Loricraft Record Cleaning

I also understand that as of this month all units will have a bidirectional motor built in. Is this used just for the scrubbing phase, or does it come into play during the drying phase as well?

Neither! ;-)

Loricraft added a bidirectional motor to meet customer requests, but I'm not sure how useful it will be.

The platter spins much too fast (75rpm+) for scrubbing. Offering birectional spin with a slow speed would have been useful, but at this speed it hardly matters.

Bidirectional spin probably serves no purpose at all when vacuuming. One way's as good as the other as far as I can see.

As Tim said, simplicity is a good thing. I don't even bother with O-rings on the spool spindle. Advancing the thread by PULLING on the thread while the nozzle is sucking air works perfectly. You control the amount of thread released and there's no thread fouling, which can happen if you twist the spool while the nozzle is down on the LP or the machine top plate. Less is more.

Doug

thread fouling, which can happen if you twist the spool while the nozzle is down on the LP or the machine top plate

Without O-rings on the spindle, the spool does turn freely and its easy for the thread to ravel off it or loop under the spool or otherwise foul. I think thats true however the thread is advanced. An index mark with a felt pen on one of the spool's spokes makes for an easy way to gauge the amount of thread played out. Turning the spool with the vacuum on, I get 8 passes out of one revolution of the spool. You could probably get more. Never thought to pull the thread at the nozzle with my fingers - if you choose that method, then yes, you need the spool to turn freely.

I have no idea if the PRC-3 offers improved cleaning with bidirectional rotation and a three position motor toggle. Sometimes I'll put the nozzle on the other side of the record so it runs outside in and I have no idea if that makes a difference vs inside out.

Tim

Jcoehler, SMART used to have a detailed "how to use" page on their website.

No cleaner came with my unit, but I have used AudioTop which doesn't work well with the Loricraft as it evaporates too quickly. I have also used Disk Doctor and RRL, which are both okay. The Walker three stage Prelude is clearly the best of what I have used. I do two rinses, however. The last is with the ultra pure water he includes.

I think you will find that records you thought were clean, weren't.

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Jcoehler,
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The best fluids for cleaning are Audio Intelligent 4 step (I do a double rinse with their Ultra-Pure Water) and the Walker Prelude System. The other fluids pale by comparison. My good friend who did a comparison of the two gives a slight nod to the AI over the Walker, but I am guessing you won't go wrong with either product.
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The Ultra-Pure Water rinse is essential (whether you use AI or Prelude) and well worth the time and money. It makes a major difference.
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I also have the Loricraft PRC-4 and it yields a major difference in the sonics for the positive. You have made a decision that you will be happy with for a long time to come.
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Rgds,
Larry
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