DragonDiscs - Vinyl Collectors Guide, Menu

Care and Protection of Vinyl

Storing and Protecting your Collection - General guidelines.
General Care of Records - Handling, Playing and additional General guidelines.
Cleaning Vinyl Records - with variations for Shellac, Acetates and Vulcanite.
Care of LP's, 45's and Other Vinyl Records - alternative cleaning method from a collector.
Care and Repair of 78's - covering Shellac, Acetates and Edison Diamond Discs.

Grading Your Vinyl

The Goldmine Grading System - Comprehensive guide to grading vinyl and covers..

Abbreviations

Abbreviations - list of abbreviations found in Sale/Wanted/Label/Discography listings.

Storing and Protecting Your Collection

The following article is an extract from 'The Care and Handling of Recorded Sound Materials' by Gilles St-Laurent of the Music Division of the National Library of Canada.

The full document (incl. the extract reproduced here under 'Cleaning') can be viewed at : National Library of Canada, but be warned, it is quite in depth and scientific in it's content.

A proper environment for the storage of sound recording is essential to retard degradation mechanisms. Elevated temperature and humidity can affect certain chemical properties of the plastics that make up recording media and can also create an environment that encourages the growth of fungus. Wide or rapid fluctuations of the environment are equally detrimental to the long term preservation of sound artifacts.

Acetate discs

Shrinkage of the lacquer coating due to the loss of plasticizer is the primary destructive force of these discs. Excess moisture will accelerate plasticizer loss. Acetate discs decompose continuously, and over time react with water vapour or oxygen to produce acids that in turn act as catalysts for several other chemical reactions. One of these is the release of palmitic acid, a white waxy substance. Acetate discs are very susceptible to fungus growth. Excess heat will probably accelerate the loss of the coating adhesion.

Vulcanite discs

Vulcanite discs are adversely affected by elevated levels of light, heat and humidity. In response to light and heat, Vulcanite loses sulfur. Light induces oxidation and form oxides of sulfur and sulfuric acid in the presence of humidity. The acidity builds up to a level at which the degrading material is attacked and eventually decomposed.15

Shellac discs

High humidity levels accelerate the embrittlement of shellac discs. This embrittlement causes a fine powder to be shed from the disc after each playback, effectively scraping away groove information. The severity of the embrittlement is unpredictable, due to the wide combinations and variety of materials (and of material quality) that were used during their production. The average shellac content in a shellac disc is approximately 15 % with the remaining 85% composed of aggregates. Organic materials in the aggregates are susceptible to fungus attack, while shellac itself is said to be fungus-resistant.

Vinyl discs

Vinyl discs are adversely affected by ultraviolet light and thermal cycling (heat fluctuation). The consequence of thermal cycling is that each cycle of temperature results in a small irreversible deformation, and these deformations are cumulative. Vinyl discs are resistant to fungal growth and are unaffected by high humidity levels.

Proper storage environment

Store recordings at a maintained temperature of between no more than 15-20蚓. Fluctuation of temperature should not vary more than 2蚓 in a 24-hour period.
Maintain a relative humidity of 25-45%. Fluctuation of relative humidity should not vary more than 5% in a 24-hour period.17
Maintain proper ventilation and air circulation of stacks at all times to avoid any micro climates.
Keep sound recordings in dark storage when not being consulted. Fit light fixtures with fluorescent tubes which do not produce ultraviolet radiation in excess of 75 硬/lm (microwatts per lumen).

General Care for Records

It is equally important to handle, store and play records with the same care used in cleaning. Once a record has been thoroughly cleaned, it should be placed in a new, clean inner sleeve. It doesn't make much sense to put dirty socks on freshly cleaned feet, right? Inner sleeves come in different styles and are made with different materials.
There are many opinions to which sleeve is best... I prefer quality made, paper sleeves. I have experienced no damage or problems with these sleeves, when handled properly. I prefer to keep the sleeved record in the original cover jacket along with the original sleeve and any inserts. Some prefer to put the record in a plain jacket and store it and the original jacket together in a outer poly sleeve. This helps prevent further wear to the cover, inner sleeve and other inserts. In either case, use outer poly sleeves to reduce cover wear and dust.
Always store records vertically, leaning as little as possible. It is best to store records in a cool, dry area. Avoid any source of heat such as direct sunlight, heaters, fireplace, etc. and moist or humid areas. Warmth and humidity are ideal conditions for mold, mildew and other fungi which can infest the cover, label and inside the grooves.
When handling and playing records, hold the disk by the outer edge and label. Eliminate contact with the playing surface. Always replace disk in it's sleeve and cover immediately after play. Ensure that your playback equipment is set and adjusted correctly and that the stylus is not worn... Extreme damage can result.

