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

andyf said:
I was feeling OCD and self-doubt about the process but also impatient and eager to try it (mine came in the mail yesterday and I've already flattened two records).

The first record I did was a fairly inexpensive, but newer, 180g black vinyl with a moderate dish warp noticeable on one side while playing.

For cleaning I use a Spin Clean. This seems to work good for deeper cleaning but I always feel like as soon as I dry the record it starts collecting lint and dust again almost immediately. I gave both sides of the record a quick shot of compressed air before putting it in the Vinyl Flat. I used a lint roller on the felt mats, but again, it seemed like there is an endless amount of lint that will pull off of those so I tried not to be too worried.

I spent some time checking the temperature of different areas of the pouch with the provided thermometer. I got a pretty wide range of measurements for each setting with medium heating to ~135º at the fold and high heating to ~150º around the fold ~140º the middle of the pouch.

I was a little bold with my first try because it was 180g and inexpensive so I set the pouch to High and let it heat for about 10 min, then put the Vinyl Flat and record in and let it preheat for another 5-10 minutes and then set an outlet timer (I used this one) for 1 hour 45 minutes. I then let the Vinyl Flat cool in the pouch for another 1.5 hours and outside of the pouch for another 1-2 hours, until it felt cool to touch. This worked perfectly on the first try.
The vinyl was completely flat and I didn't notice any visible or audible damage.

The second record I did was colored vinyl and worth about $200, so a bit of a risk for only my second try. I was a little more careful with this one and set it to medium heat for 90 minutes. This made a small amount of progress but didn't totally fix the warp so I did another round but added 15 more minutes and this time let the pouch heat up on high until it got to almost 150º along the fold and then turned it down to medium for the rest of the time. I also rotated the Vinyl Flat 180º halfway through heating. This produced perfect results with no noticeable change to the audio.

I have another one cooking now.
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You can also do low heat for a longer period, and leave the record in there for a day or two after switching off the heating element.
 
Hi All - I wanted to thank everyone but especially @andyf for helping me navigate the process (nice tips on the lint roller and compressed air - hard to get rid of all of those damn cat hairs). I have a lot of trial and error to do but I basically said, what the heck and went for it with my copy of Darrell Banks from VMP. I don't know how to do that cool before and after video that Andyf did but I obtained similar results. I did two hours at medium heat (about 150 degrees) and then let it sit for 4 1/2 hours. I also rotated it after one hour. Pretty darn flat!
 
Soon, you can add Melbourne to the list as I will be joining the worldwide fellowship of Vinyl Flatteners in a neverending battle against the scourge of lazy quality control and 50-year-old presses working overtime.

My VF/GP combo has touched down on our shores and should be with me in the next couple of days.

Alright, Vinyl Flatteners...let's flatten some muthafuckin' vinyl.
 
I just ruined a record while trying to flatten in my Vinyl Flat 😬😬😬

It was The Fugees - The Score. I set it for 2 hours on high (around 140ºF) and the existing warp was removed, however, the section where the two colors meet developed a wavy warp.
I would be hesitant to use the Vinyl Flat on any records that have a transparent/solid color split like this.

I'm not too upset because before I put it in the VF I spotted a few small dimples in the record that I hadn't noticed before but would have made me hesitant to play this going forward. I just wish I would have requested a replacement through VMP a few years ago when I bought it.

IMG_6311.jpg
 
andyf said:
I just ruined a record while trying to flatten in my Vinyl Flat 😬😬😬

It was The Fugees - The Score. I set it for 2 hours on high (around 140ºF) and the existing warp was removed, however, the section where the two colors meet developed a wavy warp.
I would be hesitant to use the Vinyl Flat on any records that have a transparent/solid color split like this.

I'm not too upset because before I put it in the VF I spotted a few small dimples in the record that I hadn't noticed before but would have made me hesitant to play this going forward. I just wish I would have requested a replacement through VMP a few years ago when I bought it.

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I would bring your times down on colored or split vinyl. I've done a couple without issue, you just need to start at like 45 minutes, see show it looks and adjust from there. Just a suggestion ;)
 
AnthonyI said:
I would bring your times down on colored or split vinyl. I've done a couple without issue, you just need to start at like 45 minutes, see show it looks and adjust from there. Just a suggestion ;)
Click to expand...

I had done a couple color spit vinyl successfully (VMP Guruguru Brain) but the split on those were a cleaner straight line where the Fugees album the colors mix over a wider range.
I definitely learned my lesson to not get carried away with colored vinyl.
 
andyf said:
I had done a couple color spit vinyl successfully (VMP Guruguru Brain) but the split on those were a cleaner straight line where the Fugees album the colors mix over a wider range.
I definitely learned my lesson to not get carried away with colored vinyl.
Click to expand...
Ya, your always better off starting off with a shorter "cook" time and see how it goes just to be on the safe side. I don't think I've ever cooked anything over an hour and 10 minutes.
 
I don't cook anything on high. I preheat the pouch and the record, once in the flat, for about 10 minutes on high and then switch to medium and start the timer for flatteningI would rather cook an extra 15 min than take on the risk associated with the highest setting.
The medium temp is about 135 F cooler towards the outside of the pouch.
As long as I put the most severe part of the warp toward the heat source and cook for an hour and 15 to 30 I haven't screwed anything up (clear, translucent, split, etc.). I have messed-up a black record that I forgot to take out tho.
It;s a combination of temp., pressure, and time. You can trade off time with a higher temp but I think that's where you are likely to introduce more risk.
 
TheMythOfSisyphus said:
You've never run into problems with medium? I haven't looked at in a while but I thought the manual suggests low? I've never had a problem with low so I haven't tried medium. But maybe that's worth remembering if I run into a stubborn warp.

Also, you mentioned forgetting to take a record out - do you not use a wall outlet timer? If not, they're fantastic and hassle free. Also, only $10.
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andyf said:
I just ruined a record while trying to flatten in my Vinyl Flat 😬😬😬

It was The Fugees - The Score. I set it for 2 hours on high (around 140ºF) and the existing warp was removed, however, the section where the two colors meet developed a wavy warp.
I would be hesitant to use the Vinyl Flat on any records that have a transparent/solid color split like this.

I'm not too upset because before I put it in the VF I spotted a few small dimples in the record that I hadn't noticed before but would have made me hesitant to play this going forward. I just wish I would have requested a replacement through VMP a few years ago when I bought it.

View attachment 29857
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High was probably a bad idea. 140 is well above the desired target temperature, and two hours is quite a long cook.

I aim for 130-135 and start with an hour cook plus a natural cooldown, and adjust from there.
 
TheMythOfSisyphus said:
Right...I have those instructions (just pulled them out) - check on the 130. My pouch gets there on low. Then mine came with a second set of instructions for the pouch and it instructs to set the controller to low and cautions against medium or high. In the end, whatever each of us has success with is what really matters. Was more so curious on your technique.
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i didn't receive separate instructions with my pouch 🤷‍♂️
if you have a specific question i'll do my best to answer
 
When you preheat do you do the metal pet too? I haven’t been because I figure it’s too hot. So my records have been taking longer.
 
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