Vinyl Asylum

• Turntable Basics has one for $10 - IBSmiester 18:59:00 07/12/06 (0)
  In Reply to: Best price for AQ record brush? posted by M3 lover on July 12, 2006 at 16:23:17:

  I just ordered one for a friend, I'll be able to compare it with my AQ brush in not too long a time. Visually, they look exactly the same.
  
  IBSmiester
  Open Your Ears....
  

  • http://www.turntablebasics.com/cleaners.html   (Open in New Window)

  
  

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• Sleeve City brush works ok (with rcm's) for the money. But... - tketcham 17:44:46 07/12/06 (4)
  In Reply to: Best price for AQ record brush? posted by M3 lover on July 12, 2006 at 16:23:17:

  it tends to clump up even more than the AQ brush when wet cleaning. Have to keep it pretty well soaked or it clumps up and leaves gaps in the bristles. I bought one to try out but I'll probably go back to the AQ brush.

  Just curious, but why do you think you need to keep each brush "pure"? I have one brush for the first cleaning cycle and then another brush for the second (and for me, final) cleaning cycle using RRL solutions.

  Tom
  
  

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  • Re: Sleeve City brush works ok (with rcm's) for the money. But... - hmv-alp 10:22:27 07/13/06 (1)
    In Reply to: Sleeve City brush works ok (with rcm's) for the money. But... posted by tketcham on July 12, 2006 at 17:44:46:

    The Audioquest style carbon fiber brushes are not supposed to be used for wet cleaning. Use the Nitty Gritty wet brush or something similar for wet cleaning and use the carbon fiber brushes for dry dust removal before playing.

    Has anyone tried the Mobile Fidelity brush? It has a nice ergonomic handle, but appears to just use a felt pad for cleaning.
    
    

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    • Carbon fiber brushes work better for wet cleaning... - tketcham 18:31:02 07/13/06 (0)
      In Reply to: Re: Sleeve City brush works ok (with rcm's) for the money. But... posted by hmv-alp on July 13, 2006 at 10:22:27:

      using the RRL system as they don't collect gunk that then gets dragged across your record with every rotation of the rcm and, the carbon fiber brushes get down into the grooves better. The brush is really there to evenly distribute the cleaning fluid and assist it in putting the gunk into solution for the vacuum to pick up.

      My only complaint about carbon fiber brushes is that, as you say, they aren't design specifically for wet cleaning. What we need is a carbon fiber (or similar) brush that IS specifically designed for wet cleaning and won't clump up when wet.

      Tom
      
      

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  • Interesting comment, and you ask a fair question . . . - M3 lover 23:35:01 07/12/06 (1)
    In Reply to: Sleeve City brush works ok (with rcm's) for the money. But... posted by tketcham on July 12, 2006 at 17:44:46:

    First off, I believe the bristles on the VPI brush are too thick to really get into the grooves, which seems to be supported by other comments on VA, so I want something finer.

    So, I'm thinking, why not buy two brushes to separate cleaning and rinsing (when needed) function? Then I look at the six different cleaning solutions I have on hand to test for myself and think, well, what if I decide on three of these for different situations (standard cleaning, mold release cleaning, and deep cleaning for unusual deposits)?

    While testing different solutions, I can wash out the brushe(s), going from one to another. But if I settle on three solutions, it might be nice to have a separate brush for each, and I may need two rinse cycle brushes. That totals five so with a spare, thought I should buy six.

    If you clean with more than one solution, do you recommend a dedicated brush for each, or simply wash one brush out thoroughly between solutions?
    
    

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    • I kept it simple... - tketcham 06:06:24 07/13/06 (0)
      In Reply to: Interesting comment, and you ask a fair question . . . posted by M3 lover on July 12, 2006 at 23:35:01:

      for now anyway, and only use the two RRL solutions. I have one brush (the Sleeve City knock-off) for initial cleaning and one AQ brush for the second (final) cleaning. That way I only really contaminate the first brush with all the gunk that gets released from the lp. I am mixing solutions on the first cleaning though. I typically start out cleaning only the lps that were taken care of and not that dirty, with the Super Vinyl Wash for both steps. Then, for the used lps that are pretty dirty, I go to the Super Deep Cleaner for the first step. I'm mixing solutions in the brush but to compensate I shake out the excess Vinyl Wash and use more Deep Cleaner on the first lp of the dirty batch to really saturate the brush.

      I do use a pre-clean step to take the worst dirt and dust off used albums so that the Super Deep Cleaner and the first brush have less gunk to deal with. The second brush should remain less contaminated since the worst of the gunk has now been vacuumed up. At least that's my theory.

      I rinse off each brush with distilled water after each cleaning session, even though RRL recommends using only their solutions to do the rinsing. That could get expensive so I just use distilled water and shake out the excess before drying. I think that the more important aspect of the brushes is to thoroughly spread the solutions around the surface of the lp. Some contamination from the water probably isn't going to reduce the effectiveness of the solutions all that much. At least I haven't noticed a difference.

      You're probably right in that having a separate brush for each solution is the best solution. I'm just too frugal to do the proper thing. And I just went with the RRL solutions without trying any others out. Since you're doing some testing, let us know what you find after a good trial.

      Tom
      
      

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• I have the cheap Garage-a-records brush for wet cleaning - soundnut 17:26:00 07/12/06 (0)
  In Reply to: Best price for AQ record brush? posted by M3 lover on July 12, 2006 at 16:23:17:

  It's 10 bucks and doesn't shed. Does a fine job. I save the AQ for dry brushing, though.

  Cheers,
  Bobbo :-)
  

  • CF Brush link   (Open in New Window)

  
  

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• Re: Best price for AQ record brush? - jhorowitz128 17:16:52 07/12/06 (0)
  In Reply to: Best price for AQ record brush? posted by M3 lover on July 12, 2006 at 16:23:17:

  M3,

  TR Audio sells the Audioquest brush for $15.00 w/free shipping in the US. I've dealt with them a few times and delivery is fast. They also accept Paypal. I've used them when I had my VPI 16.5 and they work fairly well.

  I've also used the cheap knock-off brushes and have found that they shed. I would not recommend them for wet cleaning, but I suppose they're ok for dry cleaning.

  Hope this helps,
  Jeff

  
  

  • TR Audio   (Open in New Window)

  
  

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