Ken's Music Library #0307

May be freely distributed... Please advise of any additions or corrections... vinylville@door.net

Cleaning Vinyl Records

The following article is an extract from 'The Care and Handling of Recorded Sound Materials' by Gilles St-Laurent of the Music Division of the National Library of Canada.

The full document (incl. the extract reproduced here under 'Storing and Protecting') can be viewed at : National Library of Canada , but be warned, it is quite in depth and scientific in it's content.

PRESERVATION OF SOUND RECORDINGS

A good definition of preservation put forward by the International Institute for Conservation--Canadian Group and the Canadian Association of Professional Conservators is that preservation encompasses "all actions taken to retard deterioration of, or to prevent damage to, cultural property. Preservation involves controlling the environment and conditions of use, and may include treatment in order to maintain a cultural property, as nearly as possible, in an unchanging state."

There are essentially only three concerns to consider when handling and storing sound recordings:

that they be kept free of any foreign matter deposits;
that they be kept free of any pressure that might cause deformations; and
that they be stored in a stable, controlled environment.

FOREIGN MATTER DEPOSITS

General

Dirt can be classified into two categories:

(1) Foreign matter deposits which are not part of the original object, such as grease from fingerprints, soot, stains, adhesives, etc. and

(2) alterations of original object material through chemical reactions (whether internal reactions or reactions with environmental agents). Metal corrosion products, palmitic acid from acetate discs, or a gummy substance on tapes are examples of alteration in the state of the original.

Dust is commonly a mixture of fragments of human skin, minute particles of mineral or plant material, textile fibres, industrial smoke, grease from fingerprints, and other organic and inorganic materials. There are often salts such as sodium chloride (carried in from sea spray or on skin fragments), and sharp gritty silica crystals. In this chemical mixture are the spore of countless moulds, fungi and micro-organisms which live on the organic material in the dust (fingerprints, for example, serve as good culture media). Much of the dirt is hygroscopic (water-attracting) and this tendency can encourage the growth of moulds, as well as increase the corrosiveness of salts, hydrolysis and the release of acids.

Dust (including fingerprints) will negatively affect sound recording preservation in a number of ways:

Discs

Dust is abrasive, and combined with the pressure exerted on the groove walls by the stylus, can permanently etch the walls worse, dust can also be imbedded permanently into thermoplastic substances. Only a small point of the stylus is actually making contact with the groove walls. One and a half grams of stylus pressure on such a minute surface translates to several tons of pressure per square inch. The resulting drag generates enough heat that the plastic partially melts (though not enough to deform), causing a microscopic flow around the stylus into which dust can be embedded permanently.

To minimize foreign matter deposits

General

Never touch the surface of a recording. Use clean, white lintless cotton gloves and handle by the edges.
Recordings should not, unnecessarily, be left exposed to open air. Return items to their containers when not in use and never leave storage containers open.
Do not place recordings near sources of dust including paper or cardboard dust.
Keep the surrounding area clean. Do not consume food or beverages in the area in which recordings are handled.
Keep storage facilities as clean and dust-free as possible.
The air conditioning system should be equipped with dust filtering equipment.
Keep labelling to a minimum, but limit the placement of labels, especially pressure sensitive labels, to the container using conservation ink.
Keep equipment clean, well adjusted and in good working condition.

Grooved discs

Do not use paper or cardboard inner sleeves and do not store records without inner sleeves.
Use soft polyethylene inner sleeves. Do not use record sleeves made of PVC.
Remove grooved discs from the jacket (with the inner sleeve) by bowing the jacket open by holding it against the body and applying a slight pressure with a hand. Pull the disc out by holding a corner of the inner sleeve. Avoid pressing down onto the disc with the fingers as any dust caught between the sleeve and the disc will be pressed into the grooves.
Remove grooved discs from the inner sleeve by bowing the inner sleeve and letting it slip gradually into an open hand so that the edge falls on the inside of the thumb knuckle. The middle finger should reach for the centre label. Never reach into the sleeve.
To hold a disc, place the thumb on the edge of the disc, and the rest of the fingers of the same hand on the centre label for balance. Use both hands on the edge to place disc on turntable.

Cleaning

Since dust is usually held in place by electrostatic attraction, dry wiping on its own does not work effectively. The added friction created by the duster will cause the dust to jump back to the charged surface.

Distilled water is used for cleaning records and CDs for many reasons. Its precise chemical makeup is known, it will not leave any residue behind, is safe to use, and is inexpensive. Water disperses static charges and counteracts the increase in conductivity from the pick-up of salt deposits from finger prints. However, water alone cannot dissolve grease, thus surfactants are used as additives to enable water to be a grease solvent. Surfactants break grease surface bonds and allow water to penetrate grease solids, causing swelling and then random dispersion.

