Anyone Still Using Zerodust

. . . uses a specialized xacto knife to scrape hardened ‘gunk’ off a used diamond stylus (under high magnification) to bring back to life when possible.

Been there, done that. Was informed in both cases that (extensive) use of a stylus preservative was used. Simple cleaning with brushing would not remove the white crust that had buried the stylus. 

@mulveling

What is the precise process by which you use the Magic Eraser? Do you just drop the stylus onto the surface of the sponge, and then lift?

I’m sure many won’t have the appetite for my "rotational scrub":

• ME should be cut into ~1.5 inch long wedge or rectangle, ~3 mm thick
• Place on platter, and carefully lower stylus into a "near" corner (position bulk of piece further away from stylus). Optionally pre-wet this corner with a drop or 2 of water.
• While stylus remains dipped, use a single finger to gently push long & far side of the piece so that it rotates around the stylus, with stylus acting as the pivot point (rotational scrub). Alternate direction back & forth a few times.
• Quick hit with the dry brush, in case any ME fibers came off.

A simple dip & lift alone works OK (much better than Onzow), but the ME can give much more cleaning power if you’re willing to use it. Being wet also improves its cleaning power. The key here is - I trust my hands and the forces I subject the stylus to. I’ve used this for 3 years on my Koetsu Blue Lace, among other high-end MC cartridges. No issues here, just very clean styli. The stylus shank keeps cleaner and clearer over time with this method than any other. No need to do this after every side; that’s what a dry brush is for. I’ll use this method once every session or 2.

@mulveling 

What is the precise process by which you use the Magic Eraser?  Do you just drop the stylus onto the surface of the sponge, and then lift? 

I don’t see much mention of anyone using Stylast stylus cleanser, with its very soft brush. . . 

I have it - its a decent cleaner, better than gel dips, but I still prefer Magic Eraser.

I haven't seen reference to ultrasonic cleaners used for stylus cleaning. Any thoughts? 

@mulveling 

+1 Diamond has a hardness of 10 on the Mohs’ hardness scale of 1 to 10. Why it is used as a stylist… it can survive the miles and miles of vinyl grooves it endures.

@drbond 

I don’t see much mention of anyone using Stylast stylus cleanser, with its very soft brush. . . 

I have a bottle of both the cleaner and treatment. I use it extremely sparingly. Maybe once every four months or so.  Use BluTak or Magic Eraser on a very consistent  basis and it should not really be necessary.

I don’t see much mention of anyone using Stylast stylus cleanser, with its very soft brush. . . 

The abrasiveness is what makes it an effective cleaner. Diamond is exceptionally hard; much harder than melamine.

Yep, my buddy who is an engineer and builder at Soundsmith uses a specialized xacto knife to scrape hardened ‘gunk’ off a used diamond stylus (under high magnification) to bring back to life when possible. Doubt Magic Eraser is going to do any harm because of its abrasiveness.

He is also a huge proponent of BluTak and Magic Eraser before/after each spin.

@mulveling any opinion/concern regarding comments like "Magic eraser is an abrasive so I wouldn’t go near a diamond stylus with it."

Yes, good! The abrasiveness is what makes it an effective cleaner. Diamond is exceptionally hard; much harder than melamine. You either have to wear it down with other diamonds, or through massive attrition over time via softer materials (like thousands of miles of vinyl groove playback - which btw can also contain other materials from imperfect cleaning). Slow-speed dipping or even gentle rotational scrubbing with ME (once per session - don't be obsessive) doesn’t qualify as either.

This is like being concerned about rubbing alcohol being poison, but dabbing it on a scrape anyways. It’s not nearly enough absorption to damage your body, and the cleaning effect is more important to longevity.

"Magic eraser is an abrasive so I wouldn't go near a diamond stylus with it." 

True, but the action of simply dipping isn't enough to damage a diamond surface.

I've been using Magic Eraser & dry brush for years, ever since @dougdeacon and others explain@bkeske and some other friends are fans of Blutak, including a Soundsmith employee.

@mulveling any opinion/concern regarding comments like "Magic eraser is an abrasive so I wouldn't go near a diamond stylus with it." 

