Do records get damaged if you touch them?
Yeeeesssss a little bit.
Do records get damaged if you play them?
You are scraping a diamond onto them, so yes. Lets not even talk about scratching that needle back and forth!
If you were a mad audiophile who loves the sound of vinyl, then you probably never touch the record without wearing special gloves and clean each record with a 10000€ machine before you play it.
But DJs are generally not that type of person.
You probably realise that vinyl is not perfect sounding and degardes over time anyway. So there is no need to worry about touching it for scratching. Unless the record is a super rare test-press of the Beatles first recording session...
Also you talking about wearing out Traktor timecode records. These records are meant to be worn out and are relavively cheap. That is why you can buy replacement copies.
As for the needle, take a look at it under a magnifying glass. If it looks worn out, it generally is. Also you will notice the record skips a lot more when it is worn out.
There are no hard and fast rules. Vinyl is vinyl. Its a pretty rubbish medium that has been around for over 100 years. Use it, play it, enjoy it, and don't suffer anxiety over it.
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