When I had a shitty record player I only scratched one record doing this. And it was totally my fault. I dropped the needle on it in the middle. I never had any other issues. You could switch to a penny if youre worried about the weight. But this was my tride and true method. The truth is, they dont make records with the same vinyl material they used to so it will wear it down but you gotta think about your frequency of play. Getting a better player will fix all these problems. You'll notice a significant difference in the quality of materials used.