I've just been scrolling through the comments and I have to laugh. This man knew more about these records I dare say than anybody did or ever will. Saving these records were his life and there will NEVER be another like him. He was the King of 78's May he Rest in Peace.
I drop my 78s in some liquid nitrogen and freeze the solid. Then I take them out back and sandblast them (just about a millimeter or so). Next I throw them under a heat lamp. They're ready to play in a couple hours or so. Sound is better than new.
No no no no no no no..... he's a rightly gentleman about MOST things 78s but no way in Hell am I gonna clean a Charley Patton grail record with a hard showbrush! And he didn't mention it has to be 'blue dishwashing' soap, not just any because some soaps contain moisturizer which is like putting oil on the record.
People forget that 78s are NOT made of vinyl/PVC. That material wasn’t used until LP’s came along in the late 40s, not widely anyway. So if Joe says this is how he cleans 78s, then I fucking trust him. Dude was a legend, RIP.
he's using a horse hair brush it's much less abrasive then you'd think. that metal rack without any rubber on it on the other hand is just dinging in the grooves
Using well water or tap water would contain minerals, but if you have a water softener in your house, that takes a lot of the minerals (specifically lime) out of the water
F..k, I wouldn't dare to that, I clean by using a soft cloth with a dab of isopropanal alcohol diluted to about 1 part to 50 parts water, then use another cloth to wipe clean. Works well with me but don't use the I.A neat cause that will bleach a lot of the 78s white.
He's cleaning wide groove shellac 78rpm records, on which you can use much more aggressive methods. Your suggestion of using alcohol and a soft cloth is acceptable for vinyl LP records, but should never be used on shellac 78s, as alcohol dissolves shellac.
