Ground in Dirt in 78's

[larryh]

Actually Shane I had a diamond disc that did exactly that. It just went to a very slow speed. I was going though a box of records that had mostly damaged ones and some were beyond any help. In fact most..

[B.B.B]

That would explain why two of my Zon-O-Phone records, slowed down the machine.

Me too have experienced this with Zonophone records. They sure are heavy.
A have a Professor Ranzato from 1905 on Zono that I like very much. When I want to play it, I'll have to go over to my neighbor & ask him to help me to place it on the turntable. Two full-grown men can do it, but it sure is hard work
There is significant difference compared to lets say a HMV or Victor batwing.

[Edisonfan]

Thank you Larry! I do have loud tone needles, so then it must be the records.

Paul

[Fredrik]

The fact that Victor had a wider groove than most other brands in the 1920s might perhaps explain a bit too if the needle is of a "thicker" type?

Fredrik

[bart1927]

One collector showed me another trick: he rubbed some Pledge (furniture polish) on the record. But I´m not going to do that.

I am by no means an expert, but I think I would be very hesitant to do this to any record—there have got to be better ways to clean them than furniture polish, especially since it would leave a residue on the record itself.

I’ve seen Pledge (linked to their site) used on enough furniture, and I think there are better products for that purpose, as well.

Does anyone have any better cleaning tips that Edisonfan (and other collectors) might take use?

— MordEth

Actually, the idea behind the Pledge was not to clean the surface, but to make it more smooth, so the stylus slides through the grooves more easily.

Some time ago I bought some records on Ebay, and when they arrived they were all oily. I mailed the seller and he told me he "cleaned" the records with oil. I still don't understand how oil is supposed to clean a record, especially if you leave it on the record. I had to give them a thourough cleaning myself, but there still is some sticky goo down in the grooves, because every time I play one of those records I have to remove some black buildup from my stylus.

[Edisonfan]

I figured distilled water and maybe some mild soap, would do the trick? I never thought, that the record would make a difference.

Paul

[mrphonograph]

i never encountered this problem on any european machine exept when the overstretched or if the record was so worn that you could hear the other side
its strange but most euro machines seem to grind through almost anything even the flimsy 1 spring motors from germany

maby its this, american motors are very complicated while most euro machines have very simple motors also the gears are thinner on the euro machines
the hmv co had simular motors to the victor co yet i never encountered a slowdown on them
i do find that large long mainsprings overstretch easely many of the large hmv's i repaired springs had to be replaced

or maby im extremly lucky


tino

[Nat]

I have been experimenting this winter with a fluorocarbon spray by Toko (HelX), the ski wax manufacturer. Results leave me to believe that this has made the records a bit quieter, reduced needle drag, and - I hope - ensured a longer life. it also makes them very shiny.

I spray on the liquid very quickly - perhaps a second or two seconds. This needs to sit overnight, if possible. I then polish and spread the resulting film by playing several times with a fiber needle. After about three plays, I brush, to remove excess material, and then play with a steel needle. I'm convinced this has improved things, but alas! HelX is e3xpensive, so this particular application will have to be reserved for special records.

Next: experimenting with solid fluoro application.

Explanation: my working career with in the ski business, and I helped pioneer fluorocarbon application methods, so both Toko and the materials are things I am familiar wtih.

[VintageTechnologies]

I think record weight alone has very little affect on machines slowing down. It is the friction, due to a number of causes, that bogs the motor down. Dirt, record wear, hardness of the shellac material, and the degree of groove modulation all have some some effect. I notice that electric records drag down a weak motor more often than acoustic records. A reproducer with fresh gaskets should comply better with the grooves and thus reduce friction.