Which Record Cleaning Fluid You Using?

[Whart]

Yep, there are all kinds of recipes. I'm not a chemist (I think Myles has the credentials and should probably weigh in), but the trick is to break the surface tension of the water and to have something that will dissolve or loosen the foreign matter (whether that is paper, ground-in grit, fingerprints, particulates that are essentially 'glued' to the vinyl by cigarette smoke, etc). Alcohol works to a degree; in fact, I think the reagent water itself has solvent-like properties.
I've found that the enzyme-based cleaners work very well, if applied, agitated and left to work on the surface. I think one of the chief advantages of alcohol in small amounts is that it evaporates (which is why, if my recollection is right, Walker uses some in his 'finishing rinse' as a 4th step, rather than just super-pure water).
I've bought a few records that were in the category of unlistenable due to decades of gunk that, once cleaned properly, came up to first tier quality. But, it takes time and labor.
Everybody finds their own 'method' based on convenience, time, $ and 'work flow.'
I don't necessarily pre-clean a brand new record before using the ultrasonic machine, but I've learned through experience that for older records (which is the majority of what I buy) that they benefit from pre-cleaning and multiple cleaning steps. This is so even if the record looks pristine. (Visual grading being largely meaningless).
PS: And as I think Myles will verify, one of the advantages of using some form of very pure water for a rinse is to get the cleaning agents off the record, due to their potential sonic signature.

[John49]

As you can see from my Avatar, I have mine licked clean.

[jfrech]

I have not read this whole thread...but I really love the Monks Discovery fluids...

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[John49]

Originally Posted by jfrech

I have not read this whole thread...but I really love the Monks Discovery fluids...

That's all I use now on my Keith Monks RCM.