DCC Archive Vinyl Preservation

Considering getting a record washing machine and would love to hear the board's advice...

VPI, Nitty Gritty, others?

I've been using my old Discwasher and D4 fluid since I got back into vinyl but now have acquired some great old discs that need a bath...advice?

Thanks in advance!

Ben

 

VPI's are great, but you may find that many other people are using the Nitty Grittys and getting better more stable results.

Got a clean, mint record (used, bought, cheap) but it's misbehaving and has residue making it sound like a gravel driveway?

Here's what I do (no laughing!) You may follow at your daring, caring discression:

1. Clear and clean your sink out, and make sure nothing is interfearing with your space. No dishes, no pans, clean it. Your wife will love you.

2. Turn the foucet on, warm, but not hot (let the water run for a while and make sure no one's gonna flush, okay?).

3. Lay a terrycloth down, must be clean, and quickly cover it with paper towels, not the cheap stuff, enough so that the LP can sit flat on the counter, clean, edge-to-edge.

4. That's right. Soak it. Put it under the water at an angle so the water runs on the deadwax, and off the edge. Rotate the album while maintaining a slow speed until you've gone around one side. DO NOT get the label wet. If you want, you can run the water a low-flow, so you can control water droplets and how it runs more efficiantly off the record. If the vinyl is smooth and not worn, the water may have no luck sticking to the surface anyway. Don't freak if water is sticking to the record.

5. Do the other side too. Just be careful of the faucet and getting the label wet (unless the label isn't pourus paper, in which most smooth pressings you can soak completely).

6. Drop it on top the cloths nearby, with a gentle drop. Grab some more paper towels and toss one, maybe two on it, to cover the partially wet record. Real careful now: You're gonna pat the record dry without making any "anti-groovy" action. Don't scuff the LP by using pressure, or by wiping in ANY direction. PAT dry. Gently spread and lift the paper towel until the record is *almost* completely dry. Take the paper towel off, then on...etc..

You can also get picky and use a 'sliver' of paper towel to drag (using gravity only) to dry off the runoff groove area. This keeps the shiny, new appearence of the record clean. Not like you care much the the non-musical portion of the wax, it beats looking at the LP and seeing water spots.

7. Flip the record and pat that side too. No wiping motions, just pat and lift the paper until the record dries. The warm water will evaporate as it cools off.

8. Bring it over to the turntable and if it's still a touch wet, go over it GENTLY with a D4 brush - GENTLY so the felt absorbes the wetness a bit. Even if the record is still just a *TAD* wet...you...

9. Play. Quieter, huh?!?

This should give you an idea of how good wet/dry methods work. Try this only when you don't have a real wet cleaner, and you've bought this $3.99 used LP that looks mint, but sounds like ****. It's usually mould or residue, and this has gotten $2 LPs to sound like $20 - Really!! Hey, you bought the record, what's the sense if it sounds bad?

**Note** cheap paper towels does not a kitchen make, so you shouldn't use them on records either.....also you're gonna find that most used records that LOOK GREAT but play crappy will benefit from this meathod everytime. I've only done it once to records that misbehave. If you play your details right, barely anyone will see that Discwasher residue, or brush friction on the album, including you!

 

Wow, Scott - thanks for taking the time to share your knowledge...I have a couple of candidates I can use to experiment with your method...

Do you believe the Discwasher (and D4) is a good thing to use on an ongoing basis...?

Thanks!

Ben

 

No.

Great for new albums or just ones that suffer from paper-dust and dry debris. You streak a line of D4 on the brush lengthwize VERY THIN - never soak the brush - EVER - and just lightly dampen the felt surface. Take the blunt end of the bottle and spread it, to also make sure you don't bead up D4 liquid.

You don't hit the same record with more D4 or brushing unless they'res dry debris to worry about. If you treat your records nicely from the git go, there's no reason to clean em again unless you have visible debris that may drag against the surface as you store them back. Kay??? You'll find this to be true. D4 is a great liquid, but don't keep throwing the stuff on a record that's behaving.

Turn the vinyl ON the table (but with no motors running) and let the brush drag on an angle, but enough so when the debris goes by it sticks to the slightly wet portion of the brush. Spin the LP with our finger. Never let a belt OR direct drive pull that weight with the D4 brush on it. My Rega uses a thin, short rubber belt. Never stress a drive.

