Dictation blanks, Why not to record on them.

[edisonphonoworks]

Many have used for years used Ediphone and other dictation machine blanks, shortening them and using them to record on. I agree a freshly shaved dictation machine blank does make recordings of very good quality , and very low surface noise... but for how long. Illinois has weather of extreme cold and hot, and high humidity in the summer, so it is a very good testing ground for wax cylinders. By May you will know how your formula is, in just a week or 2 if it will self destruct or not. Dictation machine blanks really are put to the test. As someone who actually makes recording compounds from scratch, I can tell you some chemical problems with the blanks. Ediphone blanks contain 2 potential shortcomings, Sterine Pitch and paraffin wax. Some are going to say, The formula for them does not exist anymore! I do have a typed memo on how the wax is made and how it is to be processed to make blanks, it is from 1943 written by Edison employee J.W. Nell for the manufacture of Ediphone blanks. (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edison_Records) for the complete formula and process. The culprit is that paraffin of which an Ediphone blank contains 19.5% has oil in it, Ediphone cylinders use Standard Oil Company paraffin. The sterine pitch is a tar like substance, black although it has a low melting point of around 104 degrees F (about the lowest melting point of any cylinder additive), and contains olaic acid. The stearic is double pressed bovine kind, that in itself is not that much of a problem as most cylinder records use bovine based double pressed stearic,and when cooked properly will yield the best blanks of historical accuracy, but it does contain it's own amount of olaic acid, compounded the addition of the sterine pitch raises it to unacceptable levels for an archival blanks, 2 or 3 % is acceptable in most cylinders and will not cause that much trouble, but over this (Ediphones about 6%+ so olate of soda is formed in the cylinder compound. The nice thing, is that Edison blanks do not contain lead, but are aluminum based. Other brands of dictation blanks are a hit and miss some are aluminum based, some may contain red and white lead oxide of stearic acid. Lead oxide forms on the top of the blanks. This may be more of a real problem in off brand blanks than the potential for asbestos in blue amberols. It probably is not much of a problem for those who shave a few of them here and there, but for a recording addict, shaving lots of lead based waxes can't be none to good for you, and the wax does get everywhere, even with the vacuum fan system that some shavers have, but what when you empty that full bag of Dictaphone brand white lead based or Standard brand red lead oxide based blanks. Just something to consider. These original blanks there is only so many of them that will ever exist, someday the Dictaphone and Ediphone machines will be collectable but what when there is so few of the blanks left?