Re: [ARSCLIST] Superior disc cleaning technology

[Richard Warren <richard.warren@xxxxxxxx>]

Dear Mr. Newton and ARSC Listees,

Perhaps you missed the last go-around on the ARSC listserve about cleaning
records. Somewhere in that I posted a message stating, as I recall, that at
Yale we began using the Disc Doctor's equipment and fluids because a)
they'd been designed by a chemist and tested and b) because we had no space
for a cleaning machine and that our experience has been that after training
and practice our staffers could clean discs as quickly by hand (with Disc
Doctor method) as by machine, and with about equal amounts of elbow grease
and attention. Of course you'll ask how I can make comparison since Yale
doesn't have a machine: I asked friends and colleagues who have machines.

Please understand that I have no bad feelings about the Keith Monks
machine, examples of which I've seen at work since soon after the first
ones were imported; it appears well made, effective, and very expensive
(though I have to suggest, Mr. N., that you've come very close to outright
advertising, something that's supposedly a no-no on the ARSC list, in
stating facts about it -- but at least you acknowledge being a dealer).
Probably I'm just a cheap old Yankee, but I keep thinking how much fluid
and how many cleaning pads I could buy for the price of a machine, any machine.

Sincerely, Richard


At 06:04 PM 1/27/2004 -0500, you wrote:
> Richard Warren wrote:
>
> > You might consider the Disc Doctor equipment and fluids. That system
> > requires a tabletop a bit larger than the disc, and the equipment and
> > supplies can be carried in a small box box or bag.
>
> For all to note:
>
> In the Keith Monks manual, those who read it through will see that I highly
> recommend the Disc Doctors chemistry and brushes... either on their own, or
> as an adjunct to the Monks machine.
>
> They do as well as the Monks machine, but you trade off elbow grease and
> speed for a kit costing under $100.  For those with large holdings, the
> Monks makes ultimate sense.
>
> The Monks machine is portable in the military sense... you can put handles
> on it!  If you are traveling in a large car or van with a kit for doing
> record transfers at the owner's site, as has been discussed, it becomes
> worth while for the throughput... you can be cleaning the next record while
> transferring the previous one.
>
> For anyone who wants it...
> WRITE ME OFF LIST AND ASK FOR THE KEITH MONKS ARCHIVIST MACHINE MANUAL...
> I will send it to you as a PDF file attached to an email.
>
>
> For the next few days, I'll be in Washington at a Library of Congress
> Audio Engineers Roundtable on Preservation Transfer, and I'm sure I will
> meet a few of the ARSC list members there.
>
>
>
>
> ... Graham Newton
>
> --
> Audio Restoration by Graham Newton, http://www.audio-restoration.com
> World class professional services applied to tape or phonograph records for
> consumers and re-releases, featuring CEDAR's new CAMBRIDGE processes.