Cuz when you open an album for the 1st time, it hits the open air with a highly magnetic static charge and everything in the air sticks to it. Hitting it like this with some D4 cuts the static, but more importantly, gets rid of debris that makes the record dangerous to store back in it's jacket. If it still had paper-dandruff, a paper sleeve is going to produce visible scuffs (icky looking) every time you put it back.

Use Discwasher VRP sleeves to albums worth more than $6-7 to you. They will not scuff anything - EVER. It's like a silk sheet for the album. The sleeve also cuts static down to nothing, and the records last as new so, so, so much longer.

Classic Records issues get put in a gentle D4 flogging/VRP storing. I also use the Tiwanese/Japanese crystal outer resealable sleeves. Check a Goldmine magazine near you, and look in the 1st 5-8 pages for Andy's Record Supplies. I might still have his number. The outer sleeves are very cheap, and I swear by them. They make good records look sealed and new. Fights off ringwear, and gives the LP a form fit.

Oh, if you own a belt drive table like a Rega with a very heavy platter (only - Rega platters are 1" solid glass and weigh 28ish lbs), give the platter a gentle head start push. Saves hell on the belt.

[ October 06, 2001: Message edited by: Sckott ]

[ October 06, 2001: Message edited by: Sckott ]

 

Many thanks, Sckott...

Have a good one...


Ben


[ October 06, 2001: Message edited by: Ben ]

 

Ask the Oracle @ Patman:

The Discwasher is a piece of poo. Save your money.

The cheapest vacuum record cleaner is (or was) the Disc Doctor II. Made by Nitty Gritty, sold by Audio Advisor. Fully manual. I have one:
http://www.audioadvisor.com/store/productdetail.asp?sku=NGRD1&product_name=Record%20Doctor%20II%20Record%20Cleaning%20Machine

From time to time, they may run a sale or sell a demo for cheaper.

I have used Disc Doctor fluid exclusively for the last few years. I've never seen a bad things said about it, and most people love it:
http://www.discdoc.com/

If you're a lunatic, this book (really a magazine) covers building your own vacuum record cleaner:
http://www.audioxpress.com/bksprods/books/bkaa49.htm

It's worth having for other reasons. Audioxpress.com also sells (or was selling) "facial masks" for record cleaning. I never used one, but I thought it was a really cool idea.

Laura Dearborn's "Good Sound" also has a DIY cleaning solution recipe in it. And a back issue of Stereophile did as well (the one with the "Vinyl in Manhattan" article). They all pretty much look the same:

distilled water
surfactant (to break the surface tension and let water get into this microgrooves)
lab grade isopropyl*

* I never could find a supplier for this stuff. I went to a chemical company once with the LD recipe in hand, and they acted like I wanted to get drunk with the stuff.

Another DIY machine and recipe:
http://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazine/equipment/0900/diyrecordcleaner.htm

More on cleaning vinyl:
http://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazine/equipment/0400/revieworama.htm

Brushes:

Get a Hunt or Audioquest. I like the Audioquest better, and DiscDoc says the Hunt can scratch some vinyl formulations.

Protective stuff:

Get a truckload of polylined sleeves from Bags Unlimited or Andy's Record Supplies (assuming they're still in business). For your really nice stuff, try resealable mylar sleeves and either genuine VRPs or cheaper knockoffs.
http://members.tripod.com/~Vinylville/resource.html
http://www.bagsunlimited.com/

And, of course, investigate all the LAST products. At least get some stylus cleaner.

See why vinyl is such a pain in the ass?

 

RE: Lab grade Isprophonol:

Don't feel bad, a guy gave me some recipie with Dialisys water (was basically hospital grade distilled or such) and chemists and hospital supply stores looked at me like I was making crack. This was the WATER portion.

A lot of those Distilled + isprophonol concotions are just fine. D4 liquid isn't bad either. Both, I don't use for more than surface cleaning. There ain't no thing as deep cleaning with a D4. The D4 is important, just not the end of the deal.

 

Whoa! Skott! I'm going to work on a problem record right now! I'll give you the lowdown when I finish!