Sapphire Blanks and Pins

Made:
1940-1950 in United Kingdom
Sapphire blanks and pins

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Sapphire blanks and pins
Science Museum Group
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum

Box of sapphire blanks and pins for making, recording and reproducing styli.

The box includes: five wooden boards with pins (possibly shanks); 20 packets of sapphire tipped recording stylus; a packet containing two packets containing disks; a packet of "500 sapphire pins"; a packet of metal pins labelled E.17486; a packet containing repro stylus shanks; a tin containing shanks; a tin containing blanks; and a tin containing 'grinding' shanks.

The BBC used a sapphire needle or stylus to both replay records and record sound by cutting onto a disc. Styli would wear and could be strengthened and repaired by attaching sapphire blanks to steel or duralumin shanks. Synthetic sapphire blanks were supplied as cylinders and cut to shape. Specific shapes were required to cut an accurate groove for recording sound. Using sapphire styli improved the longevity of each stylus needed for large amount of music and sound output of BBC.

Details

Category:
Television
Collection:
BBC Heritage Collection
Object Number:
2012-5118/58
Materials:
paper (fibre product) and metal (unknown)
Measurements:
overall: 90 mm x 355 mm x 258 mm, 2.5 kg
type:
components