Tape slot won't close

turn tape around might be in back to front

If your camcorder experiences an error, you may be presented with a ?Remove the Cassette? message. There are several reasons that this message may appear, but it is essentially a safety warning that is designed to protect the camcorder and/or tape from damage. The camcorder?s tape drive mechanism is made up of many precision components that, once damaged, may cause further problems if the mechanism continues to operate. When a problem is detected the safety mechanism is activated. The ?Remove the Cassette? warning and the camcorder?s safety mode may be activated by a variety of conditions such as: 1. Condensation is detected ? If condensation is detected by the camcorder, the ?Remove the Cassette? warning may occur. 2. Component failure ? If an electrical or mechanical component in the camcorder fails, the safety mode may activate to prevent any further damage to the camcorder. 3. Sand or grit damage ? The camcorder?s tape drive mechanism consists of many tiny gears. Sand or grit can cause a gear to jam and stop turning. This will cause the camcorder's safety mode to activate. 4. Impact damage ? If a camcorder is accidentally dropped or bumped against a hard surface, it is possible that a misalignment of the tape drive mechanism may occur. 5. Liquid damage ? If either the camcorder or the tape is exposed to water or any other liquid, a variety of malfunctions may result. Please avoid this situation. 6. Improper videotape insertion ? If a tape is forced into the cassette compartment, or if the cassette compartment is pressed down while the tape is loading, damage may occur to the tape drive mechanism. Please refer to the User's Manual. 7. Damaged or defective tape ? If a tape becomes damaged, please discontinue its use. Operational Recovery Steps Depending on the conditions that caused this message to appear, it is possible that the camcorder operation may recover. Please follow these steps: 1. Eject the videotape Insert a new or known good videotape. If the message does not persist, it is possible that the tape was damaged. If the camcorder still displays the message with a new tape, please proceed to step 2. 2. If condensation had been detected causing the Remove the Cassette warning, remove the cassette, and allow at least one hour for the moisture to dry. If the "Remove the Cassette" message continues, the camcorder may require service. Please contact Canon USA's Tech Support Center at 1 (800) 828-4040. Technical support hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00am - 12:00 midnight; and Saturday 10:00am - 8:00pm (all times EST). Alternatively, if electronic support is preferred, please send your email to [email protected].

Follow what they say

close the tape compartment take the batery of press the power button on and holding the power press put the batery back and wait let me know

xiii
Dew Formation
• What is “dew formation”?
When cold water is poured into a glass,
dew drops form on the glass. This clinging
of water drops is called dew formation.
• When dew forms in your camcorder.
Dew will gradually form on the head drum
of your camcorder and make the video
tape stick to the head. This causes
damage both to the head and the tape.
When dew forms, recording and playback
may not function properly.
Dew is likely to form in the following
circumstances:
—When moving the camcorder from a
cold place to a warm place.
—When placing the camcorder in a cold
room which is then heated rapidly.
—When moving the camcorder outdoors
from an air conditioned room or car.
—When placing the camcorder in the
direct path of air
blowing from an air
conditioner.
—When placing the
camcorder in a
humid room.
• How to prevent trouble.
When using the camcorder in a place
where dew is likely to form, allow the
camcorder and the video tape to
acclimate to the surroundings for about
one hour.
For example, when bringing the
camcorder indoors after skiing, place it in
a plastic bag.
1Be sure to tightly seal the plastic bag
containing the camcorder.
2Remove the bag when the air temperature
inside it reaches the temperature
of the room.
• “Dew” warning feature
If dew forms, the word “DEW” flashes on
the screen, and the power will automatically
turn off in approximately 10 seconds.
Plastic bag
1If “DEW” flashes, remove the cassette,
leave the cassette compartment open,
and wait for a few hours to allow the
camcorder to acclimate to the
surrounding temperature.
2To use the camcorder again, turn on the
power after waiting for a few hours. Be
sure that “DEW” has disappeared.
3Do not insert a cassette while “DEW” is
flashing; this may result in damage to
the tape.
4Since dew forms gradually, it may take
10 to 15 minutes before the dew
warning feature engages.

Try removing the battery for a few seconds, and then re-inserting. This seems to reset something on my DCR-TRV20, and it starts closing properly.

I had a similar issue where the tape bay would not lock in and engage the motor mechanism to load the tape. I removed the battery from the unit and let it stand for approximately a minute then reinserted the battery. The tape drawer closed first without a tape then reopened with no issue. I then inserted a new tape with no issue. I guess it needed a hard reboot.

bent guide pins, dried out grease, belts got old although you say new, some object stuck inside jamming gears.... the list goes on.

1. Condensation is detected – If condensation is detected by the camcorder, the “Remove the Cassette” warning may occur.
2. Component failure – If an electrical or mechanical component in the camcorder fails, the safety mode may activate to prevent any further damage to the camcorder.
3. Sand or grit damage – The camcorder’s tape drive mechanism consists of many tiny gears. Sand or grit can cause a gear to jam and stop turning. This will cause the camcorder's safety mode to activate.
4. Impact damage – If a camcorder is accidentally dropped or bumped against a hard surface, it is possible that a misalignment of the tape drive mechanism may occur.
5. Liquid damage – If either the camcorder or the tape is exposed to water or any other liquid, a variety of malfunctions may result. Please avoid this situation.
6. Improper videotape insertion – If a tape is forced into the cassette compartment, or if the cassette compartment is pressed down while the tape is loading, damage may occur to the tape drive mechanism. Please refer to the User's Manual.
7. Damaged or defective tape – If a tape becomes damaged, please discontinue its use.

Operational Recovery Steps
Depending on the conditions that caused this message to appear, it is possible that the camcorder operation may recover. Please follow these steps:

1. Eject the videotape
   Insert a new or known good videotape. If the message does not persist, it is possible that the tape was damaged. If the camcorder still displays the message with a new tape, please proceed to step 2.
2. If condensation had been detected causing the Remove the Cassette warning, remove the cassette, and allow at least one hour for the moisture to dry.

This just happened to me today, apparently in my case it has something to do with condensation inside the camera, I don't know if this applies to you but at the moment I have the cassette slot open and in the sun, hopefully it will help, two hours apparently should do it. Give it a go, it can't hurt, I wouldn't put the actual cassette in direct sunlight though, so make sure you take that out. Hope this Helps