Shellac Stacks: How to Clean 78s 

I shopped at an antique store, where the records were stacked out of their sleeves. I found the cardboard sleeve to a 1953 extended-play 45rpm record without the disc. I rummaged through the stacks and found the record that went with the sleeve. The sleeve was intact but a little faded from age. The record however was very grimy. For just a buck, I bought it and cleaned it up using your method. There were no bad scratches, just filthy. Now it plays like it's in near mint condition.

I have cleaned a few thousand 78 rpm records in the sink, a little dish soap on a soft haired, shoe polish applicator, and cold running water. Labels get wet, but they always dry without issue. Handle carefully, while cleaning, but otherwise, no damage is caused by cleaning 78 rpm records, as you do. I've been this for 20 + years.

WOW! That cleaning process really works! 78 labels were actually pressed INTO the record at the same time as the grooves were pressed. I'm not sure what the substrate of the label is (the material being printed), but it is thicker and more stable than just plain paper. (retired printer, here)

Love the DIRTY/CLEAN comparison at the end. So many people don't understand how much better a clean record (and STYLUS) contribute to better sound quality. Honestly though, when it cums to cleaning the old 78's, I fill the kitchen sink with warm water and dish soap, I dunk the records right into the water (never ruined a single label), then I take a soft wash cloth saturated in dish soap and warm water and I give the ole 78 a gentle but efficient scrubbing. Then I rinse it with plain old tap water and drop it into my dish strainer to air dry for a few mins. Then I use a soft automotive drying towel to dry, buff and shine the record. In the end they sound 100 times better, and like I said, I've never damaged any records or labels in the process. I do the same with my LP's.

Decca/Brunswick/and Capitol 78 labels are VERY easy to ruin via water most of the time. So keep in mind for that

I’ve noticed that any video that involves cleaning records opens up a Pandora’s Box from collectors regarding “don’t do this….don’t do that…be careful with this…be careful with that…”. I’ve always found shellac / vinyl quite resilient….Great video here!

I just inherited an old 1922 Victrola and apparently a new hobby of record collecting. This was so helpful!! The sound difference was amazing.

Noticeable improvement with the cleaned records. I have mentioned that I still have a few old 78's stashed away somewhere in my basement. This gets me inspired to dig them out and clean them. Might just have a 78 listening party this weekend! Thanks for the demonstration. Peace

The Groovmaster label saver makes this job a lot easier and enables you to blast the record surface with the water stream, really flushing out the grooves. This device is designed for 45/LP but it can be modified for 78s by simply getting standard sized mason jar rubber seals. Just clip off the lip and place it around the label, place the first plate on top and insert the threaded handle then flip and repeat. You'll have enough clearance between the plate and the end grooves to get a wet cloth in there. Greatly reduces the potential for accidental dropping.

My dad was a lyricist who worked in the Brill Building in the 1950s and 60s. I inherited all of his one-sided 78 RPM demos, which were covered in dirt and mold. I had no idea how to clean them, so I will definitely give your method a try. It will be very nice to hear his old songs that I loved so much as a child (you do the math).

I just purchased an antique Ernst Grossman crank “Talking Machine” with records. I so appreciate this video and feel confident cleaning them now. Can’t wait to use it.

Wow, there is a level of dynamics and bass response there that I would never have expected from old 78s and a definite improvement! I just cleaned all mine with the Spin Clean tonight which I use with filtered water for vinyl and shellac records alike and it works quite well I must say.

Man you saved me with your technique! And that 78 records storage store is so awesome I have a bunch of them 78s in worn books and old thin original papers! I'll keep them and consider having fresh paper sleeves like you and 78 boxes, gonna be wonderful! Seriously, this American bagsunlimited store is wonderful! Can't find so much stuff to store records and -mostly- 78s in one place than there! And they ship to Canada! Love from Québec, Canada! Awesome cleaning technique again!

The same way I've seen Joe Bussard clean them so you it's the right way !!

Nice presentation, Jeff. Thank you.

Thanks so much I just started collecting and this is extremely helpful!

i also line my kitchen sink with a large old clean T-shirt just in case the record is dropped. Thanks for the demo, learned a lot! I found about 65 78rpm shellac records left in an old non working Victrola my aunt left me and had no idea how to clean them nor how to play them, so I have learned a lot from several of your videos. Great tips.

Jeff kudos to you love the hat. Thanks for taking the time to do this video. Regards

I love 78's!

Interesting video and helpful tips. I am going through my grandfather's records that have probably not been played since, well, a long time ago. This is Americana, very worth keeping. :)

Thanks very much for the detailed info for the average collector.

At first I thought this vid was really too long, but then decided it was really good. I have seen another washing 78s, and the label, with no Ill effect, but the precaution from others here is worth noting.

I like your idea of the horse brush,, Cool.

