Records with tight spindle hole

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by pick-me-up, Nov 12, 2006.

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  1. pick-me-up

    pick-me-up Straight shooter from S/FI Thread Starter

    Location:
    Sweden
    Did it ever happened to you that the hole in the LP was too tight, so that you hade to use screwdriver to make it slightly bigger to be able to play the actual record?

    I’ve hade a few albums that were impossible to play, because the hole was not wide enough! So I simply took my screwdriver and made it wider, very carefully! :agree:
     
  2. sungshinla

    sungshinla Vinyl and Forum Addict

    That's in a way good if that record was not new and sealed.

    If the spindle hole was not big enough when you bought it, the chances are that you are the first person to play it, meaning that the vinyl surface is mint.

    I bought my favorite Coltrane record like this, and I KNOW that I am the first person to play it. Yippeeeee!
     
  3. QuestionMark?

    QuestionMark? 4TH N' GOAL

    Location:
    The End Zone
    I put a few on the VPI to clean them and couldn't get them off without almost breaking them. They had been well played though. It must have been easier to get off a turntable than the VPI.
     
  4. Drifter

    Drifter AAD survivor

    Location:
    Vancouver, BC, CA
    I've had some LPs that go onto the spindle just fine, then when I go to take the record off, it won't budge! I've had some close calls where I've almost damaged albums, expecting them to easily lift off the platter.
     
  5. pick-me-up

    pick-me-up Straight shooter from S/FI Thread Starter

    Location:
    Sweden
    My solution is to enlarge the hole with screwdriver. But be very careful, so you do not over react …
     
  6. Raunchnroll

    Raunchnroll Senior Member

    Location:
    Seattle
    The problem here is usually there's no chamfer to the spindle hole. (A slight angle around the rim of each end of the hole) Instead of using a steel screwdriver, try a plain old plastic body click-top ball point pen, insert it, and rotate it a few times at a very shallow angle. That way you're not cutting up the hole, you're just swaging a slight chamfer.
     
    Larry Loves LPs likes this.
  7. John54

    John54 Senior Member

    Location:
    Burlington, ON
    I've had to do that a few times, although I used a scissor blade ...
     
  8. pick-me-up

    pick-me-up Straight shooter from S/FI Thread Starter

    Location:
    Sweden
    That is a very good advice. I think I’ve done it couple of times my self. ;)
    Hard steel might not be the best solution after all … Certainly not for expensive records!

    The ones I used it on were all bargain stuff, nothing to be afraid of.

    Think, there must be a few albums that have too wide spindle hole! Have you ever noticed the difference in the sound?
     
  9. Drifter

    Drifter AAD survivor

    Location:
    Vancouver, BC, CA
    I tried that to fix an off-centre hole...once. :sigh: Don't ask what happened. :shake:
     
  10. sungshinla

    sungshinla Vinyl and Forum Addict

    :D :D :D
     
  11. Drifter

    Drifter AAD survivor

    Location:
    Vancouver, BC, CA
    I didn't have common sense yet, I was still a teenager.
     
  12. Raunchnroll

    Raunchnroll Senior Member

    Location:
    Seattle
    The dilemma with a sharp edged instrument is that as you turn it, it will tend to continue to dig down into the vinyl in a spiral (ever deepening). You have to control the depth or pressure you put on it - VERY carefully. Thats why a non-edged piece of plastic is probably best for the average spindle problem.
     
  13. Jeff Wong

    Jeff Wong Gort

    Location:
    NY
    I've used a pencil. Insert the conical shape into the record hole and gently apply pressure with a twist (on both sides) until the record fits the spindle easily. The softness of the wood makes for little damage or wear to the label hole edge.
     
    macdaddysinfo likes this.
  14. Casino

    Casino Senior Member

    Location:
    BossTown
    I use a round (rat-tail) file and give it a few turns. Works fine.
     
  15. Jeff Wong

    Jeff Wong Gort

    Location:
    NY
    A smooth plastic pen might be better (less tooth than the wood of the pencil.) The only thing going for the wood is that it is softer than the vinyl and gives a little.
     
  16. R. Totale

    R. Totale The Voice of Reason

    The instruction booklet which came with my AR/XA suggested a pencil as the proper tool, and it has always worked well for me.
     
  17. MikeyH

    MikeyH Stamper King

    Location:
    Berkeley, CA
    A precision cutter. Ideal for that holiday gift suggestion. More expensive than a pen or pencil, but impressive.

    http://mikrokosmos.com/search.asp and search for 'reamer'
     
  18. Ray7027

    Ray7027 Forum Resident

    Location:
    pennsylvania
    Unless you bought a copy of The Soundtrack to Monty Pythons Holy Grail.

    I could not get the record on the turntable. Fixed the too small hole and the first
    thing you hear is how the record was manufactured to the highest quality standards. Typical Python humor. The only time I laughed over the problem.
     
  19. Brian J

    Brian J Forum Resident

    Location:
    Toronto
    They're tight on my VPI 16.5, but an easy fit on my VPI HW19MkIII. Go figure?

    Brian
     
  20. PinballMars

    PinballMars Member

    Location:
    USA
    Has anyone ever bought a 45 (with the large center hole) that didn't fit any adapter you had, and thus you couldn't play it? I HAVE. It was a Blonde Redhead single (I don't remember the title cuz I've never been able to play it. One of the sides is a Serge Gainsbourg cover) released in, I think, 1998. The center hole was just a bit too small for any of the three adapters I had.
     
  21. Guy E

    Guy E Senior Member

    Location:
    Antalya, Turkey
    The BIC ballpoint was always my first course of action. If that didn't work I'd shave-off an RCH (official millworker's term) with the pointy/shallow-tapered half of a pair of scissors. I was always pretty careful and don't think I ever over-cored, but I have purchased used albums where the previous owner got carried away widening a hole and I would have to "center" the album on the spindle when I played it.

    I remember this "too tight" thing happening fairly often... maybe one in 25 purchases, or so.
     
  22. Mal

    Mal Phorum Physicist

    I actually had this problem with a CD once!

    It was Nazz's first album on Rhino. When I put it in the player I could see it was at an angle instead of flat as the mechanism tried to close the clamp down on the disc. When I took it out I could see that the hole had not been made perfectly cleanly - a little judicious trimming with a sharp knife and the CD loaded fine.

    It was all worth it because just as the liner notes say it just about tore my head off when I finally heard the album for the first time :goodie:
     
  23. pick-me-up

    pick-me-up Straight shooter from S/FI Thread Starter

    Location:
    Sweden
    Hi Mikey!

    This is really cool! For those who are buying a lot of albums, it might be something to invest.
     
  24. Graham Start

    Graham Start Forum Resident

    Location:
    Toronto, Canada
    I use this method to deal with off-center pressings (of which I have many). Ugly, but it works. The trick is to remove very, very little at a time.
     
  25. Damián

    Damián Forum Hall Of Fame

    Location:
    Spain now
    Wow. That's a new one.

    For LPs, I use a small square piece of sandpaper (keep it handy somewhere in a drawer close to the 'table) rolled up into a tube - no risk of ending up with an off-center hole like I have in the past using scissors and such.
     
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