Build-up on stylus - any new cures?

Thank you!

Flux Hi-Fi makes an ultrasonic stylus cleaner.
The Cardas Frequency Sweep Test Album also does a US cleaning of stylus.
 I’m using an older US cleaner from Signet and the Cardas test album.

I've never tried gruv glide. I may now.

Thanks! I have brushes, magic erasers, and various things. I read that the SAS styli just scoop up stuff and the tip now looks like it is inside a micro snow ball with the just the very tip of the diamond protruding. An ultrasonic jewelry cleaner may be the next attempt.

https://www.amazon.com/Turntable-Lab-Audiosetup-Carbon-Stylus/dp/B01LOJMZ3K/ref=asc_df_B01LOJMZ3K/?t...


 Have a few of these. The Ortofon ones. Any brand will do. 
 Ortofon sent me 2 of these when my X5-mc cantilever broke off years back. 

We wipe the stylus forward (towards me) with the little Ortofon round brush.
 No grooveglide used , although, it does make,records last longer.
grooveglide only on the rare records!

  Stuff really kills pops & hiss from speakers. Don’t use at all anymore, %70:of my records have been put to my computer via technics sl1200mkII WITH the Ortofon Arkiv Concorde, and for the records that sound thin, less bass, I put on the nightclub II Concorde to put to my hard drive before cleaning a,bit with audiolab 3.0, then burn to CDs. 


I clean in the sink with Ivory mild soap and a painters corner brush. Then on a dry towel, and vacuum with my shop vac with felt pads I stuck to the underside of the attachment. Works a dream!

Any thoughts on ultrasonic cleaners? My wife has one suitable for jewelry. There are also those Flux HiFi Sonic devices that purport to employ some not-so-ultra frequencies.

Thanks, I'll add LP9 to my growing collection of stylus cleaning stuff, I appreciate it.
As to what I use for cleaning, it's the humble Spin-Clean. I always use the prescribed amount of surfactant, not washing a record until it seems well distributed in the distilled water. I suppose it could be leaving deposits on the discs, though I haven't seen any mention of this before.

A combination of LP9 or alcohol in conjunction with dipping in Magic Eraser should take care of the problem 

mixermarkwilliams

This deposit on my cantilever could have come from a particular disc that I hope to identify at some point.

Most likely it was accumulation over time from multiple records. What are you using to clean your LPs?

Thanks, but no, it is clearly a buildup of some sort. The 2014 thread about this noted that vinyl shed from records looks like this and consists of short rods in shape.

My listening tastes are not very mainstream. Some of the pressings I listen to are musically on the fringe in various directions and sometimes not the best pressings.

Some also are from the mid-late 1970s when the oil embargo led to high percentages of recycled vinyl from returned or scrapped records. At first some of those pressings not only blended crunched up vinyl from random sources, but sometimes included bits of label from the scrapped pressings. A machine was created to punch out the center of scrapped records to avoid pollution in the slurry from bits of old labels, but it was not a good time for vinyl quality in independent pressings. This deposit on my cantilever could have come from a particular disc that I hope to identify at some point.

@mixermarkwillams 
Is the snowball that you reference with the needle peaking thru possibly the adhesive that is used to attach the needle to the cantilever?
My cartridge looks like that also and it’s the adhesive holding the needle in place. I’ll put my cartridge under a microscope later to re-verify that is what it is.

mixermarkwilliams

... For the various people that assumed that I don’t clean my records, I actually never play one I haven’t cleaned unless I cut the shrink wrap right beforehand. And sometimes I clean even new records first. The cantilever tip around the diamond looks like a snowball with just the tip of the diamond peaking through ...

Assuming your stylus isn’t damaged and your setup is ok, your records can’t possibly be properly cleaned if you end up with that gunk on your stylus. Even new records often have substantial dust (or worse) on them and require cleaning.

noromance6,273 + 1  on that.

Dragging = stylus removal. After using Magic Eraser I brush back to front with a soft artist brush to remove any dust, etc.


