If it were my problem I would cement them to a sheet of aluminum with whatever would hold them down flat. The celluloid has shrunk and pulled the backing in the most flexible direction. look for some junk metal masters On Mon, 26 Feb 2007 13:04:56 -0600, Robert Wright wrote: >Here's a question for the group: I just received a pretty large group of >Durium Hit of the Week records, the majority of which are an easy 9 out of >10 condition (I'm not sure they weren't store stock, actually), and 7 of >them are the rather desirable 'long play' versions with more than 5 full >minutes recording time, often divvied up between two songs. They sound >GREAT. I'd put the fidelity of these records up against anything released >in the first electrical recording era, including Viva-Tonals, late Z-shellac >VE discs, radio transcriptions, pretty much anything up to about 1950. When >you mono the signal from a modern turntable, the cardboard rumble (common to >picture discs as well) goes away pretty much completely. I don't see why >more people aren't more passionate about these great records, even if the >artists (Phil Spitalny, Rudy Vallee, Sam Lanin, et. al.) aren't exactly >trailblazers, as they're fabulous examples of what recording technology was >capable of in the 30's, and the arrangements are generally very difficult, >musically speaking, and quite engaging to listen to. >Anyway, the problem with them is that they have curved. I'm not talking the >typical HOTW 120 degree curve (if 180 degrees is 'flat'), I mean these >things are almost cylinders. And they're in otherwise pristine condition. >It's nearly impossible to get them on the turntable and even then, only the >inside half is playable (and I have a variety of transcription turntables >for archiving and audio restoration, so it's not a "put a nickel on the >headshell" kinda problem). >So my question is this: does anyone know of a safe, reliable way to get >these to flatten out? I've considered steam and weight, but the heat might >melt the thin (I assume) cellulose layer and reduce the treble extension in >the recordings, and I absolutely do not want that to happen (the top end is >a big part of the appeal of these discs for me). The guy I bought them from >said they'd been stored for years pressed flat between 12" 78's but nothing >seems to have helped. Any ideas? >Thanks in advance, >Robert >_______________________________________________ >Phono-L mailing list >http://phono-l.oldcrank.org