You may also want to consider something like the Spin Clean. I've been using one for over a year, and while it may not provide a completely ideal cleaning method, it is much better than manual scrubbing alone and may be a good intermediate step for you before spending a lot of money on an RCM.
http://www.garage-a-records.com/spin.html
It's basically a tank that you fill with distilled water, and you add their "solution." This solution causes the dirt and grime to fall to the bottom of the tank so that the water above that cleans your records is clean. I use the Spin Clean as sort of a rinse after doing manual scrubbing and/or steaming. I would definitely recommend a Mobile Fidelity record brush for manual scrubbing, regardless of which cleansing method you choose (vacuum, spin clean, etc). I must say that using this combination, I've been able to achieve great results. Again, this is not the ideal solution because you must then either air dry your records or dry them manually with a towel (I always air dry, so as not to transfer dirt/dust from any other source). Of course when you air dry, you must wait a while for that to happen; this makes the RCM a quicker, more convenient method all around. I do plan on getting one myself some day; just how soon, I'm not sure.
http://www.garage-a-records.com/spin.html
It's basically a tank that you fill with distilled water, and you add their "solution." This solution causes the dirt and grime to fall to the bottom of the tank so that the water above that cleans your records is clean. I use the Spin Clean as sort of a rinse after doing manual scrubbing and/or steaming. I would definitely recommend a Mobile Fidelity record brush for manual scrubbing, regardless of which cleansing method you choose (vacuum, spin clean, etc). I must say that using this combination, I've been able to achieve great results. Again, this is not the ideal solution because you must then either air dry your records or dry them manually with a towel (I always air dry, so as not to transfer dirt/dust from any other source). Of course when you air dry, you must wait a while for that to happen; this makes the RCM a quicker, more convenient method all around. I do plan on getting one myself some day; just how soon, I'm not sure.