Whats The Best Way To Clean Up A Scruffy 45 As Best You Can?

[Guest Andy Kempster]

got a record through the post the other day and the condition is not great to say the least

wouldnt even sell it as 'OK for DJing' if you know what I mean

howver, i did get it at a good price and love it to bits so would rather clean it up as much as possible and bring it up to the 'OK for DJing' mark

it is quite scuffed and dirty but does not skip or pop, just got a lot of hiss and crackle....any hints

[Mickjay33]

GET A TIN OF AMBERSIL / AMBERCLENS ITS AN ANTI STATIC CLEANING FOAM I HAVE CLEANED UP A LOT OF RECORDS UP THAT WHERE PAST THERE PLAY BY DATE , IF YOU GOOGLE AMBERSIL ITS ABOUT £3.99 A CAN

[Cunnie]

Isopropyl alcohol or surgical spirit from the chemist.

Don't go near an acetate with it though.

Other option is the way below

[Guest Andy Kempster]

i use this at work, do you think thats the same thing?

 

Antistatic Foam Cleaner Ref: AFC

• Non flammable
• Protects from static loading
• Biodegradable
• Safe on all plastics

MSDS (.pdf)

TDS (.pdf)

Quantity: Product options

 

[Mickjay33]

pics not come thru but it sounds like the stuff i use Anti-static Foaming Cleaner if it is shake can well spray on vinyl gently rub foam into the grooves with your finger then wipe with soft tissue then wipe with a normal record cleaning cloth play the record on your deck a few times and watch the crap come out the grooves if the record is really bad repeat again hope this helps

mick jay

[Guest]

Turtle wax car polish willl polish vinyl up, BUT wont clear the hiss, an anti static as suggested above, Liquid Gold also gives a short term gloss to vinyl.

Presume any vinyl shiner as usedfor cars will ldo the trich, BUT I've not tried one

Edited February 11, 2011 by DanDare

[Guest Andy Kempster]

cheers chaps, will try this and report back !!!

[Dazdakin]

If its just dust/dirt clogging up the grooves and not actual faint scratches which you can do nothing about then just keep on playing on repeat for a dozen times stick it in a bag take it somewhere where there is compressed air lines used to blow away metal turnings or the like i.e. an engineering shop and just blow away till your hearts content......word of warning though dont let air get under any lifting paper label kind of affair as its the last time you will see it if you know what i mean.

[michael-j]

a good soak in clean warm water (i use an upturned shot glass as a middle to keep the disc off the bottom), then a thorough clean with Fairy liquid and a soft small paintbrush, thoroughly rinsed, then dried and left out for a few hours to dry completely.

playing to remove dust is a bad idea - the dust will get melted into the vinyl as the stylus passes over it

[KevH]

Soft cloth,warm water and a dab of Fairy Liquid.Gently clean against the grooves.

I've got some vinyl record cleaner from HMV from years ago.Dont they sell it anymore?

Edited February 11, 2011 by KevH

[Dobber]

im about to give some of the best advice you will ever get regarding knackered 45's,my trade is spraying cars and my job has proved useful to clean up crap vinyl!

fistly you will need to buy some products,that are quite expensive,but will last you for years.

1. 3m superfine denib wet & dry paper

2. 3m finnesse polish

these 2 will set you back about £40,however there are cheaper versions,but i use these all the time and are the best quality.

technique

1. take a piece of the paper and dip it in soapy water and lightly rub (flat) the vinyl surface,you dont need to press to hard,go around the surface 2 or 3 times,avoid the label though.

2.dry the vinyl,it will look matt,but you have just taken out all the scratches and scuffs.

3.take a soft cloth,apply some finesse polish,then just keep rubbing that vinyl until it shines,apply as much polish as you need and keep going

and thats it.

once you have the knack,you can save an old piece of vinyls life.

bare in mind ive done this for years,and believe me i can make a a bollocks record play and look like new again!

if i get chance i will post a before and after pic of a refurbed 45.

get rubbing!

[boba]

i hope you disclose that you've polished your records before reselling

[Dobber]

thats a bit of a negative statement dont you think,my advice was to help collectors clean up there 45's that would normally not see the light of day because they dont play,also as a tool to use when they have bought a 45 off the bay that arrives in a unplayable state,if you use my technique you will find you can make your 45's useable again!

try it for yourself boba,you might be surprised!

[Dazdakin]

So what you are saying is that you are basically "T" cutting the bad vinyl away and leaving fresh polished new vinyl in the same way you would polish out scratches on car paint work??

