Last Record Power Cleaner 3/4 oz Bottle

Three Drops a Side, for the Mold Release a Record Leaves the Press With

LAST Power Cleaner is a manual-application cleaner in a 3/4-ounce bottle, supplied with two fine-nap applicators. It takes three drops per side. It is made for one job: removing the pressing residue — mold release — that a record carries from the factory.

Mold release is the compound that lets a fresh pressing come off the stamper. It stays in the groove, it is sticky, and it holds onto every contaminant that lands on the record afterwards. An ordinary cleaner washes over it rather than removing it.

What It Does, What It's Safe On, and How It Works

Chemistry and Compatibility

LAST formulates Power Cleaner for manual application and describes it as Freon-free. It leaves no residue, and three drops per side is the whole dose — this is not a fluid you flood a record with.

It is not for use on shellac records. That is LAST's own instruction and the single thing to establish before you order: if your collection includes 78s, this fluid is for the vinyl part of it only.

Two fine-nap applicators come in the box. The nap is what reaches into the groove — three drops spread by a pad that only touches the land between grooves would not do much.

A vacuum record cleaning machine is optional, not required. The fluid's job is to soften and lift what is stuck in the groove so a brush can carry it away; a machine simply removes the fluid and the loosened debris together, rather than leaving you to blot them off.

What Reviewers Are Saying

Stereophile lists LAST Power Cleaner in its Recommended Components, reporting that JE "found just three drops sufficient to remove dirt, dust, and grime from garage-sale records," and calling it "a worthwhile companion to LAST's wonderful Record Preservative."

The same listing notes a limit worth knowing: a subsequent wash on a vacuum machine was still required to bring groove noise down to an acceptable level on those garage-sale records. Power Cleaner removes the residue; it is not a substitute for a wash.

Who Is LAST Power Cleaner Best For?

• You buy new records — use it as the record comes out of the sleeve, before anything else touches the groove
• You buy secondhand — old pressings still carry the residue, under decades of everything else
• You clean by hand — it is formulated for manual application and comes with the applicators
• You already use Record Preservative — Power Cleaner is the step that precedes it
• You own shellac 78s — LAST states Power Cleaner is not for use on shellac; see record cleaning solutions for fluids that are

How Do You Apply It?

Work on a clean surface with the record supported. Put three drops onto a fine-nap applicator, not onto the record. Spread it around the playing surface following the groove, keeping clear of the label. Let it do its work, then follow with a wash if the record is dirty as well as residued — the two are different problems.

Pairs Well With

What most owners of a cleaning fluid shop next.

• Record brushes — the fluid loosens the debris and the brush carries it away
• Record cleaning machines — optional, but it lifts the fluid and the debris off together
• Stylus cleaning — a clean record deserves a clean stylus
• Record cleaning accessories — sleeves, applicators and the rest of the kit

On Its Own, or as Part of a Program

LAST's fluids are a sequence, and each works on its own. Power Cleaner first, on a record fresh out of its sleeve; then Record Preservative to protect the groove; then Stylus Cleaner and Stylast for the other end of the job. Any one of them helps by itself, but for even better results run the full treatment program. The range is in record cleaning solutions.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does it contain alcohol?

LAST does not publish the formulation beyond describing it as Freon-free and residue-free. What is stated plainly is that it must not be used on shellac.

Can I use it on 78s?

LAST states that Power Cleaner is not for use on shellac records. Keep it for the vinyl in your collection.

Does it replace washing a record?

It removes pressing residue, which a wash does not. Stereophile found that dirty secondhand records still needed a wash afterwards to bring the noise down. The two steps do different jobs.

How much do I use?

Three drops per side, onto the applicator rather than the record. More is not better with this one.

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