Spin Clean Record Washer MKII

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by DTS-MA 7.1, Mar 14, 2014.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. Scocam

    Scocam Forum Resident

    Location:
    TX
    Good suggestion! And to add to your comment, playing a slightly damp record will cake your stylus with dust paste and is difficult to clean when it dries. No good!
     
    mikeyt likes this.
  2. Vinyl Fan 1973

    Vinyl Fan 1973 "They're like soup, they're like....nothing bad"

    I have been using my Spin Clean now for about a month, and I'm really happy with it. I'm not liking the white towels that came with the unit, so about 3 weeks ago I saw a bundle of yellow microfiber automotive cloths at Costco and decided to give it a go. Wow, not only do they do a better job drying the records but they are just great for using around the house. The water gets picked up a lot faster and I'm experiencing more noise reduction than when I use the white cloths supplied with the unit.

    I do about 20 records at a time as I find the water gets really dirty. The dirt doesn't only stay at the bottom of the tank, but floats around in the water as well. I really enjoy cleaning new vinyl the most as it removes all static and dust and they play really great. Once I'm done the LP's go into new clean sleeves.

    You just really have to find the time to put aside to use it, it's time consuming but worth it in the end. You just have to be in the mood to actually get everything out and get going.
     
    Bill Why Man and mikeyt like this.
  3. DTS-MA 7.1

    DTS-MA 7.1 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    NJ
    I would do 10 at a time, as you will be spining in dusty water.
     
    Vinyl Fan 1973 likes this.
  4. jordanb87

    jordanb87 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Winnipeg, Canada
    I just received my Spin Clean and am a quarter of the way through my LPs. Quick question: for those who dry with the cloths, how long afterwards do you put the record in the sleeve? I want to make sure it's dry, but could use the drying space for more washing. Is 45 minutes of air drying enough, after the cloth drying?
     
  5. 500Homeruns

    500Homeruns Peaceful Punk

    Location:
    Lehigh Valley, PA
    45 minutes should be plenty if you already towel dried them.
     
    mikeyt likes this.
  6. DTS-MA 7.1

    DTS-MA 7.1 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    NJ
    Has anybody used the doctor-v cleaning machine is it better than the spin clean?.
     
  7. mikeyt

    mikeyt Forum Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    More than enough. I sleeve or spin my LPs after ten minutes, tops.
     
  8. jordanb87

    jordanb87 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Winnipeg, Canada
    Great, thanks guys!
     
  9. sami

    sami Mono still rules

    Location:
    Down The Shore
    Yeah, about 10-15 minutes for me and they're good to go.

    Two things you guys might try:

    *For towels, I use these waffled microfiber towels made for golf called Play Kleen that are incredible - soft and incredibly absorbant. After taking the record out of the SK I lay it on a Play Kleen with light pressure on both sides, which removes all standing water without lint. Then I lightly wipe both sides (along the grooves) with another Play Kleen. You can do a ton of records with just two of these, and they dry quickly.

    *For badly soiled used records, I'll clean them with a bath cleanser made for babies called Method and dry them before the Spin Clean. I've been cleaning a huge collection of '50's and '60's singles I acquired at an estate sale, and this 'method' has created some miraculous results.
     
    renderj and mikeyt like this.
  10. jordanb87

    jordanb87 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Winnipeg, Canada
    Alrighty, I have finished cleaning my entire small collection (about 80 LPs and a handful of 7" 45s). Thought I'd post a review while it's still fresh in my mind.

    First, it's surprisingly time consuming! However, it is a great opportunity to crank up some tunes and re-discover some seldom-played LPs as you go through your collection. I worked under the bright halogen track lighting in my kitchen, and this really helped see the difference the cleaning was making. I decided to wipe dry rather than just air dry, and the small amount of lint left by the cloths was easily blown away. Any records still in paper inner sleeves went into new poly-lined ones. I agree with others about the cloths included: they are basically multi-layered cheese cloth, and are a bit cheap and feel coarse (they don't scratch, of course). I hope the MKIII will include some nice plush micro-fibre cloths, especially since hugs packs of them can now be had for a few dollars.

    The Spin Clean did an excellent job of removing fingerprints, dust/lint (both surface and deeper), and dirt on used records, and removed whatever causes dullness on new records (mold release? I know that is a contested term). However, even after washing some records twice, the Spin Clean did not do a good job of removing the mottled, dried-on spots that are sometimes found on new records. Not sure what this is (dried-on mold release?), but I often find it when I buy a new LP that is 3-4 years old and has been sitting in a paper sleeve since being manufactured. Still, even these records dried to a brighter overall sheen than before. Static disappeared completely, which is nice because I have a wool Rega turntable mat that can be static-y. About 75% of my collection is new records, and I changed the water twice during cleaning. A lint roller cleans the brushes off nicely after they're dry. No issues with labels getting wet at all. And my, is it satisfying to see even thrift store records come out clean, and all the dirt accumulate on the bottom.

    Overall, it's a great thing to have, and the "bath" method is certainly better than messing around with a tap and a sink. The bang-for-buck with the Spin Clean is decent but not outstanding; build quality is good, but not spectacular. It's great for budget audiophiles like myself. Now that I can buy more used LPs without worrying about my stylus, it can also save me money. Also, it's a great investment before upgrading a cartridge or stylus.
     