General

The Canadian Conservation Institute (CCI) recommends the use of nonionic, ethelyne oxide condensates surfactants to clean sound recordings. The CCI does not foresee long-term problems associated with the use of nonionic surfactants such as Tergitol. Tergitol 15-S-3 is an oil soluble surfactant and 15-S-9 is a water soluble surfactant. Combined they remove a wide range of dirt and greases and can safely be used on sound recordings. Use 0.25 part of Tergitol 15-S-3 and 0.25 parts of Tergitol 15-S-9 per 100 parts of distilled water. (These products are available in small quantities from TALAS (Division of Technical Library Service Inc) 213 West 35th Street, New York, N.Y. (212) 465-8722.) The recording must then be rinsed thoroughly with distilled water to eliminate any trace of detergent residue. Keep an airgun handy to blow off light surface dust.

Grooved discs

Grooved discs are best cleaned using a record cleaning machine such as the Keith Monks, VPI, Nitty Gritty using 0.25 part of Tergitol 15-S-3 and 0.25 parts of Tergitol 15-S-9 per 100 parts of distilled water. These machines allow for an even dispersion of fluid and can then vacuum the liquid leaving a clean, dry surface. The discs must then be rinsed thoroughly with distilled water and vacuumed dry to eliminate any trace of detergent residue. Records should be cleaned before each playback.

Clean Vulcanite discs showing signs of acid build up using 0.25 part of Tergitol 15-S-3 and 0.25 parts of Tergitol 15-S-9 per 100 parts of distilled water and rinse thoroughly.

Clean acetate discs showing signs of palmitic acid deposits (white greasy substance on acetate disc surface) as if cleaning LPs, except add 1 part ammonia per 100 to the Tergitol cleaning solution. Do not use ammonia on shellac based discs.

SURFACE DEFORMATIONS

Since the surface of a sound recording is the information carrier, it is critical that the surface be well cared for. Physical deformations such as warping of discs, stretching of tape or shock from dropping them, will directly affect sound information integrity. One must develop a respect for the integrity of the artifact.

To minimize deformations

General

Never leave recordings near sources of heat or light (especially ultraviolet light) as plastics are adversely affected by both.
Do not place heavy objects on top of recordings. Recordings should never be placed on top of each other.
Shelve recordings vertically; do not stack "off vertical" or horizontally.
Do not use shelving units where supports put more pressure on one area of the recording or where supports are more than four to six inches apart.
Do not interfile recordings of different sizes as smaller items may get lost or damaged, while larger items may be subjected to uneven pressure.

Discs

Remove shrink-wrap on LPs completely. Shrink-wrap can continue to shrink, thus warping the disc.

Care of LP's, 45's and other Vinyl Records

Most LPs and singles released after the early fifties are composed of polyvinyl materials and are more durable than it's predecessors. When cleaning vinyl records, I recommend a 50/50 solution of isopropyl alcohol or denatured alcohol (fewer impurities) and filtered or distilled water (again, fewer impurities). A few claim that alcohol is damaging to vinyl... 70% or more by volume strength and continual contact for a long period of time, maybe... but not in the recommended dilution. Alcohol is water soluble and leaves little or no residue. A mild detergent, such as Johnson and Johnson Baby Bath, can be used in small amounts with water with no rinsing necessary. Photo Flo is a wetting agent used in photography to help reduce water spots and marks during the rinsing of negatives. A couple of drops in the above solutions also help in reducing residual deposits.

The solution should be applied with a soft, clean washcloth, wiping in a circular motion with the grooves. Rinse the cloth often in the solution and replace with a fresh mixture when needed. I recommend thoroughly drying the record with a soft, clean towel... this further reduces residue left behind. Try not to get the labels wet.

Dirty covers and labels are best left alone. If the cover is laminated or glossy, a damp towel can be used... A mild furniture polish does nicely too. Marks or writing on the cover may be able to be removed with a rubber eraser. Permanent marker can be removed by marking over it with a dry erase marker, then wipe with a dry cloth... It really works! Sticker residue can be removed with most citrus-based cleaners or lighter fluid. Again, I stress that these only work well on glossy covers. Matte finish cover and label marks are usually set. You stand a chance of removing part of the print or color and making the situation worse.

Ken's Music Library #0308

May be freely distributed... Please advise of any additions or corrections... vinylville@door.net

Repair And Care For 78s

78 Repair

Un-warping
Place the record between two sheets of plate glass (or any completely flat surface of moderate weight.) DO NOT place any additional weight, add heat, place them in the sun, etc. Putting additional weight on the record will cause the peaks between the grooves to flatten out somewhat, causing distortion during playback, and heat can cause the shellac to soften considerably, causing all kinds of problems. I'm of the "less is more" school on dewarping; unless a record is unplayable, I don't worry about it.

