On Thu, 14 Feb 2008 05:58:34 -0800, jer0en wrote
(in article <aa297$47b449cd$4dfa9d67$6871@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>):
> The method of drying records with a cloth is imperfect to the extent
that
> you can apply it roughly once, or evaparation of the remaining film of
water
> would still cause mineral residus to become audible, which, by the way,
can
> only be removed with 96% alcohol. In the disco-antistat wa****ng basin.
>
> This is a narrow plastic vertical tray in a half-circular shape with two
> vertical micro brushes on the inside, in which the record is placed
> vertically, half-submerged in a cleaning liquid, and then rotated
between
> the brushes with two shell-like clamps that hold the record by its
labels,
> pivoted on an axis for stability.
>
> I have tested the basin quite thoroughly, currently I'm using my third,
> which has the shape of a Dali object to one side since I tried to dry it
on
> the mantel stone above a working gas-heater. Previous ones have become
> victim to agressive carbon hydrates, despite my efforts to coat the
inside
> with slow drying epoxy glue, in order to withstand the malicious effects
of
> petrolene or wa****ng benzine.
>
> You can lift out the inside brushes with a pair of tweezers or a clamp,
and
> reinsert them along with a piece of iron wire of the right thickness to
push
> the brushes closer together. This will increase the force with which
your
> records shall be scrubbed. Ideally the brushes should just (not) be
touching
> in the middle.
>
> Next you have to fill the basin. Not with the disco-antistat fluid. You
need
> the basin, not the fluid. I've been pouring boiled down vinegar of 60
> degrees centrigrade into it without encoutering any problems. The
brushes do
> not dry up by using any chemical, they seem to be very special brushes,
and
> the basin doesn't warp at this temperature. Records cannot be safely
washed
> above 60 degrees, in fact they start to warp at 55 but pull themselves
> straight again as they cool down, unless temperatures have been as high
as
> 70. As described, at roughly 80.0 degrees they turn into flubber.
>
> Now you don't need all that, not least since boiled down vinegar eats
away
> your skin. You can leave your records to saok for a week at room
temperature
> in some plastic tray of the right size using thin chlorine or kitchen
> vinegar, or both (in succession). In fact, thick bleach and concentrated
> vinegar (>4% acetate) are less effective because many dissolved
chemicals,
> like soap, need ample water to be actually agressive. Cover the tray
> properly and make shure the records remain submerged, or water
eva****ation
> will leave minerals on it.
>
> Soaking however does not dispense you of eventually having to scrub the
> records to remove as much of the dust and of the top layer as possible.
If
> you do this with the back side of a polyester sponge, using liquid soap
as a
> lubricant, which is a lot more harmless than for instance drenched
kitchen
> paper, which is as sharp as a razor, after one minute of circumferant
> scrubbing your record will have turned into a giant microscratch. So the
> only way to do any real scrubbing without doing any permanent damage is
in a
> wa****ng basin like the disco-antistat (becoming antistatic is an
undesired
> side-effect really, which is flimsily disguised by the name of the
product.)
>
> An added advantage of the basin is that you can use it to have the film
of
> water-containing detergent that attaches to it when you take it out of
the
> soaking tray "disappear", including the minerals it holds, into a liquid
> that does hardly contain any water, like 96% alcohol, or only destilled
> water, like a better quality ammonia. This should leave your records
> completely silent on any equipment. There are however a few catches.
>
> First of all alcohol eva****ation makes you slightly drunk and ammonia
makes
> you gasp for oxygen, so you will have to operate the wa****ng basin the
way
> you should cut an onion, not hanging your nose right over it but at an
angle
> of 30 degrees to the left of right.
>
> Secondly the ammonia dissolves the paint or ink on your lables, which
paint
> will then be dripping down onto your tracks when you leave it to dry
> vertically, so you will have to dry the record horizontally. This also
> spreads any traces of minerals evenly over the record, rather than
gathering
> them all in one point at the bottom.
>
> In order to minimize the amount of water hanging onto the record when
you
> take it out of the basin, you give it one last turn very slowly (2 to 3
> minutes) and then very gently lift it out (1 minute). That way it should
be
> all but dry, which may in fact, quite invisably, take another half hour.
> Turning it slowly is also the best way to actually remove micro
particles.
> You can dry the record horizontally by placing the shells with which you
> rotate it back to back on top of each other.
>
> This doesn't necessarily apply to alcohol, which at 96% eva****ates
evenly in
> any orientation, but due to the universal concept of civil disobedience
96%
> alcohol starts at $10, while an appropriate quality ammonia starts at
just
> $2. Furthermore you can do at least 50 records with a litre of ammonia
and
> at the most 20 with a litre of alcohol, due to its rapid eva****ation and
> contamination, since it actually dissolves anything and becomes unclear
very
> quickly. So you should only use the alcohol for records that are as
clean as
> you can possibly prepare them for it.
>
> Whether in ammonia or in alcohol, I rotate each record about a hundred
half
> turns quickly (25 to each side, then turning the record in the basin)
and 1
> or 2 turns slowly, to scrub out the micro dust. Takes you about 15
minutes
> per record. As to 96% alcohol, the longer you scrub it, the better the
> results. I haven't tried soaking techniques with it, because you would
have
> to be able to seal off the soaking tray to prevent eva****ation.
>
> As to other chemicals, the plastic tray does not stand thinner (toluene)
and
> neither does vinyl. Vinyl does stand wa****ng benzine quite well, but the
> disco antistat tray is torn to pieces the third or fourth time you use
it.
> The tray should actually be made of vinyl as well, but you can use it
with
> roughly all water soluable detergents.
>
>
The best method ever for cleaning records was sold for a while back in the
early 'eighties by Audio Empire (the "gold-god" turntable people). It
consisted of a tall, black plastic container with an "applicator" head on
top
and was filled with a thick viscous liquid that smelled vaguely of
photographic stop-bath. To use it, you turned the container upside down
and
squeezed until a blob of the liquid appeared on the applicator pad. You
then
applied the pad to the record in a circular motion until the entire side
was
coated (except for the label area). You then set the record on a towel or
other soft surface with the wet side of the record up. Left a few minutes,
the goop would dry to a solid film. Next, one took a piece of scotch tape
and
ran it from next to the label all the way out to beyond the edge, pressing
down hard for good adhesion. Then, holding on to the piece of tape, one
smartly pulled up the tape which would pull the film of dried goop off of
the
record. If any was left after that, just use another piece of scotch tape
to
dab the remaining pieces, but if you coated the record side well, it
always
came up in one piece.
The result was a record that not only looked but WAS clean as a whistle!
Records that had that gray, dull surface appearance before the "treatment"
were ****ny new looking after the film was peeled off. The peeled film
looked
like a clear negative of the record itself. It gets down to the bottom of
every groove, following even the smallest, most delicate undulation of
each
groove, surrounds and traps even the smallest piece of detritus, and
whisked
it away when peeled off. The record sounded clean too. Often quieter than
when new (because the goop also removed any mold release compound left
over
from manufacturing). I've never seen a more effective record cleaning
system.
I've literally made used records that were unplayable because of surface
noise become as quiet as its possible for a phono record to be!
I sure wish that it was still available.
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