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Tungs-tone Needles
.... During World War I, restrictions were placed on commercial
uses of steel, so Victor developed a needle with a reproducing
tip made of tungsten, a metal that never made the list of restricted
materials. By inserting a short cylindrical shaft of tungsten
into a metal shaft, Victor engineers produced their "Tungs-tone
styli." Victor literature used "stylus" or "styli"--not
"needle"--when referring to the product. Victor could
manufacture 25,000 such needles daily--soft tone, full tone, and
extra loud.
The most common packaging for Tungs-tone needles was a tin box that holds eight needles. The tins came later. When the "Tungs-tone" was introduced in 1916, the needles came in a punch-out card. The earliest ad I have seen for this new Victor product is from June 1916. There was trouble over the name when it was registered with the Patent Office, we learn from the August 15, 1916 issue of Talking Machine World. An article states, "The word was rejected by the United States Examiner of Trade-Marks at Washington until he was instructed from the office of the United States Commissioner of Patents to rule differently." The trade-mark examiner felt "Tungs-tone" was too close to "tungsten." In a similar ruling, "Tungsteel" was judged no good for razors and pocket knives. Anyway, Victor was allowed to use the name, and early ads always use a capital letter (Tungs-tone, not tungs-tone), giving the product more dignity......
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The Tungs-tone needle is designed for many plays since as it wears down, it wears at a constant diameter. The tip does not get larger, unlike the tapered steel needle. Victor claimed that a single Tungs-tone was good for 100 to 300 records, but 50 is a more realistic number. Condition of the records and the Victrola being used, especially the reproducer (which holds the needle), determines how many plays one gets from a Tungs-tone. The needles will not harm records when conditions are right. The tip of the Tungs-tone needle must be straight. Straightening the point is not possible. Some tips will have a slight tilt, which is acceptable, but too much of a tilt will damage a record since the tip will ride unevenly to one side of the sound wall. Check that your Victrola is level by placing a bubble-level on the turntable. A tone arm that swings on its own initiative to the right or left indicates a need for leveling. Check that all tone arm parts are lubricated so that the arm freely moves in a lateral and vertical motion. You want to eliminate extra drag or record wear. Before you use a Tungs-tone needle, swing the tone arm to the end of the record while the turntable is running and let the new needle ride in the run-off grooves (near the label) for several turns, which helps the needle conform to the record's sound grooves even though these grooves are larger than the sound walls. This also helps remove burrs that may have developed on a Tungs-tone needle because of repeated playings or because the needle has not been rotated. Victor recommended that you periodically rotate the Tungs-tone needle a quarter of a turn (when you do this, again break in the needle in the run-off groove or rim). The same advice does not apply for a steel needle. When playing a Tungs-tone needle for its very first time ever, play a dull or common record for "breaking in" purposes.
Victor recommended that its dealers employ a "used" Tungs-tone when demonstrating records to customers: "A Tungs-tone needle that has been carefully used once or twice is somewhat better than one which has never traveled the groove." Tungs-tone needles will not wear a record more than steel needles if the mentioned conditions are right and Victor products are used. If a budget disc like a Banner, especially a worn one, is played on a Victrola, or if a Victor disc is played on a bad Sonora machine, a record may sustain damage."
(from the article "Information about Victrola Needles" by Tim Gracyk from http://www.gracyk.com)