Yeah i can see that working to restore the "look" of a 45 but it aint gonna remove any hiss or clicks as they are inside the grooves themselves, but as a way of restoring the shine yes it would work me thinks

[Dazdakin]

"BOBA" & "DOBBER"

There got to be a wise crack in that somewhere just cant seem to get my head in gear to find it

[Dobber]

haha..yeah similar user names i suppose...sounds like actors in a adult film...anyway,with my technique,sometimes the scratche or scuff is sometimes just on the surface and it will remove them easily,your right though if the scratche is very deep,you wont get rid of it,but it will reduce it,therefore the needle will a lot of the time glide over it,as for hiss,with the polishing it does get rid of it immensely,however i wouldnt use tcut,thats to aggressive,the polish i mention is nothing more than a tougher wax...just give it a go on a 45 your not arsed about or you cant make any worse,and see what you think!

[boba]

I am not going to polish my records, I am able to successfully clean them without polishing them. Polished records are immediately apparent as you can see dull scratches where deeper scratches used to be and it has a weird unnatural shine. Fidelity is also affected. I advise anyone against polishing their records and if you sell records that have been polished it's unethical to not disclose that fact.

[Dobber]

do you not think that if a 45 is in a bad way to the extent that you cant even be bothered with it,that any possible solution eg..polishing might give it a chance to be played again,and i think we have all bought something from ebay that isnt in great nick that again any solution is a good solution,as for selling on,there are many scenarios isnt there, for example if a 45 was offered to you and its a £100 for a mint copy,or the same 45 for £30 but it has been cleaned up and still plays well,and you only have £30,wouldnt you buy the £30 copy so at least you have it?

[Guest Andy Kempster]

seems the anti static foam cleaner has come up trupms, its still not perfect but is certainly now playable with only a small crackle

gave it 4 doses and am well pleased. now got a bargain rather than a turkey

[Dobber]

great stuff andy...sometimes its worth buying a 45 when its in poor condition,especially when its a rare one, or normally expensive,because with a bit of elbow grease you can end up with a good playable tune!

i bought the chandlers your love makes me lonely a few years back,the label was nice but the vinyl knackered,even by the sellers admission "unplayable" anyway i paid £25 for it,got it home,put some effort into it,and not only did it look pretty damn good,but played straight through as good as a ex described 45.under usual circumstances that record would have been a couple of hundred quid.

[Mickjay33]

seems the anti static foam cleaner has come up trupms, its still not perfect but is certainly now playable with only a small crackle

gave it 4 doses and am well pleased. now got a bargain rather than a turkey

im pleased it worked and it makes the record look pretty good 2

mick jay

[Godzilla]

... if a 45 was offered to you and its a £100 for a mint copy,or the same 45 for £30 but it has been cleaned up and still plays well,and you only have £30,wouldnt you buy the £30 copy so at least you have it?

Maybe - but I'd want to know if it had been polished and I would probably want to hear it next to an unpolished copy for comparison. If you grind down the surface of the 45 - which is in effect what you're doing, then you reduce the depth of the groove that the stylus sits in. Therefore the stylus collects less audio information from the record. That doesn't necessarily mean that the copy will sound rough - but it does mean there will a loss of fidelity, as Bob says.

[boba]

also, part of my point is that you can clean a record without polishing it. the remaining effect of the polishing will be purely cosmetic. polishing doesn't really eliminate scratches at the bottom of the groove, it just makes them less visible.

dobber, sorry if it sounds if i am personally attacking you, i know you are just trying to help. polished records are a pet peeve of mine. thanks.

[Dobber]

fair play to ya boba,i think with words on a screen,things dont always come across in the way intended,dont get me wrong,if i bought a 45 in good faith and it came clearly polished to death i wouldnt be happy,as you have said,a good quality vinyl spray usual does the trick,my way is a bit of a cobble,and should only be used when there is no options left other than chuck it in the bin,talk about bringing my work home with me...haha

[Guest Andy Kempster]

just used the same technique to resurrect a copy of you're my mellow that has been langushing in the back of the cupboard for at least 7 years

bonus!!!!!

[Neil Austin]

On 11/02/2011 at 15:13, Guest Andy Kempster said:

got a record through the post the other day and the condition is not great to say the least

 

wouldnt even sell it as 'OK for DJing' if you know what I mean

 

howver, i did get it at a good price and love it to bits so would rather clean it up as much as possible and bring it up to the 'OK for DJing' mark

 

it is quite scuffed and dirty but does not skip or pop, just got a lot of hiss and crackle....any hints

Fairy liquid works magic on static and

groove clean , it’s an easy win , only

use it sparingly.