I THINK Magic Eraser is doing its job well, but I don't have a USB microscope etc. and can't confirm that no abrasive damage is being done. Cheers,

Spencer

It’s not a good cleaner, but not for the reasons speculated. It’s not dangerous. It’s just not very effective at keeping a stylus clean over time, certainly not effective at clearing away any hardened or bonded crud, and completely useless at cleaning the cantilever & other bits of a cartridge. I have 2 sitting in a drawer, plus a DS Audio gel that has seen VERY little use and probably won’t again.

Use Magic Eraser (lots of application techniques on that one - I use a more "bold" approach than most) and a dry brush. Clean your cantilevers and front yoke/pole too. Liquid cleaners are OK if you like them.

After reading the article I looked at my cantilever using a high powered magnifying glass , I saw what looked like dust on it but it wouldn't brush off .

It came off using a sponge tipped q-tip and 99% alcohol with a lot of careful rubbing.  I stopped using the ZeroDust and started using BlueTack .

There was a discussion about damaging one's cantilever , in my case coming close many times but it did get me thinking and I came to the same conclusion that @larryi came to .  I started to worry about the suction pulling down on the glued on stylist of my SoundSmith Carmen cartridge .  I have stopped using the BlueTack and now only use a Discwasher Carbon brush and the SoundSmith brush that came with the cartridge .     

Yes, I’ve been using the ONZOW ZeroDust for 15+ years and will continue.

It’s a great product when used as intended and very economical in the long run with periodic cleaning.

Always used Magic Eraser. 

Got suckered into buying the Onzow, when it first appeared on the market. I guess mine didn't have enough "stickum" on it because there were times it didn't remove whatever gunk was on the stylus. 

Declared it audio junk and tossed it aside.

Went back to Magic Eraser. Makes a dirty stylus come out like new.

I wouldn't be surprised if it leaves some of its "magic" behind, but I don't hear it.

After a couple dips, a few wipes with the cartridge brush, and it's good to go.

A $5.00 box is more than you'll ever need. The rest of it cleans the kitchen, bathroom and whatever. 

I stopped using ZeroDust a while ago. I use the brush that was included with my Hana cartridge and go gently to remove the dust from the stylus. I use MoFi LP#9 after playing a dozen or so records. 

As a Soundsmith owner, (2 actually), Peter L came out warning of the use of Onzow, which I was using, but does highly recommend the much cheaper BluTack solution. Thus, I know have BluTack stuck to my Onzow case, and that is what I now use.

I have used Zero Dust for years and never had a problem.  I continue to use it with no adverse problems.

It is hardly the only way to clean a cartridge, therefore, until matters are cleared up to a sufficient degree, I would not use something that can be the cause of so much problems. 

It is not just the deposits I would worry about.  I would worry about the application of force pulling down on the cantilever when one is lifting the stylus out of the cleaning pad.  This direction of force is unnatural and it may damage the cartridge.  I know of two people who pulled the cantilever out of very delicate MC cartridges using this kind of cleaner.  Perhaps they raised the arm too fast, thereby applying excessive force, but, in any case, I would not risk damaging a cartridge this way.

We are actively working with Mr. Ishibashi of Onzow to investigate these questions more deeply. Early experiments show very fresh units of Zerodust do not appear to leave any paraffin oil after application. 

I am aware of the "controversy" but continue to use my Onzow, as I have for over a dozen years.  It has worked quite well for me.

There is literally nothing conclusive nor scientific about the Fremer Onzow article, and certainly no evidence that the residue was from the Onzow. It’s unfortunate that with the weight Fremer’s words carry in the analog community, he would irresponsibly conclude the Onzow at fault in that vague article (which was seemingly an ad for a microscope...) If there was merit, there would have been a follow up with actual data on the Onzow residue, and there was not, because there was no merit. FWIW I use a DS50 pad composed of similar material to the Onzow (I think), and my cantilever is clean with no issues. Do all you guys just abandon practices with one opinion? Didn’t Onzow actually respond to Fremer and he neglected to respond?  Edit:  I suppose if one doesn't clean their Onzow/gel pad periodically, then some debris/dirt could be left on the stylus, but I wouldn't place blame on Onzow in that case.

This is the first I'm hearing of the controversy (as I own and use one), but found this link interesting. 

Time to Put Away The Onzow ZeroDust?