[HiGHFLYiN9]

So I know there's some record flattening devices out there, I've seen a couple of different ones in the Music Direct catalog for a pretty penny ($1899+). I know I couldn't hope to buy something like this, and even if I could, I only have a few warped records.

I was wondering if anyone here knew of a facility that offers record flattening service that I could mail my problem records to.

 

[LFF]

YES! You can do it yourself with two heavy sheets of glass. Put the record in between and leave it out in the bright sun for the entire day. Bring inside and let it cool overnight. BOO-YA!!!! Flat record!!!!!

 

[Lazarus Short]

That's the ticket, but make sure you use polished plate glass, as thick as you can find [within reason], and make sure it is clean and smooth before you use it. Do a few trials with LP's from the bargain bin.

 

[royewest]

Music Lover's in Berkeley is offering an astonishing deal on a record flattener on their "Bargains" page:

Music Lovers Bargains - The Bay Area's Best High End Stereo, Home Theater, and Custom Installation Store

They are moving next month so perhaps $1500 is not an entirely firm price -- who knows.

All of my vinyl is of course completely flat. As was my father's vinyl, and his father's before him. But if I had unflat records in my background, I'd leap at this opportunity.

 

[White Mike]

+1 on two sheets of glass and the sun here. Fixed quite a few of my records over the years.

 

[HiGHFLYiN9]

Hmmn, I don't have any glass sheets lying around, but I have some small sheets of 1/2" acrylic. Any idea if they would serve the same purpose?

 

[Uncle Erik]

You'd want glass and it's not terribly expensive. Visit your local glass shop and get a couple thick pieces of float glass, enough to cover a record.

 

[HiGHFLYiN9]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Uncle Erik /img/forum/go_quote.gif You'd want glass and it's not terribly expensive. Visit your local glass shop and get a couple thick pieces of float glass, enough to cover a record.

Gotcha, guess I'll be making a trip to Clark's Do-It Center to see what they have. Thanks for the great advice everyone!!

 

[muckshot]

The DIY record flattening is a really neat idea (and dirt cheap), I think I`m going to attempt this as well

 

[thebikingengineer]

2nd on using actual glass. It will have ceramic properties where acrylic will have plastic properties (as it's a plastic). Shouldn't be too hard to find, and it definitely works nicely.

 

[ronnielee54]

Probably would not be a bad idea to clean the record beforehand.

 

[Spareribs]

What if it were winter and there were no bright sun. Could you do it in the oven at 100 degrees?

 

[LFF]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spareribs /img/forum/go_quote.gif What if it were winter and there were no bright sun. Could you do it in the oven at 100 degrees?

Yes but I find this to be too risky.

I would use a blow dryer instead set on high. Either that or put a halogen bulb over it for about 4 hours.

 

[ronfint]

As another option, you might consider using a peripheral record clamp. I've tried various techniques with plate glass, sun, ovens at 120 degrees (F), etc. None really worked well, and I was always worried about damaging record grooves in the process. I bought a peripheral clamp five years ago and had no more trouble with warped LPs.