Steam Cleaning - RCM or not?

I have seen one stylus and cantilever (out of 15-20) so badly gunked up that even aggressive scrubbing with an ME wouldn't clean it.

To revive that cartridge I used ultra-fine sandpaper, Linn's old trick. That loosened the crud up, then the usual ME + dry brush finished the job.

It took months of play with no cleaning for the cartridge to get that stubbornly dirty, but it is possible.

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FWIW, our (steamless) LP cleaning regimen (slow, costly and with expensive RCM) "never" leaves anything in the grooves. I do sometimes find a trace of dry, loose fluff on the stylus at the end of a side, but since any given LP will sometimes leave a trace of fluff and sometimes not, it's presumably airborne fluff attracted by static during play.

Should there be any fluff buildup during play we hear the degradation of HF extension, speed and "air" near side-end. That might be what you're hearing, and if you don't de-static before play (as Dan_Ed correctly advised for its own sonic benefits) it's more likely to occur.

It's even more important to de-static and dry brush *after* play before returning the LP to its sleeve, else dust collection is pretty much guaranteed.

That makes sense, Doug. I'll experiment some more...

Doug is certainly the expert when it comes to using the ME. The technique I learned from him was to trim a piece into a taper, sort of like one of those foam paint brushes, and use the thin part just like a brush instead of a dipping motion, which I never use anymore. Think brushing paint on the sides of the stylus carefully from top to bottom. It does take a reasonably steady hand and good visibility. This method should have easily taken that gummy crud off, but you would probably have had to just cut away that hunk of junk.

Keep working this with the steam and rcm, I still believe it will work very well for you once you find the techniques that work in your environment.

Also, you mentioned using a home-made cleaning solution. What this is made of, and how and when you use it in relation to the steaming step can have an impact on results. I like the idea of using an alcohol, or some other suspension, based cleaner along with the steam. This I find to keep the crud in suspension so it can be vacuumed up immediately. What works for me is to steam and then apply an alcohol based cleaner (AIVS in my case) while the LP is still wet from steam. Others report better results by applying the cleaner before steaming.

I wish everyone the best, but some of you are reacting to challenges that have already met & resolved as far as to steam cleaning. It is a fact that RCM's have a place in steam cleaning , but that does not preclude the use of steam only. For instance, the VPI RCM's work well with steam cleaning. They suck off lots of loosened materal far quicker that a Loricraft. But that does not mean a Loricraft can not be admended to the process.

The situation , the materals , the record's condition all interact with the outcome. Don't underestimate the importance of the condition of the pressing at the time of manufacture , even which pressing machine used, contribute to what resolution we hear from a given LP. I do suggest a read of most of the initial steaming thread , until the flamers . Lots of FYI buried there.

As always take care when accepting advice. Your prudence can save one from falling into a black hole. A comment I liked was from a person that claimed steamers don't make steam but water vapor koz steam is not visable to the eye. So, when one sees vapor no steam is present. Perhaps, but in the big picture its the steam (unseen) immediately followed by vapors and heated water spray that combine to loosen the grunge. Using a record cleaning solution can make for a greater improvement depending on the materials pressed between the grove and the output pressure of the steamer. Besides the idea is to use the properties of steam and water to bring you closer to the groves and hopefully the music. All steam could blow a hole thru the LP, something that can not happen with consumer grade hand-held steaming units , less garmet steamers that pose a danger to the LP due the surface area they heat. RCM certianly can significantly improve the listening experience ; they are the ultimate sucking machines.

All the Best.

I think I understand what you mean, Crem, as I've gone back and forth over the past couple of weeks switching between RCM and microfiber. And I've found that either way on some records I get gunk, sometimes that isn't gone after 2 or 3 plays. And only on some records, but while I had thought it was the end step causing it, I really am starting to think it's either something from pressing time coming loose with the steam or else...smoke, or something. At any rate, I'm glad to have come to the point I've seen for myself that I'm getting the same results basically with or without the RCM!