I had always heard that they were acetate, but you're probably right. I
don't think I've every seen a Voicewriter, Audograph or Soundscriber with
vinegar syndrome.

Steve

Steve Greene
Audiovisual Archivist
Office of Presidential Libraries
National Archives and Records Administration
(301) 837-1772


On Thu, Dec 19, 2013 at 1:43 PM, Michael Biel <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> The Edison Voicewriter Discs, and probably most of the others like the
> Gray and Soundscriber, and Dictabelts, are vinyl, not acetate.
>
>
> Mike Biel [log in to unmask]
>
> -------- Original Message --------
> Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] Wet playback of discs.
> From: Steve Greene <[log in to unmask]>
> Date: Thu, December 19, 2013 8:52 am
> To: [log in to unmask]
>
> Years ago, I played around with cleaning Edison Voicewriter discs (red
> acetate dictation discs about the size of 45) by immersing them in
> deionized water and Photo-Flo. After an hour, I gently scrubbed them
> along
> the grooves with a soft sable brush and decades old fingerprints lifted
> off
> like translucent scabs). After drying 24 hours on acid-free blotter
> paper,
> I was able to make a good playback pass. Not sure I'd have the gumption
> to
> try something like that today, knowing what we know now about the
> effects
> of humidity on acetate.
>
> Steve
>
> Steve Greene
> Audiovisual Archivist
> Office of Presidential Libraries
> National Archives and Records Administration
> (301) 837-1772
>
>
> On Wed, Dec 18, 2013 at 4:44 PM, [log in to unmask] <
> [log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
> > I have had the same experience with lacquers. Play them wet, then see
> if
> > there is not a glob of your record clinging to your stylus. The
> record will
> > never play properly again unless you wet it, and thus remove more of
> the
> > lacquer. So you lose record and stylus.
> >
> > I have often wondered if there is some liquid that can be used for
> playing
> > a lacquer or shellac 78 to reduce surface noise without damage to
> either
> > record or stylus.
> >
> > IIRC, Seth once said at a conference presentation that he had applied
> > pinch roller cleaner to a problem transcription and the results he
> > demonstrated proved his point. However, that was to a problem point
> on the
> > record, so I don't know if it was intended to reduce surface noise as
> much
> > as clean that problem area.
> >
> > joe salerno
> >
> >
> > On 12/18/2013 3:05 PM, Michael Biel wrote:
> >
> >> You cannot play shellac records wet, or even damp. Shellac discs
> will
> >> eventually dissolve in water, and by playing them wet you are
> allowing
> >>
> >> the stylus to gouge out some nice soft shellac. Once played wet a
> >> shellac record will never play properly dry again.
> >>
> >> Mike Biel [log in to unmask]
> >>
> >
>