Playing records wet / cleaning them up to be played dry again

http://www.plasticrevolver.com/wetplay.htm

i've never heard of anything being used that would require the record to be 'specially prepared' to be played dry again, but i strongly suspect wet playing is nutso audiophile hoodoo most of the time.

I had to do wet playing in order to get a good vinyl rip off some library sale LPs once. There were some big skips that I could only eliminate by wetting 'em up.

They did sound pretty bad after they dried out, but they were practically garbage to begin with.

I've seen it on two auctions in the last couple of days. Naßabspielen. I wasn't sure what the english term for it was, and you can imagine how fruitful "wet play" is on google. Thanks for the link.

I'm hoping it's just an audiophile thing. because there are some cheapo goodies being sold with this warning. I prefer my records to sound clean, but as long as it doesn't produce skips, and it doesn't make a persistent, highly noticable noise, I don't think I'll mind.

In my searching, I came across instructions for fixing skips by dragging a pin head along the grooves in the location of the scratch/skip. The dude claimed it worked, but I find it suspect.

Isn't it common practise to wash records with water and a bit of liquid soap? I do it sometimes if I get an old record from somewhere that's got crap on it. It only takes a few minutes to dry and improves the sound. There's no need for a special treatment to play it dry. Of course this is not some audiophile attachment, just cleaning it under a cold tap.

i fix skips by holding the stylus in the correct groove as it plays. the straight pin would probably work too but if you don't have a stylus then why are you cleaning records?

It's hard to understand why something would sound better being played wet. At times I have run records under hot water to help remove something on the surface, but I also go over it with a discwasher brush for awhile afterwards because the fact is, it won't sound any good until it's dry. Needless to say I can't see why a record played wet couldn't also be played dry.

The idea of using a pin to fix skips sounds like crazy talk. Ouch! I've always just done what lfam does, but then it does take some major effort to keep your hand steady.

In my searching, I came across instructions for fixing skips by dragging a pin head along the grooves in the location of the scratch/skip. The dude claimed it worked, but I find it suspect.

I've done this a bit. You have more control over what you do, I feel, than when you're just holding the stylus (which may actually reinforce the skip if unsuccessful). Also, good light + magnifying glass are u+k; the thing is obv to find the skip visually before attempting a fix. (Also, unsurprisingly, a click will remain after doing this.)

Sometimes, playing the record backwards will remove the jump.

yeah, i think running through the groove backwards is pretty helpful. holding the stylus in the groove is tricky but i don't find it harder than using a straight pin. it's a matter of taste, almost.