[Hatter313]

So this came yesterday. And I love the effect, although I'm a little nervous about the sleeve seeming to be heavy PVC, assumed it was acetate or something like that from the photos. How much of a concern is this really? I don't particularly fancy having this sitting among the other morricones like a ticking time bomb of off gassing terror... Thoughts?

[Pain_Bubbles]

I am not familiar with this release, but it appears to be transparent record in a transparent cover. If the record is in direct contact with the PVC outer sleeve i'd get it out ASAP.
If there's no physical contact between record and PVC the risk is much smaller. I have seen visible "clouding" of records stored next to records in PVC sleeves, even when the affected records were in their own poly outer sleeves + poly inner sleeves but in my case it has never caused audible defects. (Although people in warmer climates have reported severe audible degradation of records stored NEXT to records in PVC sleeves)

I could also add that not all PVC is the same: i've also bought new and sealed records from the 60's that had PVC inner sleeves without a hint of clouding.
In my own collection the really thick, clear, strong smelling PVC sleeves "Simply Vinyl" used to use are the only sleeves that actually caused any problems.

[maxvelvet]

Keep the vinyl outside the sleeve...OR in several years it will turn into a "picture disc"!

[Hatter313]

alright, but what to do with the sleeve itself? i'm not getting rid of the thing...honestly i'd rather sell it and get one of the other two versions if its going to be potentially damaging to the record and other records in its vicinity. why do companies do this. Sigh...

[texasvinyl]

I got the X-ray in the mail yesterday. the sleeve is definitely PVC, and the record was stuck to the sleeve to the point that I couldn't even get it out. I am going to sell this copy and stick with the 'mouth' variant. I'd usually just throw the PVC sleeve in the trash but in this case the art is printed on the sleeve.

Same issue with Drumcell, going to sell that one too. Maybe the Mondo/Transmission variants will have a proper sleeve.

I wish labels would avoid this. The one that I think did it 'right' was Lex Records with their recent reissue of The Mouse And The Mask. They used a different plastic compound for the outer sleeve while still achieving a similar effect.

[Pain_Bubbles]

I doubt many people/record companies even know about the potential hazards of PVC sleeves.
It also remains to be seen how big the problem actually is: I've done a lot of reading on this subject and from what I can tell most cases of extensive audible damage are reported by people from warm climates who stored their vinyl collection on an attic or in a storage unit for a prolonged period.

After reading some of the horror stories I checked my entire collection and found most of my "Simply Vinyl" releases and 2 or 3 records standing next to them, had some visible clouding, nothing audible.
Some picture discs that came without inner sleeves (Presumably so you could see the picture through the clear PVC outer) also had visible clouding and one or two had some audible defects which may not have been there when i last listened to them. (But it could have been there all along, memory isn't perfect when it comes to surface noise on an album i've not listened to for 5 years or more)
All the records affected had the heavy chemical PVC smell of the "Simply Vinyl" sleeves coming from them, even the ones that were not in a sleeve like that.

After seeing the clouding I did get rid of all my PVC outers and inners just in case....
The few special/custom PVC outer sleeves (Porcupine tree - Moonloop , Andrew Liles - Aviatophobia for example) I put on a shelf with some books, away from the records, they will certainly not ruin your records from 50cm away.

The problem is very real, and well documented in other hobby's: PVC needs to be kept away from plastic collectibles, but it won't ruin your record in a few months (or even years) under regular circumstances. My "Simply Vinyl"records and picture discs were bought many years ago, and have been in these sleeves for well over a decade with only the lightest (inaudible) clouding as a result.

[monsterworship]

Never even knew this was an issue.
So any picture discs should be taken out of those clear sleeves?

And remove any MOV out of these sleeves as well?

[texasvinyl]

Yeah Monster I trash em all. Pain is right, it's not guaranteed and seems sort of random/perhaps related to climate/storage environment, but it does happen. I got a couple of records from a library that used these heavy gatefold-style PVC sleeves with the record in one half and the sleeve in the other, and they were all ruined by the PVC

[Pain_Bubbles]

Picture discs might be at risk the most, because they are often directly in contact with the PVC, but also because the visible 'clouding" effect that (sometimes?)precedes audible damage can be very hard to spot.

I've seen MOV records in sleeves similar to the old "Simply Vinyl" but without the distinct chemical odor. They are most likely PVC and I just get rid of them.
Most vendors of bags/sleeves etc stock PE (Polyethylene) outer sleeves, a much more stable plastic that should be o.k.
The resealable mylar bags are probably the safest chemically but I can't stand the flaps with the glue on it, actually damaged a few record covers with those. (Put the gatefold on top the outer sleeve while the record is playing, flap has a little dog-ear, sticks to gatefold, rips off paint upon removal....)

[Hatter313]

yeah i use PE bags for everything else, this one just sucks cause its such a part of the design...ah well.

[deafmetal]

I have been trashing any new PVC sleeves as well. Thanks for the heads up on the Spasmo x-ray edition.

I have some older picture discs from the 80's/90's that were in PVC sleeves for decades. Picture discs look so strange up close that I can't tell if any visible discoloration is from the PD itself (know what I mean?) or from a PVC sleeve. I am guessing the reported cloudiness is much more visible on black vinyl? Detecting "new" surface noise is a crapshoot on these old PD's.

[DISCOSUCKS...]

This thread is a f**king nightmare!

It's like waking up to find that someone has possibly leaked toxic waste all over your records!!!

I want my mommy.......

[texasvinyl]

I dig the "big hole" style jacket like Dagored did for the recent Einstein Umiliani release. I sometimes make my own with old plain white sleeves from shitty 2000-era trance singles and a poly inner sleeve

Like this