Sharp VL-C73UA Camcorder won't turn tape

[Bev]

We ran ONE roll of tape through this maybe 10 years ago and it's been
stored in a nice safe place since then. Charged up the battery pack,
replaced the button battery, and most of the operations (zoom,
autofocus, various selection switches) seem fine except that:

1) It won't move the tape, except for a half-second immediately after
turning it on, at which time it winds the tape a few inches back and
forth, the light to the left of the REC button on the rear of the unit
and the PAUSE/STILL light inside the little door both flash and then
go off. During this half-second, the STBY message sometimes appears in
the viewfinder. Same results with battery and AC adapter.

2) The only words that appear in the viewfinder window are LIGHT
(when appropriate), the time (hey, it's Y2K compliant!) and in the
lower left corner E020, which looks an awful lot like an error code.
No mention of this in the manual.

3) Nothing happens when PLAY, STOP, REC, REW, FF, etc. are pushed.

Is there any hope that this can be repaired at reasonable cost, either
by my talented husband or <shudder> a professional, and how good are
the Sharp repair services?

--
Cheers, Bev
-------------------------------------------------------------------
"There is nothing wrong with it and I didn't do it and, my gosh,
well I guess I just remembered I did...sort of...but it wasn't my
fault...because my staff didn't tell me...and I was very busy
meditating on the issues and besides I thought I was in Cleveland."
-- Meg Greenfield

[Pro-Cam Electronics]

I hope I can answer your questions Bev,
The E020 error symbol in your viewfinder is information for the service
center that evaluates your camcorder. That particular code indicates a lack
of head switching pulse during the record, this pulse is required to turn
off & on the select video heads while your drum motor rotates them at
2700rpm.
As to your question of "how good are Sharp repair services?" it mostly
depends on the experience of the individual technician, don't you agree?
Good luck to you.
--
I hope this helps,
Tim
pro...@msn.com
or visit my web site at
www.pro-cam-electronics.com

Bev wrote in message <387BE386...@ktb.net>...

2) The only words that appear in the viewfinder window are LIGHT
>(when appropriate), the time (hey, it's Y2K compliant!) and in the
>lower left corner E020, which looks an awful lot like an error code.

Is there any hope that this can be repaired at reasonable cost, either
>by my talented husband or <shudder> a professional, and how good are
>the Sharp repair services?
-

>Cheers, Bev