Which head cleaner to use?

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T.Perpendicular

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Is there one type of head cleaner better than others. What do you use? Does anyone just use alcohol?

How is chemtronics head cleaner II?
 
I just use iso~propanyl alcohol. For the tape deck in my van, I use one of those cassette headcleaners that you can pour a little iso~propanyl into/onto. It has coarse white tape.
 
I find that any shampoo will work if you use a good conditioner afterwards.
And of course, brushing or combing in between helps.
 
zorf said:
I find that any shampoo will work if you use a good conditioner afterwards.
And of course, brushing or combing in between helps.
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What if you're bald ?
 
T.Perpendicular said:
How is chemtronics head cleaner II?
Click to expand...

Been using the Chemtronics II for the last 15-20 years, never had any problems with it, and it's been safe even on plastic parts (no meltdown)...it was recommended as better than plain alcohol, though if you get 99% isopropyl, it's fine too.
 
"What if you're bald ?"

Then any kind of alcohol should work.
i prefer bourbon.
 
I use 99% isopropyl, don't use less than 99%, water is the enemy of your heads. I haven't been able to find anything greater than 70% ("rubbing" alcohol) at places like Walgreens, but here in the Upper Midwest USA, the local Fleet Farm has big bottles of 99% for less than a buck. Make sure you're not using plastic-stick swabs, stick with paper or wood.
 
I still prefer the 100% cottom makeup remover pades for cleaning heads and tape path components, especially on 1/2" and larger format heads. They do a better job.
 
sweetbeats said:
I still prefer the 100% cotton makeup remover pads....
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Hey...whatever kind of lifestyle you're into...it's cool...we're all friends here. ;)

:D


How easy is it to get a hand-held cotton pad into the small, inner edges of the guides where stuff can build up?
I could see the pad being great for the heads and outer areas of the guides...but I got fat fingers, ain't no way I'm going to wedge them into the tight corners, so the old Q-Tip gets in there easier for me. :)
 
Its a whole lot easier than a cotton swab I'll tell you that much, because you can bunch the pad up and shape it to the cranny...just try it. The larger surface area is nice too because you can wetten the pad with the cleaner without having it saturated and there is more area to capture soilage. They are cheaper than the good-quality wood-stick swabs too. Just try it and see what you think...after all, we're all friends here...right??
 
I don't bother with the wooden-stick swabs....I use the paper-stick Q-Tips, they are pretty cheap and no chance of the ends pushing through and marking up a surface like the wooden sticks can do.

Here's the thing...I clean my deck's guides & heads every time I use it....sometimes I'll even clean it during a recording session if I'm going all day long and just to be safe....or before I dump to DAW.
You know what...I rarely ever find any gunk or bits of anything on the guides. At most, I'll see a little "shadow" on the Q-Tip after cleaning, and that's only when I've worked the tape for many hours in a session.

So I don't find much need to have to get in there and do some serious scrubbing to keep things clean. I think much of that has to do with the 911 tape that I use. It's such a silky smooth, clean running tape...that I never get any kind of gunk like when I use to use 456 a long time ago.
I've got a large supply of 911...and the shit just seems to last forever. I have 911 tapes from BASF days, and they run as good as the newest stock...and IMO, even a touch better than the new RMGI stuff, but the RMGI is pretty close and still much better than Ampex stock.

Next time I'm in Rite-Aid...I'll check out the makeup pads....but it will feel the same as buying tampons for a GF! :D
 
I think that is tremendous about the AGFA/BASF/EMTEC/RMGI stock...I have some BASF branded SM911 that I got NOS and yeah...NO issues at all. Amazing.
 
I saw mention of heads and guides, but don't forget that capstans and pinch rollers also need cleaning...
 
sweetbeats said:
Its a whole lot easier than a cotton swab I'll tell you that much, because you can bunch the pad up and shape it to the cranny...just try it. The larger surface area is nice too because you can wetten the pad with the cleaner without having it saturated and there is more area to capture soilage. They are cheaper than the good-quality wood-stick swabs too. Just try it and see what you think...after all, we're all friends here...right??
Click to expand...


*heads to Walgreens to ask the makeup clerk if she has pads for an MCI 1" headstack* :p


Don't alc the pinch roller though, it'll dry out the rubber.
 
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