Kiwi Record Cleaning Machine "Group Buy" & Discussion

[Prana69]

Prana69 - Melbourne - YES

[mikey d]

mikey d [12].....Kempsey, an audiophile backwater on the mid north coast NSW, had mine for a coupla daze now.

[Nevyn72]

Peter_vfr - Sydney metro - No sign of it yet...... 8-(

[andyr]

Maybe we can do another listing of who has received theirs and who hasn't. People can put their City and Yes or No and we might see a pattern emerge.

1] Full Range - paid

2] Rockford - paid Sydney - No

3] DR Goodvibe - paid

4] DarrenW - paid

5] Dirty - paid

6] vinyladdict - paid

7] Spotter - paid

9] ngquan - paid

10 AndyR - paid, Melbourne Yes

12] mickey d - paid Kempsey, NSW Yes

13] diesel459 - paid

15] shailesh - paid

16] Clydemount - paid

17]The Expanding Man - paid

18] Yamaha Man - paid

20] idiotek - paid

21] tolley - paid

22]michaeljohn1234m - paid

23] tenehy - paid

24] davidsss - paid

25] vmhf - paid

27] Letterman paid

28] jamesg11 - paid

29] Frankn - paid

30]handysteel - paid

31] Peter vfr - paid Sydney No

32] Prana69 - paid Melbourne Yes

33] xtrachewy - paid

34]Hero Kid - paid

35] Bunyip - paid

Hope the colours worked out.

[davidsss]

1] Full Range - paid

2] Rockford - paid Sydney - No

3] DR Goodvibe - paid

4] DarrenW - paid

5] Dirty - paid

6] vinyladdict - paid

7] Spotter - paid

9] ngquan - paid

10 AndyR - paid, Melbourne Yes

12] mickey d - paid Kempsey, NSW Yes

13] diesel459 - paid

15] shailesh - paid

16] Clydemount - paid

17]The Expanding Man - paid

18] Yamaha Man - paid

20] idiotek - paid

21] tolley - paid

22]michaeljohn1234m - paid

23] tenehy - paid

24] davidsss - paid Melbourne, Yes

25] vmhf - paid

27] Letterman paid

28] jamesg11 - paid

29] Frankn - paid

30]handysteel - paid

31] Peter vfr - paid Sydney No

32] Prana69 - paid Melbourne Yes

33] xtrachewy - paid

34]Hero Kid - paid

35] Bunyip - paid

DS

[Rockford]

List is updated.

[Full Range]

This is the updated Kiwi RCM Delivery list, I trolled back a few pages to see posts and I have 16 so far

I am sure some members haven't posted there delivery status

1]Full Range - paid Brisbane - Yes Delivered

2] Rockford - paid Sydney - No

3] DR Goodvibe - paid Melbourne Yes Delivered

4] DarrenW - paid - Yes Delivered

5] Dirty - paid Melbourne Yes Delivered

6] vinyladdict - paid Canberra No

7] Spotter - paid Melbourne Yes Delivered

9] ngquan - paid

10 AndyR - paid Melbourne Yes Delivered

11]

12] mickey d - paid Kempsey, NSW Yes Delivered

13] diesel459 - paid Melbourne Yes Delivered

15] shailesh - paid

16] Clydemount - paid

17]The Expanding Man - paid

18] Yamaha Man - paid Melbourne Yes Delivered

20] idiotek - paid Sydney No

21] tolley - paid

22]michaeljohn1234m - paid Kariong, NSW Yes Delivered

23] tenehy - paid

24] davidsss - paid Melbourne Yes Delivered

25] vmhf - paid

27] Letterman paid

28] jamesg11 - paid Victoria Yes Delivered

29] Frankn - paid

30]handysteel - paid Melbourne Yes Delivered

31] Peter vfr - paid Sydney No

32] Prana69 - paid Melbourne Yes Delivered

33] xtrachewy- paid Melbourne Yes Delivered

34]Hero Kid - paid No

35] Bunyip - paid Yes Delivered

FR

Edited April 1, 2011 by Full Range
Fix list

[Under Hifi]

Just a slight correction FR, I haven't got mine yet (I checked today as well) and I'm in Bega, NSW.

[REBNZ]

Folks,

Just got off the phone after an hour with NZ Post. They have now started a formal inquiry into this. Summary is that a few RCMs did not leave NZ until the last few days, however the majority have been delivered. NZ Post has no reason for why these seven parcels did not leave NZ and are looking at it.

