I would imagine that if you could get some kind of a spot heater and heat the disc at some optimum distance ahead of the recording stylus, it might be able to soften the disc enough to be useful. Interesting, and I'd forgotten it, but in the later days of disc recording, they did use a heated cutting stylus, and most have gotten a very clean and quiet cut.
> [Original Message] > From: Steven Medved <[email protected]> > To: Antique Phonograph List <[email protected]> > Date: 12/3/2006 2:34:51 PM > Subject: RE: [Phono-L] Glass recording discs and home recording systems > > Doug,On the Victor pre-grooved discs could you use heat by placing a lightbulb above the spinning record to soften it? Steve> > Now, on the Victor pre-grooved discs. The system did work, as long as the> plastic disc was soft enough for the recording stylus to re-shape the top> of thr grooves. I've bought several packs of recording styli off of eBay> and at rather reasonable prices. I have several of the early RCA sxets with> the home recording, including an RE-57. Today, the discs have hardened> enough that, while you will get a take on the disc, the modulation will be> faint. Acouple of years ago, I did a quickie off the air on an RCA 381> (1935), and it does play back, but not enough to crack the plaster. My> equipment consist of a few W-G Recordios, and a Presto K8. I have plenty> recording blanks, but again, the acetate has hardened to the point that a> cut is very noisy.......screechy. When I used to buy new blanks in the> fifties, as a kid, the test of freshness was if your fingernail could make> a little dent in the acetate. > > Another thing to think about is whether your recorder (a cutter) has a> crystal cutter head or magnetic. Most home recorders of the forties had> Astatic X26 crystal heads, and they're all dead today. There is a guy in> Canada who rebuilds cryatal pickups, and I believe, crystal cutters. The> Wilcox-Gay and other recorders had crystal cutters on them. > > > > [Original Message]> > From: Andrew Baron <[email protected]>> > To: Antique Phonograph List <[email protected]>> > Date: 12/2/2006 11:05:00 PM> > Subject: [Phono-L] Glass recording discs and home recording systems> >> > I have a bunch of the acetate-surfaced 12" glass recording discs, > > NOS, still in their original wood crate, ca. WWII. They're > > interesting in that you can hold one up to the sun or other strong > > illumination and see right through the disc. The light shining > > through the acetate layers and glass appears as a deep, dark blue- > > gray. The recording surfaces are a perfect mirror-- I'd say smoother > > than the Wilcox-Gay or other home or commercial recording discs or > > acetate transcriptions I've seen. A couple of these have the acetate > > unbonded in great flakes, revealing the clear(er) glass core, but > > most are perfect. Some day I'll see how well they record on the > > Recordio, in relation to their aluminum-cored brethren.> >> > Home recording has interested me, in its various evolutions from > > Edison cylinders to the commercially unsuccessful RCA Victor pre- > > grooved discs of the early thirties to the more successful acetate > > coated disc systems of the late thirties to early fifties. I've > > accumulated all the apparatus to record on these various systems; > > machines, cutting styli, blanks, etc. Have done some experimentation > > with the cylinders and the acetates. I've played around a bit with > > the wire recorders (what a pain that system was! -- Very crude > > arrangement of friction bands and spring tension to regulate speed, > > etc.), but haven't yet attempted recording on the pre-grooved Victor > > system of 1930-31. Those blanks and cutting & playback needles are a > > bit harder to find. I also need to do a full electronic restoration > > on the RE-57 before I can get my feet wet on that system, but it > > intrigues me nonetheless.> >> > Are there any on this list who have experimented with these systems?> >> > Andy Baron> >> >> > On Dec 2, 2006, at 6:49 PM, estott wrote:> > > ----- Original Message ----- From: "Walt Sommers" > > > <[email protected]>> > > To: "'Antique Phonograph List'" <[email protected]>> > > Sent: Saturday, December 02, 2006 7:21 PM> > > Subject: RE: [Phono-L] Glass record> > >> > > Sorry if I'm wrong, but it sounds like you might not be aware that > > > recording and transcription discs were made on glass cores during > > > the war, to save on aluminium. Given an acetate coating the glass > > > blanks functioned just as well as the metal cored ones but they > > > were heavier, thicker, and of course they broke.> > >> > > Now, in reality the government had plenty of aluminum in stock, but > > > attention to scrimping and saving was good for morale and kept > > > people's minds occupied.> > >> > > Eric Stott> >> > _______________________________________________> > Phono-L mailing list> > [email protected]> >> > Phono-L Archive> > http://phono-l.oldcrank.org/archive/> >> > Support Phono-L> > http://www.cafepress.com/oldcrank> > > > _______________________________________________> Phono-L mailing list> [email protected]> > Phono-L Archive> http://phono-l.oldcrank.org/archive/> > Support Phono-L> http://www.cafepress.com/oldcrank___________________________________________ ____ > Phono-L mailing list > [email protected] > > Phono-L Archive > http://phono-l.oldcrank.org/archive/ > > Support Phono-L > http://www.cafepress.com/oldcrank
