[orthobiz]

Back in the 70's I remember hearing that it takes 30 minutes for the grooves to recover from the pressures of the stylus.

Fact? Urban legend?

How long do I have to wait if I want to replay an album??

Thanks,

Paul

[WGH]

That was 30 years ago, when we had all the time in the world to be foolish.
Now that I am 30 years older I want my pleasures sooner because there may not be a later.

I have never noticed a difference or ruined a record by playing it twice back to back.

Wayne

[low.pfile]

Well, there is two sides to every story -I mean album....that should give you a 30 minute rest per side.

maybe you meant playing the same side twice?

never heard this groove rest tidbit before, but I am new.

[lcrim]

The rule I've heard of is a lot more strict than that. It's known as the 24 Hour Rule and states that one should allow an LP to rest 24 hours between plays.  The basis is that the stylus tracking the groove generates heat that distorts the groove wall.  While the tracking force is not very great it is on a very small area, the stylus.
I pretty much ruined one side of an LP using it over and over during setup because I was very familiar with what it should sound like.  While 24 hours is a bit extreme there is a reason for it, its not just willy nilly.  I do allow most vinyl to rest a bit before replaying it.  There are also many who believe this is all BS.  I kind of follow the recommendation for the same reason I pray, it couldn't hurt.

[Wayner]

While a stylus passing thru the grooves certainly causes friction and the resulting heat, I would think the beginning of the record has "cooled" down before the finish of the side. The bigger question is do you clean the record again before you play it the second time? I think by then the stylus has collected debris as well as the groove walls ala dust. There are some folks that claim that you don't need to clean the stylus or records ever. I don't believe that for one second.

Wayner

[TheChairGuy]

I read both the 30 minutes and 24 hour rule....one of them is likely true.  Certainly, there is heat buildup due to friction and vinyl is a petrochemical that 'melts' at high heat.

I don't sweat it as I have used LAST Record Preservative.  I'm going on a bit of faith that it does what it says.....that one can play an album side up to 200x after application without wear.  Back in 1988 I was a rep for the Trackmate brand of record/cassette/cd cleaner line...and the owner (Joe Fritsch in Ireland) told me that LAST products in his tests do exactly what they say they do.

Now, I wouldn't listen to just anybody on this....but, this is a guy that sold competing cleaning products, he was previously Chief Engineer at Allsop and had invented both the Allsop cassette cleaner (remember all those brushes you could see working in the body of the cassette shell?) and Allsop cassette de-magnetizer (looked similar except has flashing lights inside)

So, I've been sold on the benefits of LAST Record Preservative ever since.  It ain't dirt cheap tho....$40 treats maybe about 70 sides...but $0.50 a cherished album side is cheap insurance I believe  (still, I grit my cheap teeth a bit each time I have bought it for $40 over the years)

For those reminiscing - here's the Allsop cassette cleaner:



John