So at the moment there are seven RCMs still to be delivered and these are all sitting in Aust customs. NZ Post is unable to tell me how long they would be in Aust Customs.

Again I apologize for the frustration some of you have experienced with this.

List below in alphabetical order.

AndyR – del 22/3

Bunyip – del 23/3

Clydemount - In Aust Customs

DarrenW – del 22/3

davidsss – del 23/3

diesel459 - del

Dirty – del 23/3

DR Goodvibe – del 22/3

Frankn – del 23/3

Full Range – del 28/3

Handysteel – del 23/3

Hero Kid - In Aust Customs

idiotek - In Aust Customs

jamesg11 – del 24/3

Letterman – del 28/3

michaeljohn1234m – del 29/3

mickey d – del 29/3

ngquan - In Aust Customs

Peter vfr - In Aust Customs

Prana69 – del 23/3

Rockford - In Aust Customs

Shailesh - del 24/3

Spotter – del 22/3

Tenehy – del 22/3

The Expanding Man – del 24/3

Tolley – del 26/3

vinyladdict - In Aust Customs

vmhf - In Aust Customs

xtrachewy – del 25/3

Yamaha Man – del 22/3

Kind regards,

Ralph

[Full Range]

Just a slight correction FR, I haven't got mine yet (I checked today as well) and I'm in Bega, NSW.

My apologies

I have amended the above list. It could be an omen

FR

Edit

RBENZ has updated the list correctly ^ on the previous post

Ralph and I have had some PMs going back and forth and at my suggestion I asked him to investigate with NZ Postal service

And the answer is in his above post

FR

Edited April 1, 2011 by Full Range

[REBNZ]

Folks further to this I have just processed refunds of shipping costs to the seven folks who have machines still in Aust Customs. These have been sent to the email address you used with PayPal.

Ralph

[Rockford]

Err no you don't. I'll be sending the refund straight back. It's not your fault, no need to fall on your sword.

[REBNZ]

Sorry also Rockford should be in red

[Under Hifi]

Yep Ralph you're nearly as bad as FR! You guys are too bloody generous. I'm still super glad I got involved in the group buy simply because the people involved are great people to deal with (looking at you Ralph and FR). I'll growl at Aus customs next time I have any dealings with them, but that's hardly anyone elses fault.

At least I now know where my RCM is! Now if only my records from the US would turn up

[mikey d]

As far as I am concerned this has been a massive success. I hate to see an honest small businessman out of pocket. If only all dealings were as friendly as ours has been with Ralph. All power to you brother & I hope the Wallabies don't beat the All Blacks too badly in this years World Cup.

[Tollbags]

Got mine with a crack in the acrylic, doesn't leak or suck air, and I trust the sellers integrity that he never sent it like that. OK if it was mass produced outta China and had a huge markert it would sell for under $50. It works very well is a simple design and really how many is the inventor going to sell? The market determines the price, get one cheaper that works as well, or spend the 15k or so on plastic tooling to mass produce?

[Full Range]

Got mine with a crack in the acrylic, doesn't leak or suck air, and I trust the sellers integrity that he never sent it like that. OK if it was mass produced outta China and had a huge markert it would sell for under $50. It works very well is a simple design and really how many is the inventor going to sell? The market determines the price, get one cheaper that works as well, or spend the 15k or so on plastic tooling to mass produce?

I have seen prices for simple turntable covers ranging from $100 to $500

FR

[Tollbags]

Because they are hand made. And I work in Building Automation for a small company (I'm the only employee). The highest cost is labour, the electronics we can buy now from overseas is miniscule, the labour to progam and commission?

And the Kiwi RCM does the job, I tried it last weekend on a copy of Made in Japan I got from the op shop that was unlistenable, the difference?..amazing, I reckon a second clean will have it like new, was going to clean Steely Dan's Katie lied but the girlfriend told me it was too noisy and to do it when shes not home. Shes away this weekend so record cleaning here I come.

Edited April 1, 2011 by tolley

[davidsss]

Hey, it was a leap of faith to buy this machine but Full Range was enthusiastic and Reb seemed to be the real deal. Add to this the protection of PayPal and I figured there was little risk. Things do go missing in the post. I bought a record about a year ago. It didn't turn up. I ran a dispute with PayPal and got my money back. Lo and behold, 2 months after that and after I got another copy, it turned up. Bloody post can be very unreliable (i did contact the seller and paid him when it eventually arrived). Upshot is, post (and even couriers) can be very unreliable.