I'm a fan of PVA glue cleaning. I thin the glue about 20% with water and let the solution sit on the record for 24 hours. Peel away all grime from deep in the groove.

Great video Jeff! This was a great demonstration. Definite improvement.

Just getting into 78's I bought out an estate sale with 20 boxes of 78's. What turntable and cartridge would you recommend for playing them? THANKS for a GREAT video!

To better protect a label, before scrubbing/washing a record, I wipe the label with a slightly damp cloth to clean it. Then I rub in a very small amount of vaseline onto the label and leave it on. After the final rinse, I carefully dry the record, trying to avoid spreading vaseline into the playing surface. I then buff the label carefully with a paper towel. The label has not only been protected from moisture, it looks a lot better too.

excellent way to clean 78's. I do this also since ages. To play them NEVER forget to use OR a "mono-cartridge" OR to use the "mono-switch" on your (vintage) amp. And of course, you need a diamond-stylus suited for the job, otherwise your "point" will drop too low into the groove.

Hi, I’ve watched this vid a few times and it’s really great! However I have a question; if alcohol dissolves shellac, do you need to make sure your detergent is non alcohol based?

Thanks for your knowledgeable advice. I recently acquired a stash of "ethnic", "World Music" 78's, hope to be able to make a few $$, but first, get'em clean !

Hi all...I am new to cleaning records. I collect everything. I now am old and have to get rid of things I don't want to end up in landfill. I had a recent flood and noticed some 78's I had look a little affected by the moisture in the air. I wanted to clean these up and photo them and find a home for them. They seem to be around the "Columbia" Woody Herman and the "Victor" Vaughn Monroe era. Can you tell me if these would have paper layer in center?

Thank-you for kind lecture.I have been searching for suitable brush for cleaning record ditch."horse hair shoe brush"!! I will try.-from Japan

Hello ! I've received as a gift two old shellac records, they have printed photos on them. Can I clean them the way you do it with black shellac records ? Thanks !

I had some bonuses in the past so I bought a vacuum cleaning system, it’s made all the difference. Great A/B comparison. I have to get my 78’s organized. Maybe after I’m done moving.

Just got about 50 of them from my mom after she passed. I need to learn what I can past turntables and cartridges.

I have a bit of a problem. My sister lost her trailer home in Florida during the last hurricane she was able to salvage only a few things. And I told her I would be glad to try to clean her 78 RPM’s but this is not working too well. It’s not you or your technique. I just wonder if the water that came in (these records were covered with a film of mud) just had too much sand and dirt to be able to restore them. Any advice greatly appreciated! Thank you… Doug

Very nice video and also great to see a documentary about Joe. Can I use the same technique to wach LPs (vinyle) records or should use another method ?

I'm gonna break out a tooth brush on a couple of mine that need a little more attention after the 1st washing.

Good Video Jeff , You did a nice job on it . What Kind of turntable and Stylus do You have here ? How Many plays do you get with this needle ?

To add a fun fact about the labels of 78s: They're actually pressed into the shellac when the record is press molded. they're technically "fused" to it

Do you need to de-static the record too?

I recently added a 78 turntable to my audio system and have been cleaning 78s that I accumulated over the last three decades. I have been cleaning them very much as you are shown doing them here. The horsehair brush is a new one on me. I have the toothbrush and soft rags. Most of the 78s I have were bought at antique flea markets, used book shops and estate sales. I am hearing some of these for the first time. There are some 12” 78s I have which won’t track properly for the first inch or so; after that threshold has been crossed, they sound fine. My guess is heat damage from attic or basement storage. Maybe several repeated cleanings are in order to eradicate eighty to a hundred years of grit, right? I have both acoustic and electrical records.

Great video, Jeff. I would make a label protector (I have an old video on that in the archive) just so I wouldn't have to think about it when brushing, but I WOULDN'T use it during rinsing like I do with LPs - not durable enough.

I have acquired 26 of these shellac 78 records. They were all stacked up on the turntable of a really old portable player. One of the discs is in 3 pieces, and the others look pretty rough. As soon as I can find someone to fix the dragging on one side when it turns, I will really enjoy them. Any idea if these can be repaired? I'd like to fix the broken one if possible.

I am cleaning some old records and one has paint on it. Like someone painted and splattered on it. It's a Lightning Hopkins 78 rpm so I want to clean it. How can I get the paint off?

Thanks for the helpful video on how to clean 78's. I inherited about 200 78's from a relative recently, so I'm looking forward to using the method you recommend. One question I have is where do go to do your research on the records?

I am new to 78’s. Should they be washed often? Growing up around 45’s I know we would “clean” then before every use with the disc brush but I never witnessed any of them being washed. After a Christmas gift of an old player case with a stack of 78’s I’m looking online for any info I can get on care for them. Thanks.