Cracks
Prevent incipient cracks from spreading by fusing the edge of the recording where the crack starts with a match. Scotch taping the edge with several tight layers also helps. Playback of cracked records can be aided by slightly elevating the part of the crack the needle travels over first with a piece of paper placed along the rim of the record. Move the paper(s) along the edge until an optimal sound is achieved.

Cleaning

Records - Shellac
Fill a large bowl with barely warm water and add a mild detergent such as Ivory. Leave the faucet running slowly. Wet a wash cloth and the record's playing surface with this solution, very gently wiping the surface with the cloth in the direction of the grooves. Let the solution run along the grooves in an effort to loosen dirt, grime, and wash away any iron filings. Rinse the record under the slowing running warm-water tap, then gently pad the record dry with a dry towel. Let the record stand overnight to dry completely - Mold spots or worse will occur if they are placed in your collection damp. Do not let the label come in direct contact with water or the solution. Some people swear that a mixture of 25% Windex and 75% water will remove even more grime and oil. Other commonly used solutions involve Kodak Photo-flo diluted with distilled water. Apply it with a towel, an old LP "thousand bristle" brush, or a soft velvet applicator (after the Ivory treatment) and rinse again. Photo-Flo is intended to prevent water spots from forming on film as it dries. It is not intended to be a cleaner, however its detergent-like properties for breaking down the surface tension of water do make it effective as a mild cleaner in some cases and may help the record dry safer without rinsing as rinsing may leave behind whatever contaminants the water may contain.

Records - Edison Diamond Discs
As the record jacket suggests, do not use water, but an alcohol solution.

Records - Acetates (Recordio, etc.)
These can be degreased with an organic solvent with minimal effects on the acetate or nitrate surfaces. Unfortunately, cellulose acetate and nitrate can be dissolved by the wrong organic solvent. Mineral spirits would degrease and might be safe, except that they may leave their own residue. If there is any separation of acetate from base, water is dangerous and maybe other solvents which can get between the layers by capillary action and further separate them. Lighter fluid has been used effectively. Others have mentioned this procedure: 1) Apply mineral oil to entire surface with a soft cloth. 2) Squirt on some Photoflow and Ivory soap. 3) Lather. 4) Rinse. 5) Dry with a Monks machine or use a soft cloth and allow to air dry.

A few NEVERs

Never play your 78s wet!
Never use water on Edison Diamond Discs, Acetates, Hit of the Week, or any other odd-material records.
Many record cleaning solutions intended for LPs contain alcohol and will destroy shellac 78s. Discwasher D4 fluid is safe, however.

Labels
Keep the label dry! Never wet a label unless it is so soiled that other methods won't remove the dirt. Many labels will "bubble" if dampened, particularly Victor, Emerson, Paramount, and other glossy types. For some collectors, this can degrade the record's value.
Try cleaning dusty labels with a dry sable brush. Dirtier labels can be cleaned by buffing gently with a soft towel or piece of corduroy. A kneaded artists eraser (available at any art supply store) is also a safe way to remove dirt or stains without dampening. If you must use water, apply it very sparingly with a slightly moistened towel and dry immediately.

Playback Tips

General
Even with a new needle and a properly rebuilt, compliant reproducer, a certain amount of damage is unavoidable. I always discourage people from playing truly rare records on vintage equipment; we owe it to posterity to be good custodians of these treasures! Take it from someone who knows what it means to trash a $1,000 record. Make sure your tonearm is properly weighted and tracking is easy. As the record jacket says, "Permanent needles do permanent damage!" Change your needles every time if you have steel, bamboo, tungs-tone, etc. needles. Even diamond needles need replacing more often than people think (and sapphire much more often.) Different manufactures during different time-periods used different sized grooves - use the one that fits. Speaking of which, truncated elliptical styli play the mostly-undisturbed sound recorded on a higher spot on the groove wall, which is where the sound was recorded on a mono, lateral record. They also tend not to skate on the bottom of the groove where no sound (except hiss) resides. The opposite is, of course, true for vertical-cut records.

Disc Slips
Try double-stick tape, the kind with an adhesive on both sides. Look for one that is re-usable in hopes that it sticks well but can be easily removed without damaging the record. Try Scotch Removable Poster tape or even DAP "Fun-Tak Reusable Adhesive," (Blue-Tac in UK) which is a putty-like substance, easy to remove, but sticks well enough for the purpose of flattening out a flexible phono record. Need a more rigid surface to stick the record to? Consider sticking it to a rigid record, although there are drawbacks to this as you might imagine.

Author unknown...

Ken's Music Library #0306

May be freely distributed... Please advise of any additions or corrections... vinylville@door.net