The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

This has got to be one of the more idiotic reasons to destroy 78 records... coasters???
This Past-Times place apparently has mass destruction planned since they printed up boxes for them...

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/193885879357 ... SwK61gIqTb

I’ve thought about doing this with some of my already broken records…. But I’d never do this to a nonbroken one

David

Fortunately they seem to have gone out of business...

If they were doing this using perfectly good or even passable records then yeah, that super sucks. But right now I can tell you that I've got 60 of these on my coffee table that I spent the weekend making. Any records that I can't superglue or fix with epoxy (big chips that have wrecked grooves, cracks that won't meet up, etc) go into a pile and, as I just can't bring myself to throw them away, it's a great way of at least saving the label. I even have themes: Christmas records for the holidays, patriotic tunes for US holidays, Victor black labels when I'm feelin' Victor black, and Victor red labels when I'm feelin' Victor red.

I may even start selling some for folks who would like them but don't want to put that kind of work in. My coasters will all have a disclaimer like "No Playable Records Were Harmed During The Making Of These Coasters" or maybe even "If You Even THINK Of Putting A Drink On My Phonograph You Will At Least Die Less If You Use One Of These".

I don't think I'd want to use coasters with a drain hole in the middle.
I suppose they'd be ok for coffee cups, but for cold drinks it kind of defeats the purpose.

gramophoneshane wrote: Mon Aug 02, 2021 1:56 am I don't think I'd want to use coasters with a drain hole in the middle.
I suppose they'd be ok for coffee cups, but for cold drinks it kind of defeats the purpose.

This!

Personally it doesn't bother me what other people do with their records. You have to ask yourself how did they get those records in the first place and why?

I've seen literally tens of thousands of 78s being thrown in skips over the years. I have a few hundred I will probably do that with too. They're not rare or of any particular value. If I wanted tacky coasters and I could be bothered to make them I would do something similar but luckily I don't and I can't!

As Shane said they're a dumb idea anyway as they defeat their purpose with cold drinks.

gramophoneshane wrote: Mon Aug 02, 2021 1:56 am I don't think I'd want to use coasters with a drain hole in the middle.
I suppose they'd be ok for coffee cups, but for cold drinks it kind of defeats the purpose.

Once I bought records from a guy that threw in the box as freebees (or frisbees?) some label coasters like these, but the holes had been filled with resin. These with holes, as Shane says and title of thread suggests, are a dumb idea. And as the seller went under, apparently the market for these things is not booming.

If, like most collectors, you come across records that are badly scatched, cracked or chipped, then why not turn them into something useful, rather than sending them to landfill? Personally, I couldn't be bothered, but have, in the past, given hundreds to a young chap who was turning tham into fruit bowls and yes, coasters. He backed them with felt, and filled the holes with something, and did well selling them at boot fairs. I admired his enterprising spirit, and will gladly give him another load when he needs them.

Barry

No problem with trashed records or Harry Lauder's, but I'm waiting for the day when I see a Black Patti coaster on Etsy or eBay... The main problem is that the crafters and upcyclers don't have a clue when it comes to identifying a really good record.

The records you originally posted were re-issue Brunswick Bing Crosby and that seemed to generate a pretty emotional response...

I have records I certainly hated turning into coasters, but the alternative was to throw them in the bin. Murphy's Law, you get a whole bunch
of records for free in a lot and as you're thumbing through them it's always the Mitch Miller Columbia red labels that are in perfect shape but
that one Billie Holiday record not only has a chunk taken AND some kid long ago carved their name through the grooves that remain...