Great video, Jeff. I have a question...I also have the spin-clean for records. Why is it you do not clean 78 Shellac's with their system? Thanks so much

Ok, I have inherited some 78s and I wanted to figure out if they played so I bought a cheap turntable to try them out. I am not an audiophile so please don’t harass me in the comments for this as I have a quite limited budget for this project. Some played very well but some did not. When the needle dropped it went straight to center without playing or played a few seconds then all the way to center. They do seem to have film or coating. Will cleaning them help or is this due to the cheap turntable? Is it possible that the needle accumulated a build up? Can I clean a needle? Thanks for the video and any other suggestions you may have.

The book Indian Talking Machine by Robert Millis describes his witnessing owners using shoe polish in India. This stuck with me. R.Peter Munves told me that discs exposed to organic cactus needles hold splinters bonded by friction from the speed of rotation. He posed to me if I'd experienced HMV surface noise, which is there, we know, and said it was from the ardent use of thorns (Dennis Brain was quoted in the NY Times as an admirer) I was hearing. Today I used WD-40. I've been listening to 78 rpm records for 63 years and I heard something better than any LP after being disgusted by the RCA sound on my Rubinstein Szymanowski 4 Mazurkas. The whoosh disappeared, the surface noise undetectable with a Thorens 16 reproducer and soft steel needle.

What kind of brush ? Hard or soft brissels?

I heard DJ's use the place the record on a pencil spin it in the cleaning solution then spend it in a rinse and dry it as not to wet the label and make it come loose

Do you if possible obtain original 78 sleeves.?

Def Improvement ,Cheers !!

Thanks so much! Recently picked up some decent 78s and scored a few from 1914-1918. Had to check back in this video to see if the method might be different for earlier 78s. But, your demo record's label is the same as mine so, same time period, I'm guessing. And, same cleaning procedure as my 1940-50s 78s!

That's how I do it too - more or less - except RCA Victors. Their labels fade. So I don't do it this way anymore or you have to be really really careful not to get the label wet. Columbia seems to survive with no problem. Some of the budget labels or small labels like Chess tend to crinkle.

How do I play them on a decent budget turntable? What do you recommend please?

Hello my name is Sean and I am a volunteer at the merredin railway museum in merredin and I have this record player that I own and have been using in the museum and was wondering if you know how to fix the recording it is scratched

Hi, posted a comment reguarding cleaning 78 s, not able to find it, did i post it the wrong way , asking for your thoughts

I've using Dawn concentrate dish soap. Is that safe on shellac records?

I used a trigger spray bottle (500ml) with 1/2 tspn dish detergent for cleaning 78s and dirty vinyl with toothbrush

Noice!! Love when poeple have simple solutions that everyone can use at home. By the way, I'd appreciate it if anyone could explain me something that I searched on Google, but, unfortunately, didn't find any clear answer. Why do almost all shellac record have some backround "scraping, scratchy", kind of like hiss noise? Are those modern styli to thin, so they scrape at the bottom? Or is that actually the sound from groove, because they couldn't record sound any cleaner then? Any answer would be appreciated.

Well, if water can be a hazard to labels, as some people here have said, then what about vacuuming the grooves? By the way, a great long-ago book by Cecil Watts showed photos of grooves, LP and 78. Many of the latter were full of metal chunks after just one playing with a metallic needle under a typically heavy and uncompliant pickup! Maybe a magnet for those???

can you use that brush on all records?

I was interested in shellac records as kid, but the records broke, some of them by me, some of them, when the mother can't respect the son's property and breaks records as punishment. Was a little boy, it was about 38 years before

How careful do I need to be with 78's? It sounds like they would shatter from a fall greater than a foot on hardwood.

I don't know... the cleaned records definitely had less crackles than the dirty version, but they also had a VERY noticeable increase of sibilant surface noise (edit: possibly only caused by your change of camera positionin relatio to the speakers?). Since later era 78s are actual shellac mixed with resin you may be scrubbing off the shellac finish with the shoe polish brush? I've heard people swear by spray-on furniture polish, picked some up, but have yet to try it out of concern for what residue it might leave.

That Columbia 78 RPM disc you are showing is not shellac, at least not on the surface. There is a core which is probably shellac or some similar substance. Then there is a thin sheet of paper on both sides of the core and finally a plasticized, laminated coating which was sprayed on to both sides of the disc just before pressing. The Victor discs are pure shellac through and through. So are Decca and Brunswick discs. In any case, you should clean any 78 RPM disc with cool (not hot) water from the tap being careful to avoid getting water on the label. If you do get water on the label, blot it off with a clean towel (cloth or paper). DO NOT under any circumstances use alcohol on shellac discs.

Perfect record drying rack. Where did you get it?

What is the UK equivalent of Dawn non concentrated dish soap?

