The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Over the years I've thrown out many broken wax cylinders. I've got a new batch from our latest sorting task, and I wonder if there is anyone recycling the wax. I've also got a bunch of intact wax cylinders which are extremely noisy due to mold or other damage. Is anyone shaving an re-recording those moldy oldies?

Pam sent.

Rich Gordon

Despite mold or damage, early brown wax can me saved for posterity. Ways of extracting the recordings continue to evolve. For broken black wax or gold molded cylinders, a small amount of melted material is used by some to patch bad needle drops on disc records.

I have not found any use for Amberol Wax. Brown wax especially not moldy, Should be put together, and transcribed, whatever is left of audio. You Can't fix a cylinder with cylinder wax, cylinder waxes have a shrink rate, when they cool, if you fix a cylinder with cylinder wax, the wax shrinks away from the repair. Use dental wax for the repair. The metallic soap compound has a rate between 1-3% depending on the kind of stearic acid use, and how much aluminum is added. (we who make cylinders use this to make moulds and how Gold Moulded records were made, the material as it cools shrinks allowing the casting to be removed from the mold.