Moving From NJ --> Austin TX Worried About Vinyl Warp 100F All Month

Next week I am going to be moving from NJ (NYC Metropolitan Area) to Austin TX. When I recently visited a couple of days ago. It was 90F-103F. I am worried and am 95% certain, that if I ship my records (100-150). They will all warp. Should I wait till it cools down? Mid October-November. I know this sounds like a stupid question, but I was wondering if taking it on my flight would also work. I heard this is also bad. Is any way I could ship my records without them warping? I doubt it. All Comments welcome.

Austin isn't as humid as some other southern cities like Houston, its 30% generally from m understanding, but some days or hours within a day it can go up to 70%-80%.

 

Dude, I took like 50 records home on a flight from Austin to New Orleans just a few months ago. They were totally fine. Obviously, you would put them in a duffel bag or whatever, and just store in the overhead bin.

If you do this - put them out in plain view on the conveyor belt - otherwise TSA gets very interested in your bag.

 

I'd be more concerned about breakage than warpage.

Pack them well.

 

Tightly pack them in a carton and they will be fine. I moved my collection cross country by truck in august, and it was fine.

 

Austin is one of the trendiest places in the country. Do you not think Amazon and others don't ship records there and other hot locations every day without issue. Just pack them tightly and if possible in a road case. Thankfully, records are not nearly as delicate as every seems to think these days.

 

I'm pretty sure they ship records to stores in Texas all year long. I'm sure all of your records have lived on a truck for at least part of their lives.

 

I think if they are packed tight they will be OK. I recently read somewhere about a guy who had the bedbug heat treatment at his house and his records came out OK.

 

BTW, the humidity won't warp records. Heat will, but if you pack them well, and keep them vertical, I think the risk is small.

Does anybody know at what temperature vinyl begins to soften? I'm thinking it's around 130 degrees, but I can' remember for sure. It almost has to sit in direct sunshine in a hot car to get that hot.

 

No problem, but you could drive them with other valuables

 

I live in ATX. I have had records arrive by USPS and UPS in this ridiculous heat and be ok. Phew. I also bought a record in LA in 1970 that warped like a potato chip in the back of a VW for an hour. I think packing them tightly would help. I also would think you'd be able to purchase insurance. On one hand replacing a collection would be a PITA, but it could also be fun. I moved here from Houston. Houston is more humid, but Austin can be plenty humid. Welcome! We have some good record stores like Waterloo.

 

Just pack them tight and securely as others have said. I moved a large collection from NJ to Mississippi about 8 years ago in late August. They were on a moving truck for over a week. No problems. They also made it back to NJ safely when I moved back in June a few years ago. Use the U Haul small boxes.

 

If cost is no factor, pack them well and ship them Fedex or UPS overnight. There will not be time to warp them in heat.

 

I agree with the other posts, pack them tight and ship them overnight. I live south
of Austin, around 130 miles and I've shipped / received many records with
no problems. But do pack them well. Good luck on your move.

 

I forgot I posted this and should have responded earlier. I'm just nervous that they are going to warp. I am new to Analogue and am just worried. I saw on this link that supposedly PVC's softening temperature (temperature it starts to warp) is 92 Celsius which is 197 F. I have spent $300-400+ on records I just don't want my LPs to be damaged.

Heat Distortion Temperature (softening temperature) - PVC .

I just bought 700 ft of 3/16 inch bubble wrap. I hope this should be enough for my LPs and everything else i'm shipping. Im waiting for more responses but the general consequences is I should be fine as long as I package it well.

 

Uhauls have A/C so the heat inside the truck wont go higher then 80F. so this isnt going to be a problem

 

I have read amazon reviews for new releases like David Bowies Blackstar. A lot people received warped records. Is this due to flaws from pressing or heat after they are pressed and packaged

 

Oh they'll ship them and leave them on your doorstep. I live in Phoenix where a record can warp in 20 minutes. My mailbox at my apartment complex is made of metal and faces the sun in the afternoon and gets direct sunlight after 4 PM. It's commonly 110 degrees in Phoenix. If you think a record won't warp quickly under those conditions you are sorely mistaken. His concern is very real.

 

I was 90% certain I wasn't going to ship these records, but because of you i am 100% certain. I will wait till I get back on Thanksgiving to ship these records

 

That sounds like a manufacturing issue. If the disc is placed into the sleeve and shrinkwrapped before the vinyl cools (ie: pulled right off the stamper and packaged), warping will occur.

 

i've bought more warped records in the past 5 years than in the previous 35 combined. Not from transportation but from poor manufacturing. The recent Beatles release seem to have been particularly bad. CCR Chronicle I gave up on after returning three of them.

Of course leaving them in the sun can cause warpage. Records are one of those items where it is more difficult to ship a few than a bunch. To protect them they need to be tightly packed with something hard and flat on the ends. If your shipper is going to have to put them in a particularly bad place, then have them held at the station. Proper packing is the key. My records have followed me all over and I've never lost one to warpage.

 

A few more random thoughts on the subject from a self-professed non-expert. The LA warping incident I mentioned above was a single record. With no tight packing it was free to warp. Also records were often thinner in the sixties than most of the newer pressings I have seen. If I were to pack and wrap I would not use bubble wrap. I'd pack them as tightly as possible and use something on the ends with minimal give, like a hard foam or better still large books. Are you old enough to remember phone books? I'd also coordinate the shipping with someone that is great with online tracking so you don't have records arrive here and sit in the sun. On days when a record is being delivered to me I am on hyper alert. We have a local "mail center" that has been very helpful shipping unusual or delicate items. They know how to pack and they have a lot of specialized materials. Think records packed tightly in a box of just the right size with hard foam wedged in on all sides then placed in a larger box with insulation all around. Of course the whole notion of insulating means they heat up more slowly but the heats dissipates more slowly. FWIW my favorite Oregon wineries will not ship to Texas about half of the year.

 

I think direct sunlight is the real issue more than heat. I guess if it's possible to delay shipping your records that would be ideal, I never had that luxury moving my collection cross country several times over a period of decades(professional moving companies, no warping/breakage.) I guess if you arrive in Austin with no vinyl you'll just have to buy some new stuff to tide you over until your collection is shipped.

 

Im probably going to bring like 30-40 records on my flight, for part of my carry on in a bag, but yah I will be visiting my parents for holidays so I should be able to move my records later. Im in no rush. I would rather wait a month or two then lose $100 in damaged records. Its 100F every time i check the weather in Austin

 

Carry my record collection on to a plane?!? I would friggin' need to book an entire 747 just for all the LPs alone.

 

In all seriousness do you think I will ok