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Awww, why hate on Harry?

I generally store my albums like they were books (upright on edge rather than flat) and I open then by placing them edgewise on a table or the floor with the sleeves fanned out. That way the records are not in the crease with a chance of breaking. So far this has worked for me. I generally never lay the albums flat to page through the records.

There is an old thread about this same topic.

gramophone-georg wrote:Awww, why hate on Harry?

I think his red label Columbia discs have the ability to self-propagate.

Let's hear it for Harry James' The Music Makers, 2 O'Clock Jump, and Flight of the Bumblebee! Great records!

Beware the albums with the green "manilla" sleeves - these sleeves are especially brittle and crumbly, and you will often find the bottoms are worn-through.

When I was not familiar with them, I had more than one occasion of pulling a folder from a machine, and having a record drop through the bottom of the sleeve and go crashing to the floor.

Now I keep a hand under the album as it comes-out from the machine (regardless of sleeve material).




I prefer set the folder vertically on the floor or table, and open 45*-60*...

If I am sitting, I will let the spine of the album drop a bit between my thighs, the book opening-up to between 45 & 60*, and carefully "leaf thorugh", like a print book, "helping" the sleeves along grommets / straps as needed.


If you come across the early VTLA "box albums", you pretty-much have to lay these flt on their backs, and pull the discs out from their slot. Due to the "enclosed spine", you cannot really "flip through the records" as with the later albums.


Outfitting each album / box with am current index sheet can help save on "flipping & cracking".

Adding a bit to the foregoing, I store most of my records in albums (mostly 10- or 12-sleeve; I think I have only two or three of these 17-sleeve monsters). Besides orienting the album to encourage records to leave the hinge area, when paging through them, I stop to roll each record individually to the outside edge of the sleeve before turning the page.