can you still buy a vcr and how long does a vcr tape lasted if it is old.

YOu sure can buy them, cheap too. I have very old tapes that are fine and others not good all stored together so it's hard to tell.

okay thank you very much.

I've bought several VCR players at the thrift stores around here. Average between 5 and 10 bucks. Just be sure to test them out before buying as the old ones sometimes 'eat' the tapes. If the picture is 'snowy' it usually clears after a cleaning tape. I've got VCR blank tapes from 1978 that are still good. Store them on the sides, not flat and before using, wind all the way to the end and then rewind them. That will usually rule out any that are stuck together or just jammed due to age.

VCR?( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIaFtAKnqBU )
Why not convert your tapes to dvd? You can put 50 dvd's on a spindle that takes up about a 6"x6"x6" space. Think about how much room 50 tapes takes up.

Good idea Geo. I did that way back. Bought a 'dual' recorder and converted all the good stuff. However, my VCR stuff is for my Security Cameras. I have 13 inch TV's with VCR in them and all I have to do is push one button and it's recording for 8 hours. Easy playback too and no fussing with all the controls and menus on the DVD. I buy the TV/VCR combos whenever I see a good one at the thrift store. They do eventually start eating the tapes and then are kaput. I also tried the DVD method and spent more time trying to figure out the controls than I did reviewing the recordings. For some things, Old School is the best solution. But I must admit, the DVD is far superior in quality to a tired old VCR. Yup.

The main thing you want to keep VCR tapes away from are excessive heat and anything magnetic. The stuff on the tape is called "flux" and it is the same thing you find on cassette music tapes and very similar to the material on floppy disks. The coating can get brittle with age when exposed to temperature changes, but if kept in a relatively stable environment they can last quite long, decades even.

thank you guys very much.