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

hype said:
That's pretty much what I was thinking as well.. The temperature tool seems like a clear improvement and even the phone app will likely come in handy to help me keep track and turn it off if necessary since i'm not home all the time.

haha you got one? I didn't plan on buying one until probably around Spring so let me know how it goes! Pretty sure i'm getting one regardless but an extra lilll confirmation boost wouldn't hurt! :whistle:
Click to expand...
I will report back! It’s already in the mail. :)
 
It has arrived! Pretty cute little piece of kit. It consists of:
  • a neat heating bag that doubles as a carrying case for the whole setup
  • the Record Pi flattener plates, pretty much just a prettier VinylFlat design
  • felt rings for various record sizes
  • a WiFi-enabled temperature controller
  • a temperature probe that is inserted into a small suction cup and attached to the bottom plate of the Record Pi, near the center
You get the temperature controller on your network through the Smart Life app, which is quick and easy, at which point you'll see a live temperature readout of the probe plus the current target temperature of the controller. The heating pouch then plugs into the temperature controller, which cycles the power as needed to maintain the target temperature within about a degree.

One of the design peculiarities of the Vinyl Flat's Groovy Pouch is that it's using an off-the-shelf Sunbeam heating element that's located along one edge of the pouch, meaning that the whole thing does not heat evenly. I haven't yet examined the Record Fi pouch to figure out where the heating element is located, but I'm hoping this is something they've addressed, otherwise the 'center' temperature the probe is measuring may not align with the temperature at the edges of the record.

That aside, I'm guessing that you could use a Groovy Pouch and VinylFlat with this controller set-up just as easily, which is probably one reason they do not sell it as a separate item. (Though I bet this would do the trick.)

Running a test heating cycle now. I don't have anything on hand that needs to be flattened, but once I do, I'll report back.
 
kvetcha said:
It has arrived! Pretty cute little piece of kit. It consists of:
  • a neat heating bag that doubles as a carrying case for the whole setup
  • the Record Pi flattener plates, pretty much just a prettier VinylFlat design
  • felt rings for various record sizes
  • a WiFi-enabled temperature controller
  • a temperature probe that is inserted into a small suction cup and attached to the bottom plate of the Record Pi, near the center
You get the temperature controller on your network through the Smart Life app, which is quick and easy, at which point you'll see a live temperature readout of the probe plus the current target temperature of the controller. The heating pouch then plugs into the temperature controller, which cycles the power as needed to maintain the target temperature within about a degree.

One of the design peculiarities of the Vinyl Flat's Groovy Pouch is that it's using an off-the-shelf Sunbeam heating element that's located along one edge of the pouch, meaning that the whole thing does not heat evenly. I haven't yet examined the Record Fi pouch to figure out where the heating element is located, but I'm hoping this is something they've addressed, otherwise the 'center' temperature the probe is measuring may not align with the temperature at the edges of the record.

That aside, I'm guessing that you could use a Groovy Pouch and VinylFlat with this controller set-up just as easily, which is probably one reason they do not sell it as a separate item. (Though I bet this would do the trick.)

Running a test heating cycle now. I don't have anything on hand that needs to be flattened, but once I do, I'll report back.
Click to expand...
Funny, I was actually thinking about trying this, it's basically the same thing, but has a timer, would have been nice with a power cord rather than the unit being plugged into the wall, but nothing a small extension can't fix :)

Amazon product ASIN B09ZY5RMHK
 
kvetcha said:
It has arrived! Pretty cute little piece of kit. It consists of:
  • a neat heating bag that doubles as a carrying case for the whole setup
  • the Record Pi flattener plates, pretty much just a prettier VinylFlat design
  • felt rings for various record sizes
  • a WiFi-enabled temperature controller
  • a temperature probe that is inserted into a small suction cup and attached to the bottom plate of the Record Pi, near the center
You get the temperature controller on your network through the Smart Life app, which is quick and easy, at which point you'll see a live temperature readout of the probe plus the current target temperature of the controller. The heating pouch then plugs into the temperature controller, which cycles the power as needed to maintain the target temperature within about a degree.

