Gotta warp, these members can help. [Vinyl Flat]

DownIsTheNewUp said:
So... after leaving my records alone for basically 2 years-- though a couple of hot summers with just a window AC-- and making sure they were perfectly vertical but not too tightly packed... a bunch of my very minor warps have self corrected. Thanks to everyone here who played a role in the advice giving years ago.

I'm in the overly long process of safely packing up 400-500 records for my move from LA to Chicago and have been checking each record for warps along the way. I'm in a better financial place than a couple years ago and so will likely invest in a vacuum cleaner and a proper record clamp once there. (Any recommendations for a Rega Planar 2 table?).

Side note-- leaving the Alabama Shakes alone in the Flat for several weeks did indeed work without any damage. Will probably eventually repeat that tactic on my OG License to Ill that is warped as fuck as well as the couple of colored records that are still in a bad place.

Meanwhile, I just pulled the Vinyl Flat / oven pouch back out after several years of storage and am about to stick Danny Brown's last record in it. We shall see what happens.
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Good luck on the move, are you moving to Chicago, Chicago, or one of the subs?
 
AnthonyI said:
Good luck on the move, are you moving to Chicago, Chicago, or one of the subs?
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Thank you.

And Chicago, Chicago though work will take me up to various parts of the burbs often... Looking to rent around Logan Square initially and then to eventually buy elsewhere once I'm confident I'm comfortable there and have a better feel for the city.
 
It'd been so long since I've used the Vinyl Flat that I had the outlet timer turned to [stay] on instead of a timer. Cooked the Danny album for 2.5 hours before noticing. Hopefully I caught it on time.

But as for the real reason I'm posting again...

While packing my records tonight, I came across the most warped record in my collection. A copy of LA electronic artist Sofi Tucker's first LP. My buddy won an autographed copy of the small batch run from NPR and gifted it to me. Only thing is that he doesn't collect and, thus, had no idea that throwing it onto his modem for a couple weeks while I found time to get down to the OC was a terrible idea 😂.

Should I bother an attempting a Flattening considering it's now fetch well over $100 on discogs (not signed) or is the risk to my needle even after a strong bake.
 

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Hey I saw this post on Reddit--



Do you all agree that going over 131 F is too high? Because my pouch definitely hits 136 or so on low. I'm wondering if that's why I have yet to have a flawless flatten within the pouch.
 
DownIsTheNewUp said:
Hey I saw this post on Reddit--



Do you all agree that going over 131 F is too high? Because my pouch definitely hits 136 or so on low. I'm wondering if that's why I have yet to have a flawless flatten within the pouch.
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I've always run mine at medium which hits a max of about 155 F / 90 minutes, and I've had no issues. The most important thing still, is letting the album cool completely before removing it from the VF. Also, using the inside seam for edge warps.

My steps:
  • 30-45 Minutes to warm up (Without album in VF)
  • 90 Minutes to cook album (Use inside seam of pouch for edge warps)
  • Let album cool completely in VF (This takes a while, I usually touch the plates to check, once cool, I take the album out)
 
AnthonyI said:
I've always run mine at medium which hits a max of about 155 F / 90 minutes, and I've had no issues. The most important thing still, is letting the album cool completely before removing it from the VF. Also, using the inside seam for edge warps.

My steps:
  • 30-45 Minutes to warm up (Without album in VF)
  • 90 Minutes to cook album (Use inside seam of pouch for edge warps)
  • Let album cool completely in VF (This takes a while, I usually touch the plates to check, once cool, I take the album out)
Click to expand...
I put mine in cold and let it heat up with the album inside, but otherwise follow basically these steps. Never had an issue.
 
Does the VF handle dish warps well? I have a few that need help.

Also edge warps, but I am told those are not very fixable.
 
I've had varying luck with dish warps, but it could be an issue with my process. I had to run a colored vinyl through 3 times, eventually setting it to two hours with the full "cushions" (I don't know what else to call them) in.

I tried less time with the smaller "cushions" that are supposedly made for dish warps but I have never had luck with them.

Process:
  • Turn pouch on and let it get up to at least 130 degrees
  • Put dish warp cushions on
  • Put my warped record in dish-side up, try to aim the most pronounced warp at the crease (warmest part)
  • Set my wall timer for 75-90 minutes, but I've started to just set it to 90 most times
  • Repeat several times, increasing by about 15 minutes each time
As I said, the most recent time I did this, I just put the full cushions in on the final run.
 
MacDonals said:
I've had varying luck with dish warps, but it could be an issue with my process. I had to run a colored vinyl through 3 times, eventually setting it to two hours with the full "cushions" (I don't know what else to call them) in.

I tried less time with the smaller "cushions" that are supposedly made for dish warps but I have never had luck with them.

Process:
  • Turn pouch on and let it get up to at least 130 degrees
  • Put dish warp cushions on
  • Put my warped record in dish-side up, try to aim the most pronounced warp at the crease (warmest part)
  • Set my wall timer for 75-90 minutes, but I've started to just set it to 90 most times
  • Repeat several times, increasing by about 15 minutes each time
As I said, the most recent time I did this, I just put the full cushions in on the final run.
Click to expand...
Are you talking about the felt rings? I use those every time.
 
MacDonals said:
I've had varying luck with dish warps, but it could be an issue with my process. I had to run a colored vinyl through 3 times, eventually setting it to two hours with the full "cushions" (I don't know what else to call them) in.

I tried less time with the smaller "cushions" that are supposedly made for dish warps but I have never had luck with them.

Process:
  • Turn pouch on and let it get up to at least 130 degrees
  • Put dish warp cushions on
  • Put my warped record in dish-side up, try to aim the most pronounced warp at the crease (warmest part)
  • Set my wall timer for 75-90 minutes, but I've started to just set it to 90 most times
  • Repeat several times, increasing by about 15 minutes each time
As I said, the most recent time I did this, I just put the full cushions in on the final run.
Click to expand...
I've always used the "donut" ring for everything and have no issues with whatever I'm doing. I can't really think of why your having to run vinyl through so many times............are you letting it cool completely before removing it from the VF? Vinyl will have a tendency to go back to it's previous state unless it's prevented from doing so, ie, leaving it in the VF until completely cool.
 
Yeah, the felt pads are what I was referring to. I have not always let the VF *completely* cool/cold to the touch, so that could be the issue. Even when I have, it has required multiple cycles.
 
MacDonals said:
Yeah, the felt pads are what I was referring to. I have not always let the VF *completely* cool/cold to the touch, so that could be the issue. Even when I have, it has required multiple cycles.
Click to expand...
I usually start at 90 minutes and work up to two or three hours. At least once I've left a record in overnight (oops), and it was just fine, but I tend to try and go with the shortest effective session.

I also just use the standard full-sized Groovy Pads. I'm not even sure where the donut pads are right now.
 
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Just got a warped National -Cherry Tree Vol 3 on PIF. Anyone able to help with some redirection of shipping? DM me and can work out the details with @wmeugene on where to ship.
 
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