Dog Night.
I have been told they are on ebay,just havent looked yet.
When I go to swap meets Im always on the look out for some Elvis tapes,I need one with the song "burning love" and anything Led Zeppelin.
Also one of those black tape cases like Rob has would be cool to have for the car shows.

 

i didn't know it but my mom had some. i am going to look at what she has. i looked on e bay today and there are loads of them there also.

 

I have nice one owner, low-mileage copies of Endless Summer, Spirit of America and Good Vibrations. Pic attached. $20 shipped if you're interested.
Terry

 

I would love to get the play list from the Oldsmobile Tape. We had that as kids and still have great memories from that 8 track. My parents got it when we got our Station wagon. Can you PLEASE help me with this?? It would be the greatest gift I could give my sister!!

 

I can check at Antone's this weekend here in Austin. This store is about the only store in Austin that sells 8 tracks. I might get lucky. Are you particular about what songs are on it?

 

I have about 150 ones that I would listen to and another 25 that were country,ect.

 

I too have a few hundred of these just sitting around in a closet.. I'll have to dig them out and see what I have. I know that some of the ones I have tried to play have broke due to age. I believe I even have a few blank ones still in the package somewhere...

It may be worth looking into getting an 8 track to cassette adapter to have a better variety of tapes available to you. Though of course, you probably wouldn't want to use something like that at a car show.

 

Back in the day a lid cost $15.00 don't ask me how I can even remember? I still have some Deep Purple tapes. Highway star was one of my favorite songs!

 

I presently have about 150 or so 8-track tapes.... many of them I recorded on blank tapes since I had two 8-track recording decks... Also, since the blank tapes you could buy usually had a longer run time then the actual album, I would open up the 8-track, remove the factory slice and cut out a pre-calculated amount of tape (time vs. feet) and then re-splice with magnetic splicing tape available back in the day....

 

Best places to score cheap 8-tracks and cases (and records and cassettes, too) are the local thrift stores!
The stores here (and everywhere most likely) have loads of them. CHEAP. Not only Goodwill or Salvation army, but all of the mom & pop shops, too. Google 'thrift store' in your town and see what comes up. Many of my LPs have come from there, along with other neat vintage stuff, like radios and small appliances. No ebay pricing is the good part with most stores and some of the smaller shops will bargain with you. My best scores have been from such stores.

In offbeat news, Dallas also has its own 8-track museum - a 'must see' when visiting................
http://eighttrackmuseum.com/home.html

 

mine are hidden in the garage attic. i think i still have every one i bought back in the day. couple of big boxes of them. been up there a while,probly not much good anymore. mostly rock from the 60s, 70s

 

These tapes can be rehabed. Pry open the case carefully. You can buy new sponges to replace ones that have dried or fallen off. You then carefully wind the tape thru the continuous loop until you find the splice and replace the tape splice with a new piece. The 8 track will play like new expecially with the sponges replaced. The splice breaking is the main cause for most to fail.

 

Not about the lid but highway star is still a good one.

 

I don't have any, but need a few. This weekend we are installing a factory correct AM/FM 8-Track radio in my son's '77 Toronado XS. We found the correct radio, and then we found that we also needed a missing wiring connector. It had two, but needed three wiring plug-in connectors. Everything sourced from eBay. After that, I'm sure it will need speaker work. But QGT with my son is priceless, especially when he wants to be there.

 

I don't have many. I seem to recall hearing the backbeat of Cecilia in the background of Bridge Over Troubled Water in a Simon and Garfunkel album.

 

I have about two dozen somewhere in my house. I also have a aftermarket 8 track player.

 

Guys:
My first project in high school woodshop in 1974 was a 8 track tape case, man I was proud of it, couldn't wait to show my Dad! Remember there was no Fast Forward back then, if you wanted to hear the last song again, you had to drive around the block till it came back around. Good Times!! My brother and parents have quite a few tapes still, I'll check on them next time I am there and let you know.
Thanks, Ron

 

FF was available on higher end aftermarket auto decks and used in mid-range and up home decks. On the mid priced units, it was as simple as using a two-speed motor, low for play, high for FF. The sound would mute (thankfully) during FF.
Absolutely no rewind though due to how the cartridges were wound.
Good memories indeed...