Opinions please

Point about using a shop vac taken. But a good shop vac is not cost-free, either. I guess you can justify purchasing it for its many other uses. Really, an RCM just makes cleaning simpler and easier, due to the rotating platter which makes it easier to distribute and scrub in cleaning solutions and to the built-in vac, which I cannot help but think is a whole lot easier to use than a hand-held shop vac. But there is no right or wrong in this discussion.

my kab-1 works as well as any, and you get a more hands on cleaning.

Lewn; you are absolutely 100% correct! A RCM will make life really easy for you. I spend literally hours cleaning records. However, I have more time than money right now. Also, I enjoy it. I have a little station set up in the basement. Every Friday (I buy lots of used records) I spend 1-2 hours with a few beers, maybe catch a game and take my time cleaning. It's a little stress relief and an escape. Then, upstairs to some listening on nice quiet, clean vinyl. I love it!!

Thank you for your responses. I find them informative and valuable in reaching my decision.It seems as if the VPI provides the best job for the money and time invested in cleaning vinyl.
Thanks again,
Mike

Hmm, interesting… I feel the main advantage is for myself… RCM is no doubt 30 seconds of cleaning oppossed to 30 mins of setting up a clean, safe, and easy to use environment each time to do something so silly… But mainly I feel saftey is the key here… It is much less of an issue scrapping, dropping, banging around a piece of vinyl in a utility sink somewhere, or on top of a counter or whatever… so in a way to keep everything compact, super simple, and easily accessable seems to me to be worth 300 to 500 bucks if your serious about this.. Now for me(and I am speaking for myself) I use to clean by hand… and never got the results or pleasure in the end as you can somewhat choke down using a record machine for a minuet. They do make the process a little more reasonable, and safer if you don't want the risk of rough handling on vinyl you don't ever expect to replace.. At least get a really crappy turntable to place them on to have some control.

That being said, I would just not care so much about vinyl if I was forced to clean without a machine, cause it is necessary to have them clean no doubt.. I am not going to push anything about Sonic advantages, but just facts..
Cause I know if I go and pick up 3 new albums next week.. They will sit for about 3 months till I finally get the Motivation to mess around with trying to get them perfect by hand… RCM's Have a large amount of advantage, its on a rotating controlled platter, No shop vac nozzle will go BAnging into it, or flying off the table… and I won't be drying my lables with a hair dryer if a mistake happens :)

Kinda like somebody saying today they would just live with an outhouse in the backyard, even though people tell them all about this nice indoor plumbing, but they will still refuse the huge benefits..
RCM potential buyers do yourself a huge favor, get one, and get the vinyl under the needle for listening…