At Worldcon, Spencer was good enough to loan us a 4-track reel-to-reel deck so we could transcribe some old 4-track tapes for the remix of Julia Ecklar's "Walkabout" and get it back in print on CD. Since we were running like mad between Worldcon and OVFF (when I was supposed to return the deck), it wasn't until the week before OVFF when I got around to setting up the deck to play the tapes.
This is when I discovered that the large reel hubs weren't there. Now, I remember that this deck once had hubs, because it used to be mine after I bought it from Firebird, before I sold it to Clif, who sold it to Spencer. But Spencer has no idea where the hubs are and Clif is incommunicado. So I found a web source and ordered a set of hubs.
Minutes after the hubs actually shipped, Clif called and told me that he had them -- he'd just never goten them to Spencer. Oh, well. I figured I'd find a home for the new hubs eventually. Clif gave me the box of odd parts for the 4-track deck and I stuck it in my basement.
Today, I decided it was finally slack time again and I should try transcribing the tapes. I went to Clif's box, looked at the "hubs" there and went *ugh*. I don't know exactly what's happened, but these don't look right. But that's ok, because I have the hubs I bought.
I mount the large reel hubs. No problem. I wire the deck through the 8-track dbx unit that goes with my 8-track reel-to-reel deck. No problem. I go to plug in the 4-track deck.
Problem. In my experience, gear comes in three varieties. One type has a permanently attached cord. Another type uses that three-pronged cord that is positively ubiquitous. The third type uses a wall wart, but that's a recent development and this is an old deck, so...
This tape deck is of a fourth type. I suppose that I've seen it before, because I used to have this deck in my possession, I think, but I just don't remember it. It has two common male socket prongs sticking out and wants a matching female adapter cord that I didn't get from Spencer with the deck.
Radio Shack, of course, doesn't have such a beast. Mind you, Radio Shack seldom has what I'm looking for, but I figured it was worth a try.
Joseph Electronics may have a cord, but they're closed today.
Maybe tomorrow.