Help needed with damaged record.

[Dave West]

Some time ago I bought a copy of Constellations - I don’t know about you. I knew it had a heat warp causing needle wobble at the start but it played well with 1.5 weight. Yann took a look at it but apart from cleaning couldn’t do anymore. Dj’d with it many times without issue including earlier this month at Byron but now it’s jumping for the first half of the record even at 2.5 weight. Any suggestions on how to rectify this would be appreciated thanks. 

[Tlscapital]

If Yann V. couldn't do much about it there's little hope in trying to make it better at this point IMU. And it could even be a win-all or loose-all in the worse case so caution here... Now unless the record went under intense heat to make it worse lately I would guess that nothing changed about the record. Likely more a stylus, cartridge or tonearm/turntable change at play here IMO.

If you're patient you could have a pair of thick glass cut to size with a central circle cut to size for the label thickness not to mess up with the process and have the record in between those two sheet of glas layers pilled with some weight on top (plant pot) or what ever and forget about it at room temperature for 1 to 3 months and see if that gently improved the troubling some warp.

On the side the stylus, cartridge and tonearm equation is crucial to deal better or not with such 'problematic' records. There's no 'golden rule' about it. One warp is never another. Generally high compliant cartridge and fine line styluses will track better wide warps on lighter effective mass tonearms too. Then out of the ordinary geometry (tangentials and or linears tonearms) aim to cope much better with these issues too.

But these are not our dee-jay turntables. Short straight tonearms for scratchers aim to be played with low compliant cartridges with conical stylus (avoiding 'cue burn') with heavy VTF for strong tracking under 'Rock'N'Roll' conditions and sometimes these can deal better with some warps. Other times not. So against all misconceptions of the idealistic phono gear, the 'universal' better phono gear just doesn't exist. To each it's strong and weak points. 

[Dogsarse]

16 minutes ago, Tlscapital said:

If Yann V. couldn't do much about it there's little hope in trying to make it better at this point IMU. And it could even be a win-all or loose-all in the worse case so caution here... Now unless the record went under intense heat to make it worse lately I would guess that nothing changed about the record. Likely more a stylus, cartridge or tonearm/turntable change at play here IMO.

If you're patient you could have a pair of thick glass cut to size with a central circle cut to size for the label thickness not to mess up with the process and have the record in between those two sheet of glas layers pilled with some weight on top (plant pot) or what ever and forget about it at room temperature for 1 to 3 months and see if that gently improved the troubling some warp.

On the side the stylus, cartridge and tonearm equation is crucial to deal better or not with such 'problematic' records. There's no 'golden rule' about it. One warp is never another. Generally high compliant cartridge and fine line styluses will track better wide warps on lighter effective mass tonearms too. Then out of the ordinary geometry (tangentials and or linears tonearms) aim to cope much better with these issues too.

But these are not our dee-jay turntables. Short straight tonearms for scratchers aim to be played with low compliant cartridges with conical stylus (avoiding 'cue burn') with heavy VTF for strong tracking under 'Rock'N'Roll' conditions and sometimes these can deal better with some warps. Other times not. So against all misconceptions of the idealistic phono gear, the 'universal' better phono gear just doesn't exist. To each it's strong and weak points. 

Not really much you can once the vinyl has recieved a heat warp. Although having said that, i managed to flatten out a copy of the Manchester Playboys with an iron I kid you not!!

[Dogsarse]

6 minutes ago, Dogsarse said:

Not really much you can once the vinyl has recieved a heat warp. Although having said that, i managed to flatten out a copy of the Manchester Playboys with an iron I kid you not!!

Another method is to place the record between 2 panes of glass and put in the oven at at temp 79 degrees

[Tlscapital]

I've had many successful rescued warps with every and any kinds of techniques over the decades and few total disasters too. That 'as is' or even after 'fix' will play on a phono system and not on another. No definite rule about it.

[Vadnochka]

Had all sorts of results with different techniques mainly failures although did get a perfectly flat 21st Century - Shadow of a memory result after sticking it under 2 editions of John Manship's price guide and forgetting where it was for over a month -  only finding it when I went to check a price later - fluke I know but made it saleable as a minter.

[Woodbutcher]

1 hour ago, Dogsarse said:

Not really much you can once the vinyl has recieved a heat warp. Although having said that, i managed to flatten out a copy of the Manchester Playboys with an iron I kid you not!!

You should have turned the iron right up to the highest setting and finished it off ... 

[Dogsarse]

You mean with steam too!!

[Woodbutcher]

5 minutes ago, Dogsarse said:

You mean with steam too!!

And fire if required ... 

[Amsterdam Russ]

1 hour ago, Dogsarse said:

Not really much you can once the vinyl has recieved a heat warp. Although having said that, i managed to flatten out a copy of the Manchester Playboys with an iron I kid you not!!

I did the same some years back with an issue of The Imaginations ‘Strange neighborhood’. Damp tea towel over the vinyl and the iron on the lowest setting. It worked!

[Dogsarse]

2 minutes ago, Amsterdam Russ said:

I did the same some years back with an issue of The Imaginations ‘Strange neighborhood’. Damp tea towel over the vinyl and the iron on the lowest setting. It worked!

There you see Dogsarse was not born stupid.

[Kenb]

Yann did have a go at this one for me (1st pic)  without luck...and i had a few (equally as 'dished') that i have had sat between a couple of record boxes for 4 years ( i guess) and now nearly flat.

BUT...if you are DJ'ing with yours then i guess that is not a viable option.(unless you only gig once every 4 years )

[Dogsarse]

Last resort, try a vice!!

[Jessie Pinkman]

13 hours ago, Dogsarse said:

Last resort, try a vice!!

I did but my wife wasn't best pleased. boom boom

Edited June 28, 2023 by Jessie Pinkman

[Jessie Pinkman]

I've heard of someone in the Manchester area with the nickname Bob Kettle or something like that, who can work wonders with warped records. maybe somebody on here knows him. 

Personally I've tried the one on you tube were the guy heats up 2 toughened glass chopping boards in the oven on the lowest setting, remove them from the oven and then place your record in between with a weight on top and then leave it for about an hour or so to cool down. I left the record in it's sleeve to protect it. It worked the first time I did it but then I tried it again on another record and failed miserably. I got too cocky and tried it with too much heat all at once.

Only try as a last resort.

Edited June 28, 2023 by Jessie Pinkman