Kingsland processing, with an arranged handover
RTA's website names Kingsland, GA and North Charleston, SC, and describes serving Jacksonville, Savannah, Brunswick, Goose Creek, Summerville, Charleston and surrounding areas. Those broader business areas should be distinguished from the stated transfer location: its VHS page says all transfers are done in Kingsland. Confirm the actual appointment location before traveling, particularly if you are contacting the business from South Carolina.
The transfer page asks customers to call the office at (912) 275-5256 or the cell number at (360) 499-9164 to set up an appointment. It also accepts drop-offs and pickups at local vendor events for video conversion. An event handover could be useful, but establish which event, the collection arrangement and how your tapes will be identified before bringing them along.
Read the starting price alongside the recording length
The published price list groups VHS, VHS-C, 8MM, SUPER 8, MINI DV, VIDEO 8, HI8 and DIGITAL 8 to DVD transfers under a starting rate of $20.00 per tape, SP (Standard Play), 2 hours. That is a starting price with a recording-length condition, rather than a complete quote for every cassette in a collection. The transfer page separately says LP at 4 hours and EP at 6 hours are available at an additional cost.
Send a count of your cassettes and any visible format or recording-speed labels when requesting a quote. Ask how an unknown running time affects the estimate and request the full total, including output media, any repair work and applicable tax. This avoids budgeting solely by the number of cases when recordings may differ in length.
Choose DVD or USB around how you will watch
RTA advertises both DVD and USB transfers. A DVD may suit a relative who already watches discs, while digital files on USB can be useful for organizing recordings on a computer and uploading selected videos to a family archive. Before ordering, ask which file format the USB option contains and whether it plays on your intended device. The advertised choice alone does not establish a particular file type.
For a mixed collection, the website also lists slide formats 35mm, 110, 126 and 127, and separate cassette and vinyl to CD transfers starting at $15.00. Keep the quote for these items separate from the VHS work. Likewise, a reel marked 8mm should be identified carefully: the published film pricing uses feet, which should not be applied to a videotape simply because its label includes a similar number.
Flag tape problems before the appointment
RTA lists VHS cassette repair starting at $20.00 per tape. This makes a damaged cassette worth discussing, but it does not establish that every break, jam or other problem can be repaired. Describe the problem and ask for an assessment and price before authorizing the work. Avoid testing a visibly damaged tape in a player just to discover what is recorded on it.
Prepare a simple inventory with a number for each tape, its label and any known event. Photograph the original labels, and use removable labels on cases rather than altering the cassette. When the work comes back, reconcile the inventory with the returned originals and outputs. Play samples near the beginning, middle and end of each recording, checking sound as well as picture, and keep the originals after making backups.
Let relatives put names and years to the recordings
Once conversion is finished, Memrial offers a separate private family archive for digital memories; it does not convert physical tapes and is not part of RTA's transfer service. Its free plan includes 2.0 GB of shared archive storage, with no card needed. Keep another backup of the converted files, then choose which videos and photos to add within that allowance.
Use Timeline to give a recording an exact or approximate date so it can be found by year. A relative may recognize the year of a reunion even when nobody remembers the day. Live Watch Parties synchronize an uploaded home video, with the host controlling play, pause and seek and relatives using voice or text chat nearby or far away. The free allowance is 3 hours per month with up to 6 participants.
For a new reunion, Event Memories provides a secure occasion contribution link. Contributors sign in but do not need archive membership; their photos and videos go into the event album. Closing the link keeps the collected memories. That lets a newly converted reunion recording sit alongside the next gathering's contributions, with family comments adding the names that tape labels often miss.