One of the design peculiarities of the Vinyl Flat's Groovy Pouch is that it's using an off-the-shelf Sunbeam heating element that's located along one edge of the pouch, meaning that the whole thing does not heat evenly. I haven't yet examined the Record Fi pouch to figure out where the heating element is located, but I'm hoping this is something they've addressed, otherwise the 'center' temperature the probe is measuring may not align with the temperature at the edges of the record.

That aside, I'm guessing that you could use a Groovy Pouch and VinylFlat with this controller set-up just as easily, which is probably one reason they do not sell it as a separate item. (Though I bet this would do the trick.)

Running a test heating cycle now. I don't have anything on hand that needs to be flattened, but once I do, I'll report back.
Click to expand...
Crap...okay...ordered.
I'm "keeping up with the @kvetcha"
 
Appreciate the follow up @kvetcha ! That was exactly what I was hoping to hear! With the sale price it seems like the obvious choice if you don't have a VinylFlat already especially.
 
Anybody near boulder Colorado that has a vinyl flat or access to one? Know somebody who isn’t on this forum that’s looking to try to get a few albums flattened. Wasn’t sure if anybody knew any local shops around there that did it or would be willing to help a non-forum member!
 
Ginormousthumbs said:
Fellow flatteners. When flattening for other people, how many cycles are you comfortable doing before you stop?
Click to expand...

After a number of trials the sweet spot for me is 3 hrs @ medium heat, 30 minutes for warmup (VF in pouch) then 2.5 hrs loaded (full felt ring). Warp towards the fold of pouch. Knocked out every edge warp. I don't use the washer/wingnut when heating. Forgot to use it once and found it worked better without. Could be random, but why mess with success :cool: My stuff is primarly 70's-80's and I've had 100% success (fingers crossed), all edge warps, a few significant. I can't speak to newer releases.
 
firedownunder said:
After a number of trials the sweet spot for me is 3 hrs @ medium heat, 30 minutes for warmup (VF in pouch) then 2.5 hrs loaded (full felt ring). Warp towards the fold of pouch. Knocked out every edge warp. I don't use the washer/wingnut when heating. Forgot to use it once and found it worked better without. Could be random, but why mess with success :cool: My stuff is primarly 70's-80's and I've had 100% success (fingers crossed), all edge warps, a few significant. I can't speak to newer releases.
Click to expand...
Very interesting. What is your temperature measuring for medium?

I also have a question for the group. I landed a grail disc; well, it was $45, not a massive rarity, but it's in mint except for a little wobble that I want to flatten out. How much time do you all reduce for a white disc since it's technicaly not as hard/robust as black vinyl?
 
MacDonals said:
Very interesting. What is your temperature measuring for medium?

I also have a question for the group. I landed a grail disc; well, it was $45, not a massive rarity, but it's in mint except for a little wobble that I want to flatten out. How much time do you all reduce for a white disc since it's technicaly not as hard/robust as black vinyl?
Click to expand...
I’d start with an hour.
 
MacDonals said:
Very interesting. What is your temperature measuring for medium?

I also have a question for the group. I landed a grail disc; well, it was $45, not a massive rarity, but it's in mint except for a little wobble that I want to flatten out. How much time do you all reduce for a white disc since it's technicaly not as hard/robust as black vinyl?
Click to expand...

Did a test when I first purchased, Low - 135°F, Med - 150°F, High - 179°F. All with empty pouch. Subsequent tests including VF averaged around 140°F for Medium setting. Haven't checked since. Been some time since I've used. Picked up a couple crates a while back, anticipate I'll be firing it up again soon :cool:
 
So after 8 months of having the Vinyl Flat sitting in my closet, I think I am finally ready to give flattening a go. I just have so many lingering questions on temperature and time since some of the documents gave me conflicting info. But after reading a lot of posts here I am betting that an hour at around 130 degrees is the best/safest spot to start for most cases. Increasing at 15 minutes afterward if it doesn't work and no more than 3 cook cycles period.

One question I have for after cooking is, do you allow the VF to cool in the still warm (but powered off) pouch? Or are you colling at room temp outside of the pouch.

I also noticed on the pre-heating of the pouch is that is has WILDLY high and inconsistent temps for the like the first 15-20 minutes. Like even on low it spiked to nearly 150 in the center. After that lengthy pre-heat it did seem to stabilize to 134 in the center and high 120s at the edge/fold.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top