What's the best way to clean vinyl records?

VPI 16.1 on the used market - $400 - $500.00
Walker Audio Prelude Quartet Record Cleaning System - $215.00

Ptss ;
Like you I agree that cleaning well once is enough . And , yes , I use a static brush before playing every time .
Although I'm not a plastic sleeve aficionado ! These old clumsy mitts seem to get those sleeves jammed up when trying to insert or remove the record . Really quite aggravating !

Happy Tunes

To Ebuzz: once i am able to effectively clean a record, I don't see a need to repeatedly re-clean it. In fact, as Doug pointed out, leaving any fluid/residue on the record- a risk in cleaning- makes things far worse than just leaving the record alone. So, I avoid recleaning at this point as a matter of routine, but as my cleaning methods have improved, I have recleaned a number of records- some which I thought were irretrievably compromised by groove damage were in fact contaminated by a combination of ground-in pollutants, and glued firmly into place by tar from cigarettes, previous record cleaning by earlier owners (I buy mostly older pressings), etc.
The most effective 'cheap' solution I have found is AIVS No. 15 -agitate, soak, vacuum, followed by lab water/vacuum. (A VPI 16.5 will do yeoman's work here and is effective).
I've been using a lot of different methods lately, and multiple steps/approaches yield improvements for compromised records. Currently using the big Monks and the KL with reagent water. Cleaning fluids on the Monks vary, depending on a variety of factors.
Doug, have you tried Syntax's 'reverse clean' (my term, not his) ? Ultrasonic wash, then plopping on the Monks for a point nozzle dry? Extremely effective on problem records.

(Aren't there 583 different threads on this topic?)

Call Disc Doctor (see his web site) and ask someone who has been studying this for years. He'll probably suggest some kind of vacuum record cleaning machine and he'll fix you up with the proper kind of cleaner to address your needs.

And yes, he is in business to make money. But he wouldn't have lasted all these years if he was producing an inferior product or giving bad advice.

BPoletti- yes, probably more. But, I think you'll agree, that there are
probably that many different methods, approaches and favorite machines,
fluids and different combinations of steps or sequences. I never used the
DiscDoctor, from what I gather, it requires multiple rinses, and several
plays, according to the manufacturer (at least with the Miracle Cleaner, not
the one-step) , before optimal results are achieved.
In the fluid world, I have used enzymes (from Walker as well as AIVS,
which cut my work time in 1/2), along with a variety of other fluids I'm
playing with now (Monks, the TM-8 reboot of the old Torumat, and Hannl,
among others). Everybody seems to have their favorite. I have found the
enzyme cleaners to be very effective if followed by a pure water rinse.