Need Reel to Reel Tape Primer Sources

I could use a primer myself, hard to keep it all straight as I get into tape. I'm going to have to learn to set bias (the person I would take decks to is backed up in work by I would say several years, the last time I was in his shop there was no more floor space even in the lobby!).

I have a tape collection that I store in a room seperate from my system (it gets into the 90's sometimes in the summer and I read that tape should be stored in a dry temperature stable enviornment?).

that's good news about the temperature vs humidity

I've been browsing on that forum but thanks for pointing me to the tape basics thread. I visited an audio repair shop today to pay a friendly visit, the owner went over a little of what is invloved in setting bias and said I could watch him do one of my decks when I was ready (he said I needed a calibration tape, a scope, an oscillator and an ac voltage meter if I wanted to do it myself). I want to make some dubs of some of the more valuable tapes I have so I can listen to them without fear of the tape breaking or other mishaps.

There was an ad on craigslist locally for an A/V company having a garage sale, one of the items they listed was a tascam br-20, I figured out the name of the company and gave them a call before the sale and it turns out they had a pair, but they wanted $1000 each, that's crazy talk. I decided to go the second day of the sale (today), the decks were very clean and the heads looked spotless with basically no wear at all. I told him I would give him $200 each and was suprised to walk out of there with the pair for $450. Listening to an early rca perez prado 2 track, sounds good. Let the sickness begin!

I finally took the time to read the "beginners guide to tape basics" on the tape project website (as noted by Mikelavigne, thanks!). I am glad that I have been careful to not play a collection of vintage tapes I acquired and will go over each of my decks carefully inspecting the tape path components. I would highly recommend anyone interested in preserving and mainting their decks and tapes to read that thread, it is a great reference