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Vinyl brush for wet cleaning..

I got a brush from Loricraft. I seem to recall that the bristles were said to be 'a natural material' (they looked like nylon to me). I got stuck in, cleaned a lot of records with a good brisk scrubbing, and was impressed to see so much dirt come off.

After I had done a lot of my precious records, I caught the light on one and noticed a lot of surface scratches. I looked back at the records I had cleaned, they were all covered with nasty surface scratches. Mint Japanese imports ruined! Mint unplayed records ruined! I was utterly devastated. Fortunately I realised that the bristles weren't fine enough to get into the groove.
I have some velvet pads as supplied by the Disc Doctor - I wish I had stuck with them.
Later I started using paint pads and there was no further damage. The fibres are fine enough that they might extend some way into the grooves.

DO NOT USE NYLON BRISTLES ON YOUR RECORDS
 
Loricraft specifically told me not to scrub as the bristles can't get into the grooves. Maybe because it's unnecessary or maybe because it damages records....
 
I use a paint pad from B&Q. Cheap and does a better job than the brush built into my VPI 17F.

Tony.
 
Apologies if this has been said before but bristles that scratch and don't even penetrate the grooves suggests to me that a high pressure water washer of some sort ought to resolve both problems. The problem I foresee is that any minute paticles in the water supply won't do the vinyl any favours either. For anyone that doesn't think there are any such particles in tap water should put a glass of tap water side by side with a glass of reverse osmosis water from the same system (as I have got), you may be very surprised, and my system has no cystern of any kind in the loft to collect crud.
Just trying to stimulate a discussion, not a slanging match :) :).
Cheers,
Dave.
 
Jowcol said:
I got a brush from Loricraft. I seem to recall that the bristles were said to be 'a natural material' (they looked like nylon to me). I got stuck in, cleaned a lot of records with a good brisk scrubbing, and was impressed to see so much dirt come off.

After I had done a lot of my precious records, I caught the light on one and noticed a lot of surface scratches. I looked back at the records I had cleaned, they were all covered with nasty surface scratches. Mint Japanese imports ruined! Mint unplayed records ruined! I was utterly devastated. Fortunately I realised that the bristles weren't fine enough to get into the groove.
I have some velvet pads as supplied by the Disc Doctor - I wish I had stuck with them.
Later I started using paint pads and there was no further damage. The fibres are fine enough that they might extend some way into the grooves.

DO NOT USE NYLON BRISTLES ON YOUR RECORDS
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Hmmm! This thread is certainly bringing things out into the open. That's two reports of surface scratching so far, using nylon (as is my 16.5 brush).

I'm fairly convinced that sonically there is no impairment; conversely, a cleaned record is nearly always sonically better and quieter.

If spreading is the sole function of most/all brushes, this B & Q paint pad (whatever that looks like) as used by Tony, looks like the way forward.

This is all an unprecedented (?) expose of the pitfalls of using a manufacturer's expensive RCM ancillaries assuming they must be kosher. With ALL vinyl now coveted, collectable or rare, this is a very poor indictment on the R & D of these companies, surely:(
 
I'm all for furry pads, that little Mofi brush is excellent, if curiously too wide to run at 90 degrees across an album.
 
What about a carbon fibre record cleaning brush, not tried one wet but should mix things up in the groove.
 
For used record purchases that need a good cleaning, I like to rinse them thoroughly with water before even thinking about bringing a brush in contact with them. The rinsing process removes much of the dust and dirt in a gentle way that would get scratched into the surface of the record if I were to just start cleaning them right from the start with a record brush. Once the record has been rinsed, I like to then clean it with some soapy water with a paint pad while the record is still wet. This is one reason why I'm not too fond of RCM''s.

The comment about using tap water and the particles that might be found in them. Dry them with a microfiber cloth when your done cleaning them, don't let them air dry. Job done!
 
Am I the only person who uses their partner's hairdryer to dry their records after a wash, ( especially because it's one of those 'negative ion' jobs).
 
sq225917 said:
Am I the only person who uses their partner's hairdryer to dry their records after a wash, ( especially because it's one of those 'negative ion' jobs).
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I do. The label sometimes gets a bit wet and the hairdryer is used to make sure the record is thoroughly dry before playing or storing it.
 
hp1 said:
What about a carbon fibre record cleaning brush, not tried one wet but should mix things up in the groove.
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Liquid will ruin a carbon fiber brush like the Decca. It wicks up between the fibers due to capillary action, and the brush clumps up. There's no recovering from that.
 
Let me just clarify that 'the impressive amount of dirt' that I thought the Loricraft brush was getting out of my records was actually the scratched vinyl being sucked up. The brush was black with it, the bottom of my vacuum was full of it.

This experience contributed to my decision to get rid of my Loricraft rebuilt Garrard 301.

You cannot imagine my feelings, a lifetime's collection of records ruined by a nylon brush.
 
clivem2 said:
My heart goes out to you, this has to be really distressing. Is the SQ wrecked or just the record surface?
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Thank you. Distressing? It was almost like a bereavement.
I like to think that the nylon bristles were too coarse to get into the grooves. Otherwise I don't know what I might have done...........

Just don't let it happen to you too.
 
Jowcol said:
Thank you. Distressing? It was almost like a bereavement.
I like to think that the nylon bristles were too coarse to get into the grooves. Otherwise I don't know what I might have done...........

Just don't let it happen to you too.
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Whereas I've had misgivings, I've had little evidence of the kind of consistent visual damage you seem to have experienced.

I note your 'gusto' in scrubbing when you got your RCM, and I wonder if this may have exacerbated the problem. I 'scrub' (terrible word to use with delicate vinyl) only WITH the grooves, and relatively (?) lightly for fifteen seconds or so with the brush at an angle (after spreading the fluid and before soaking).

Because most of my albums have been with me for a long time, or have been derived from charity shops, I've no hard evidence of micro scratches, just serious suspicions from time to time.

Three postings on the previous page on NON RCM cleaning are surely irrrelevant to this thread and its findings. I'd no sooner run my records under the tap (or whatever) than leave them out in the rain to clean. Label-less records may be fun-filled random playing but are a pig to put back into alpha order !::rolleyes:
 
You can scrub as hard and as long as you like with either a felt pad (Disc Doctor) or a paint pad and there will be no marks whatsoever.
 
Mike Reed said:
Label-less records may be fun-filled random playing but are a pig to put back into alpha order !::rolleyes:
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A label protector will do the trick. ;)

pict2891.jpg
 
John said:
A label protector will do the trick. ;)

pict2891.jpg
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Thanks, John. Good idea for RCMs with clumsy users like me. However, this can't be difficult to knock up at home providing one can find resilient material thin enough to be able to use the clamp.
 
It should go without saying, but always try any new brush or scrubbing technique on an old scrap record. I find the run-off area is a very good indicator of problems, if you end up getting even the slightest trace of hairlines there either your brush or cleaning technique is wrong.

I remember buying a scrubbing brush off eBay that someone was selling as a miracle record wet-cleaning brush, it took me one scrap record to figure out all claims made for this thing were utter bullcrap - it's now in the kitchen functioning in it's intended role, it gets under the fingernails real nice!

Tony.
 
However, this can't be difficult to knock up at home providing one can find resilient material thin enough to be able to use the clamp.
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I found a gasket ring from a plumbing supply store (the type they use for larger diameter pipes). I glued it to a pvc pipe fitting to hold it down, and this covers the label area perfectly and protects it from the cleaning liquid. Total cost was maybe $4.
 
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