All I can say is this is a nice little unit, well made and does a very good job.

Thanks to Reb and to Full Range for making the group buy a reality.

Hope those waiting get their packages soon.

DS

[Prana69]

I used my Kiwi RCM for the first time last night and I am mightily impressed!

I've never owned an RCM before so I don't have any point of comparison, but I can certainly confirm that this RCM is easy to use (once you get the production line set-up), brings the vinyl back to a lovely, glossy, dark black, and improves the sound quality phenomenally.

The first album I cleaned was an old Crowded House album that I knew to have quite a bit of snap, crackle and pop on it - so I targeted it as a test. After cleaning with the RCM, all the pops were gone save for the very occasional faint example. Otherwise it was lovely, clear audio.

The vent works well to get the correct amount of suction.

The instructions were easy to use.

My only issues / suggestions are these:

1. If your vinyl is really dirty with lots of surface dust / grime, wipe it off with a soft cloth before slapping it on the RCM for cleaning, otherwise you end up with dust all over the mat from Side 2 which will get transferred to your Side 1 when you flip it over after cleaning it. I know it seems obvious now, but it took me a couple to learn that lesson. So, dust the vinyl off first and take the plattter mat off regularly to remove any dust that may collect there.

2. Some liquid does get sucked into the vacuum cleaner. The run-off tends to collect in the corner below the suction point, and it is then very easy for it to be sucked into the vacuum. I really do recommend a wet / dry vacuum for this reason. Mine is not, but I intend to buy one as I am concerned about moisture getting into the motor.

3. I think the unit needs a drain hole. It's a bit of a shame to have such a great design, but the only way to dispense with the drawn off fluid is to unplug everything, swish some water around, turn it updside down and give it a shake to expel it.

Does anyone know if it is safe to drill a hole in this acrylic and insert a plug?

Otherwise awesome! Thanks to Ralph for bringing this great, affordable design to those of us who otherwise could not afford or justify the expense of the "name brand" machines. And thanks to FR for organising the group buy!

I hope all of you whose units are stuck in customs receive them soon and love it as much as I do.

Dave

[davidsss]

I wouldn't worry too much about the vacuum cleaner, I have been using a dry vac with a home made method which has no reservoir to collect fluid (ie: it all went to the vacuum cleaner) and all was fine. My vacuum cleaner has a cloth bag though, a paper bag would not be so good.

DS

[Prana69]

Mine is a bagless cyclone jobbie from K-MART (Piranha brand). I think I have much to fear.......

D

[michaeljohn1234m]

I'm using a pull-man 1501 model (that sits on your back) it has a Paper bag, so I use it up side down.just in case any water gets in,it's fine

[michaeljohn1234m]

Does anyone know if it is safe to drill a hole in this acrylic and insert a plug?

use a small drill first (2 or 3mm) then use right size drill for the hole. and "let the drill do the cutting"

[Dr Good Vibe]

1] Full Range - paid Brisbane Yes

2] Rockford - paid Sydney - No

3] DR Goodvibe - paid Melbourne Yes

4] DarrenW - paid

5] Dirty - paid Melbourne Yes

6] vinyladdict - paid Canberra No

7] Spotter - paid Melbourne Yes

9] ngquan - paid

10 AndyR - paid Melbourne Yes

12] mickey d - paid Kempsey, NSW Yes

13] diesel459 - paid Melbourne Yes

15] shailesh - paid

16] Clydemount - paid

17]The Expanding Man - paid

18] Yamaha Man - paid Melbourne Yes

20] idiotek - paid Sydney No

21] tolley - paid

22]michaeljohn1234m - paid Kariong, NSW Yes

23] tenehy - paid

24] davidsss - paid Melbourne Yes

25] vmhf - paid

27] Letterman paid

28] jamesg11 - paid Victoria

29] Frankn - paid

30]handysteel - paid Melbourne Yes

31] Peter vfr - paid Sydney No

32] Prana69 - paid Melbourne Yes

33] xtrachewy - paid Melbourne Yes

34]Hero Kid - paid

35] Bunyip - paid

Yep good and in orange. Or should I say Green

Edited April 4, 2011 by Dr Good Vibe