At the time of starting this project my LP collection consisted of around 70 records, ranging from dirty to fairly clean. Not even brand new records are really clean, there is always some dust and small pieces of vinyl from the manufacturing still on the record. Given this I wanted to clean all my records and started to look into record cleaning machines.
There are some cheaper manual ones such as the SpinClean available, with a growing record collection I figured that I would get tired of that whole process quite quickly, probably even before I was done with my current records. So I started to look at the lower priced semi-automatic ones, the top end fully automatic models are decidedly out of my price range. Something like the OkkiNokki or ProJect Vinyl Cleaner S starts around 500€, and looking at them I figured that I could make something like that but with a nicer look, at least in my eyes, for less than their asking price.
That is how this project started out and to be fair I have spent more than 500€ on it in the end, but that is because I have been buying tools that I had planned on buying anyways. If the looks is not a priority there are also a bunch of corners to cut, both material and tools wise, to get something that works well but might not be something you would want to have on display.
I started out by modelling the whole project using SketchUp to make sure that everything was going to fit together and to see that the idea I had in my head was going look as I wanted to. While this took some time, and learning how to use SketchUp, I can not recommend it highly enough! It saved me from what would otherwise have been some very stupid mistakes and when cutting, sawing, routing and drilling I could use the model to get the exact measurements. I will always start out by making a 3D model for all my projects from now on!
To protect the record label from cleaning fluid and keep the record in place when turning on the vacuum I wanted to make a record clamp.
It was done by routing two circular pieces, slightly larger than a record label, out of 5mm black acrylic. In both of these I then routed a wide track. The track was then filled with BB bullets to add some weight and holes were drilled for the screws that later will keep the handle in place.
The pieces were then glued together using Acrifix 192, the bolts seen in the middle of the clamp were only used to keep it pressed together and in the correct position while the glue was doing its work. After that I polished the edges, removed the plastic protection and the bottom part was done.
The handle on top is a junior sized hockey puck that I drilled a centre hole through and then just fastened by using wood screws, counter sunk to ensure flush fit against the record. I had also pre-drilled smaller holes in the puck to help when fastening the screws.
Both the control panel and the back panel were made out of 1mm aluminium with leather covering it. The back panel has one connection for 12V and a compressed air quick release used to connect the vacuum.
The control panel has a power switch for the electrical motor and another switch to control the direction.
The box was made from two oak shelves bought from the local "Home Depot" type of store. I then mitered the corners and cut a hole for the back panel including using a rabbet router bit to make a nice fit for the panel. After this I polished and oiled all the pieces. It is important to pre-drill holes for the screws to avoid that the wood cracks. While taking the measurements from the model to make sure that all pieces ends up in the correct place so that everything will fit together in the end, there is no substitute for putting the pieces together for the final fitting and pre-drilling the holes.
A close-up of the back panel mounted to the box, not a perfect fit but fairly close and it works just as well as I had planned.
The cradle for the motor was made from 1mm aluminium that I drilled holes in and then bent to shape. A connector was installed in the cradle to make it easy to connect the power. The motor is a 12V geared 20 rpm motor which I power with an old power supply for an external HDD. The power supply is rated at 12V 2A, I then use a step-down converter to feed the motor with 9V which brings it down to about 14rpm which I feel is a nice speed for the record when cleaning it.
The top is made from 8mm clear acrylic that I cut to size, drilled holes for the drive shaft and all bolts, used a hole saw to cut out a hole for the vacuum and, using a jig that I made, routed a hole for the control panel. With all that done I taped it up very carefully with painters tape and then spray painted the backside of it to keep that shiny top surface while making it a clean white that goes well together with the oak.
The record platter is made from two pieces that I routed out of 8mm clear acrylic. These were then joined together using five small bolts, a track was routed for the drive shaft, the edges polished and lastly small rubber domes were fastened to make sure that the cleaned side of the record will not get dirty when the other side is cleaned.
The drive shaft was made from a 6mm steel rod where I drilled a hole straight through to fit part of a dry-cleaner hanger which will turn the record platter. To make sure that the record platter does not rest on the drive shaft and in turn the motor I made a three point rest out of one of the scrap pieces from using the hole saw, drilling holes for three arms made out of dry cleaner coat hangers with 10mm ball bearings at the ends which the platter then rests on, works great.
The vacuum tube is made from a 30mm acrylic pipe cut to 45 degrees and then glued together. A slit was cut using a Dremel and then velvet strips were glued along it using super glue. The end cap is made from a Avian water bottle cap painted white. The compressed air quick release was a perfect fit, with a bit of plumbers tape, into one of the scrap pieces from the hole saw, this was then glued to the end of the vacuum tube. The vacuum tube is then connected through a hose that goes to the back panel.
To the back panel the cleaning fluid container is then connected, all the cleaning fluid that is removed from the record is collected here. To connect the vacuum I cut two pieces of acrylic that were glued together and then ground down just enough to ensure a snug fit into the vacuum. I'm using a shop vacuum, one of the smaller models from Kärcher, which works great for me. Using a shop vacuum has a couple of advantages, it makes it easy to switch vacuum in case of failure and I do not need to pull mains voltage into the RCM which makes it safer.
This project took quite some time, have I had access to a real workshop it would have been easier. I basically built all of it in our apartment living room, which limited me in when I could do things, I did not want to disturb our neighbours by using power tools late evening. While I really like acrylic as a material it can be very messy to work with, ending up with small pieces of melted acrylic throughout the apartment is not always appreciated by my fiancée.
The RCM works really well but even with the help of it it takes quite some time to clean a bunch of records, so I am very happy that I made it because if I had bought one of the manual ones I would have regretted it and still not have clean records. I really recommend cleaning your records though, it makes a huge difference, not only do the records visually look much cleaner, which in itself is very satisfying, the good quality ones become almost silent and the lower quality ones becomes notably better, huge difference!
