That $150 lacquer blank kit was a total scam, please learn from me

Spent last weekend trying to cut a dubplate with one of those cheap pre-cut lacquer blank kits from eBay. The guy swore they were 'studio grade' but my stylus dug right through the coating on track two, wrecked the needle too. Lost $150 on the blanks plus another $60 on a replacement stylus for my cutter. Anyone else fallen for these knockoff blanks, or is there an actual budget brand that doesn't eat your equipment?

1 comments

1 Comment

the_tara2d agoMost Upvoted

Have you tried checking out the used market on Discogs or local record shops for old stock? I got burned the same way about two years ago, spent close to what you did on some "pro grade" blanks that just shredded on the first pass. What finally worked for me was tracking down NOS (new old stock) from brands that actually made dubplates back in the day, like Transco or even some old Audiodiscs. They pop up on eBay all the time but you gotta ask the seller for photos of the lacquer surface before you commit, I learned that the hard way. Also, don't skip checking your cutter's alignment before you use any new blanks, that saved me from another wrecked needle on a fresh batch. It sucks you lost the money though, that's a rough lesson for sure.