  11. JamesD1957

    JamesD1957 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Cypress, Texas
    Add me to the Spin Clean fan club. I just got mine in and cleaned about 20 records. One of my old favorites that has had a skip for as long as I can remember no longer skips! I've been a pretty faithful Discwasher (old good one) user, but this has sold me. Lovin' the results!
     
    mikeyt likes this.
  12. Ozoid

    Ozoid Member

    Anyone know who sells the Gem Dandy?
     
  13. The FRiNgE

    The FRiNgE Forum Resident

    I am also in the spin clean club. It works!
     
  14. jordanb87

    jordanb87 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Winnipeg, Canada
    Quick question: the Spin Clean instructions say that you can save the water for a week or two, but I often save it for a month or more, cleaning records one at a time week by week. Any reason why the Spin Clean folks would limit it to a week or two? To my mind, as long as you're removing the brushes the water solution should be fine for quite awhile, no?
     
  15. mikeyt

    mikeyt Forum Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    I actually emailed to ask about that a while back and the answer I received was yes, it is okay to leave the solution and keep using it as long as it's relatively clean. The important thing is make sure the brushes are clean and not left soaking. Leaving them soaked can contribute to them to wearing faster and getting dirt embedded in the material. Also, and this may just be my experience, I clean the lid with a sponge and soap b/c after a short period the moisture that hangs out there will bring some mildew.
     
    jordanb87 likes this.
  16. walrus

    walrus Staring into nothing

    Location:
    Nashville
    Just got mine in last week, but haven't had time to use it yet. Suggestions for a good drying rack for LP's? My regular one is...full of dishes I never get around to putting away.
     
  17. TeacFan

    TeacFan Forum Resident In Memoriam

    Location:
    Arcadia, Ca.
    I received about 7 or 8 of their towels and have no problems. When a couple get wet, I hang up and move on to dry ones. They dry quickly (in LA) and I reuse them. Do not want to get too anal about this. It is labor intensive, but keeps me out of trouble. I do about 20 at a time.
     
    Mister Charlie likes this.
  18. Dentdog

    Dentdog Forum Resident

    Location:
    Atlanta
    Drying the records. Seems to me the fibers from a microfiber cloth might cling to the groves. I have been sitting mine out to air dry but wouldn't blowing them off with a cool hair dryer work better? I use some photoflo but still get water drops staying in place until they dry.
     
  19. Bob M.

    Bob M. Forum Resident

    Location:
    Buffalo, NY
    I have both the Spin Clean & a Record Doctor V. Record Doctor V is far better. The difference is quite noticeable too. And for $199, a great investment for your records. IMHO, the best way to get dirt off a record is with a vacuum system. Always feel like I'm pushing dirt into the grooves when drying with any kind of cloth.
     
    Last edited: Mar 30, 2015
  20. anodyne

    anodyne Forum Resident

    I bought a couple of wire file folder organizers from Staples. Cheap, compact and they work perfectly -- the contact point hits right on the label of the record.
     
    jeffsab, JamesD1957 and mikeyt like this.
  21. wownflutter

    wownflutter Nocturnal Member

    Location:
    Indiana
    I tried using a generic Kroger brand distilled water and found that it left a lot of light pops.
    I now only buy distilled water from name brands.
    On the occasion that I go in a health/ mineral type store, I will buy several gallons.
    I think there are some crappy ones out there.
    I tried the Kroger brand on some new vinyl that had only been played once. There were quite a few more pops and ticks than before.
     
    Last edited: Mar 30, 2015
  22. The FRiNgE

    The FRiNgE Forum Resident

    Do not re-use the water in a spin clean. The folks who recommend this are mad.
    Brutal logic:
    1) We read about the many people who recommend and practice using distilled, and de-ionized water, the purest water available.
    2) The very first record cleaned contaminates the water
    3) The next record cleaned may be noisier than it was before, should anyone wonder?

    Practical, real world advice: the water bath may be good to clean several reasonably clean records. The water becomes progressively more contaminated, so what we have now is a classic case of cross contamination. So, it does make sense to me to change the water often. On the final note, the "dirt" that settles to the bottom does not mean that dirt isn't suspended in solution, because it is. Human beings are visual beings. If we do not see it, then it must not exist. (such as suspended particles in solution) This can not be more false.
     
    Last edited: Mar 31, 2015
  23. wownflutter

    wownflutter Nocturnal Member

    Location:
    Indiana
     
  24. wownflutter

    wownflutter Nocturnal Member

    Location:
    Indiana
    I think you misread my post. I never reuse my water. As a matter of fact I dispose my water more frequent than everyone else has been recommending. I usually clean about 7-9 lps before changing the water.
    If I'm cleaning band new vinyl, those get cleaned first, never after I've cleaned a used lp.
     
    The FRiNgE likes this.
  25. Dentdog

    Dentdog Forum Resident

    Location:
    Atlanta
    I have a question for those in the know here. Here's my process. AI#16 followed by AI Down with dirty mixed with triple steam distilled water. Then a short run in an ultrasonic DIY bath, warm distilled water. Dry with cool hair dryer and Last Record preservative.
    Here's the question. To keep the ultrasonic water clean is there any down side to rinsing under the tap then placing the record in the ultrasonic? I guess the ultrasonic rinse would become increasingly contaminated with the minerals in the tap but at least be free from the dirty sludge coming off the record. I have noticed the rinse does get dirty quickly.
     
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.

Share This Page

molar-endocrine