Are you using a mono cartridge? If not why not? If so which brand/cart ? Stereo carts destroy these records and the stylus....that's a tip for newbees.

If you want to skip a bunch of bologna and to the point, jump to 3:10.

Why no surfactant? Do the harm shellac? I.e. Tergiclean or photo developing fluid.

I finish washing with distill water

Hi Jeff, after watching your clip here, I watched the making of 78 records: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-beMV5wcf0js.html, the label is actually made in the record not stuck on as an after thought. This may be why you can wash these in the method you described unlike later LP's. A very interesting clip, a labour intensive process. I was a bit astounded by the mixing of the base ingredients with no face covering, I would hate to think what that could do to the lungs (but we now understand a lot more than we did then about toxins and the body. Sam

Though he was Billie Jole!!☺️

How NOT to clean 78's - Don't use rubbing alcohol. It destroys the shellac surface.

I thought shellac reacted poorly to water, am I wrong?

The brush freaks me out! I NEVER use brush in record cleaning. Just the hands and jets of water.

Well I always clean My old 78rpm Records using Luke warm Soap warm water and a clean Jay cloth then I leave the substance to soak in for 5-6 minutes and rinse under a cold tap and dry with a dry cloth and it has worked perfectly well and I avoided using fancy chemicals cleaning fluids as they will do more harm than good

You don't have to clean them that way.. a damp cloth cleans them just as great! You could've saved your labels just using a damp cloth dude

i would honestly try to avoid this do to the labels.

Do NOT do this on just any 78. They are not all made of the same material. Some have paper between the sides and if there is any kind of chip on the edge, the hole, or any kind of surface crack you will ruin the record. Also, test the labels first. Not all can take that much water.

Not alchool or.alchoolic liquid.

You have some great advice on cleaning old 78s and how to keep them after cleaning. Great stuff...BUT! the first third of the video is just talking; also, you need to realize that MOST of your audience has common sense and you do not need to explain every tiny detail of everything. I mean, just say 'luke warm' and let it go...too much time on simple topics. Overall you have a good video, just cut the jabber and make it interesting. Overall, I enjoyed the information, it is helpful. I still give it a thumbs up.

Jesus Christ died for you so live for him and live

I Found a light rub WD-40 Specialist Silicone lubricant helps PVC & Shellac Silicone is All Plastics safe All metals safe All Resins safe All rubber Safe I use a Crap Cheap Turntable Under £$ 40.00 And toss it in the Stink - (Tanked) Dishwasher (the intention is Its unplugged and allowed to swim in water (even over a week if it has to) and will never be used for playing only for Wet cleaning them) + To save water Also have a USB Recharged Portable Shower + Pump with a 14 in one shower head Replacement so can keep reusing using The Soap water stage to wash a good Numberer of Records + Sous vide Cooker, (Immersion Heater Circulator) with temp Control (keeps the water to temp and balanced temp due it moves the water around Tanked Dishwasher Its not just Tap water you can use in them but also Distilled water + Isopropyl alcohol Just remember to buy A Water distiller with fan Condenser and you can keep reusing the Isopropyl alcohol + make your own Distilled water Use a jerry can to collect the Used Isopropyl alcohol > Boil it in the Water distiller solids "Mud" left in the boiling chamber You just washout with Tap water after The only dishwasher tabs for records are the ones that do Glass "Finish - Quantum" but this Reserved for the first 8 Washes - other washes most be done with the dishwasher Gels + castle liquid bio soap (more of a Organic oils)

Great video. I would never have washed my records like this, as I thought they were more sensitive. Btw...your sink is kinda disgusting 🙃

ah man....this is terrible. I am sorry for the bad comment, but seriously - we use the mix of distilled water + isopropyl alcohol + photonal in setup of 900ml, 100ml, 5ml to keep the records as clean as possible and dry them without any leftovers and sediment. Never touch the record with anything hard to avoid scraches and finger marks.

This would've been SO much better if he actually cleaned a DIRTY record, and secondly, if he wasn't so verbose. 8 minutes of info crammed into 21 minutes.

Too much repetitive talk. Just get to the point of your process!

Denatured Alcohol is the best way to clean shellac. *DO NOT DO THIS!, It’s an inside joke for people familiar with how well Denatured Alcohol eats away at Shellac*

Do you ever stop talking and do some cleaning ?

Annoying. Please get on with it

@vinyleyezz i dont think Jarrett New will like this...

I can go you one better . In a small bucket , use 1 cup T.S.P. (Tri sodium phosphate) found in any hardware store . Add fairly warm water. Wash with cloth .... and rinse. T.S.P. will be the only thing that will dissolve 100 years of build in grime and wash it away easily . Just remember not to use TSP straight up on shellac records or you'll dissolve the shellac. I've used this on vinyl as well for many years and works amazing at removing the most stubborn gunk.