09-08-2021 3:45pmUp and down for Magic Eraser. Never drag.

OK, for everyone that offered practical ideas for a solution, thank you! I appreciate that. My problem is somewhere in the mechanical-chemical range and pragmatic ideas are welcome.

For the various people that assumed that I don't clean my records, I actually never play one I haven't cleaned unless I cut the shrink wrap right beforehand. And sometimes I clean even new records first.

The cantilever tip around the diamond looks like a snowball with just the tip of the diamond peaking through. Dipping it into ME's (my usual cleaning method) with alcohol, or water, or even vinegar (why not?) were all equally ineffective. An Audio-Technica tacky thing was ineffective, as was a Discwasher stylus brush I got in the 1970s, both dry and with alcohol on it.

Going forward I will explore solvents and possibly ultrasonic cleaning, perhaps with that Flux HiFi gadget. Fortunately I also have the JICO replacement for the original VN-35E stylus (not SAS). It will work until I fix the SAS.

Thanks, I actually have a bottle of that exact stuff (at least it was 91% a couple of years ago, and I have used it regularly. Whatever is stuck on their seems impervious to alcohol, though, so I'm exploring other options. I appreciate your response.

When the stylus gets dirty, I add a few drops of 91% alcohol to the ME. That generally takes care of it. Agree with @slaw keep records clean; less gunk and your stylus will last longer.

I use Magic Eraser and I carefully drag it from back to front. Have not had an issue in 3-4 years of doing this. However! I'm using an inexpensive Ortofon 2M Red or Blue stylus, so not as concerned about an expensive mistake.

I have used the "Magic Eraser" (up & down as noromance & joenies mention) for years & it has worked well keeping the stylus clean. Surprisingly effective in fact... Not sure how well it will work with a stylus that has "build up" on it already, but it's worth trying. 

Agree with @noromance  only up and down.
The other day I notice a  piece of lint on my needle. I tried my dry cartridge brush, then Last Stylus cleaner, another fine brush, ME, the lint was still there. Used an older US stylus cleaner that removed the lint. Never had something stick to my needle like that.
 I should have tried my Cardas Frequency Sweep test album. Side 1 tracks 2a, 2b and 2c. Those tracks supposedly will also US clean your needle. I uses that maybe once a month. Used it 2 days before I noticed the lint or fuzz or whatever it was. It’s also a good Test album.

 I am really leery of using a product such as Blu-Tak that is not even designed for such a purpose. It IS designed to stick, and when removed from glass, there is a tell tale mark left behind. That would be residue.

Up and down for Magic Eraser. Never drag.

If your records aren't properly cleaned/stored to begin with, you will always have the same issue.

Nice setup, I had that TT and Arm with V15VxMR, loved it.

You can remove the stylus to thoroughly clean it, and verify you haven't damaged the cantilever.

Are you sure of azimuth and VTA, tracking force and anti-skate?

gel: my friend used this gel type, seemed worrisome, but a light tough does a good job for infrequent use

https://www.amazon.com/AUDIOPHILE-DEALER-Turntable-Stylus-Cleaner/dp/B08617QDVV/ref=sr_1_5?dchild=1&...

bargain version

https://www.amazon.com/Material-Multi-Functional-Universal-Household-Transparent/dp/B0859TMHV5/ref=s...=

OK, thanks. I just ordered the Audio-Technica AT-617a so that should do the trick.

Nothing beats a US clean and new high quality inner sleeves.
In addition, I use blu tac to clean stylus after every side

I’ve never heard of using a Magic Eraser on a stylus. I’d be afraid that the stylus would catch on the surface and snap off. I'd also be afraid that if I applied too much pressure I'd damage the cantilever.

I use a stylus brush with stylus cleaning solution for quick cleans between plays (I don’t use the solution between every play, but between every few; I use the dry brush between every side that’s played).

I also have the DS Audio ST-50, which is a bit pricey but works like a charm. https://www.ds-audio-w.biz/st-50-stylus-cleaner/