[78-L] Standard Talking Machine Records

[Bart]

I saw a small stack of records from The Standard Talking Machine Co. of 
Chicago, the ones with the oversize center hole.

A quick google found info about the company, its players, and the 
oversize center punch, but what struck me handling the disks was how 
impossibly tiny and shallow the grooves were.  Would these things have 
ever been playable?  They were very thick and quite worn though the 
warning labels on the undersides were intact on most of them.  Were 
these made of shellac?  They felt more like some sort of rigid plastic.

Because of their size (close to 7") they were in with some 45's. By 
comparison the STM grooves looked even smaller.  Artists weren't 
mentioned on the label, merely song titles; though one was presumably 
Cal Stewart because it was entitled Uncle Josh does something or another 
- I forget what... 

Bart  (not really a fan of Uncle Josh)