Does the Linn 'green paper' seem questionable?

It cleans ok, but not good enough.

I have used it since the 80s with good luck.Remember, its a diamond you are cleaning,so its tuff enuff.

magic eraser method leaves it in the dust

I remember clearly that Linn extolled the virtues of scraping the stylus from back to front with the sandpaper section from matchbooks. I guess they changed to jeweler's paper because very few people use matches anymore.

I've always used it or a small strip of 1500-2000 grit sandpaper. Works great. I give it a swipe after every album side. Still using my 15 year old Linn Arkiv, so the sandpaper method hasn't harmed anything in my case.

Fire bottle: your cartridge is 15 years old? How does it sound?

Assuming you listen one hour a day, every day, that's 5400+ hours over 15 years. Sorry, but my personal experiences tell me that after 2500 hours or so, serious degradation begins to become quite audible. I have yet to find a cartridge that hasn't suffered from some diminished capacity after this time, or even less - a problem compounded (IMHO) by exotic stylus profiles which dig deeper into the groove and which are very sensitive to setup errors. Failure to correct these setup errors lead to premature wear. Please have that Arkiv checked professionally for the sake of your LP collection.

Another vote for the Magic Eraser - the green paper merely polishes the very tip of the stylus leaving accumulated crud along the sides of the diamond and along the area where the stylus bonds to the cantelever. Mr. Eraser removes ALL of this stuff with ease. If you've never tried it, it is well worth your while to part with $3-4 on your next trip to the grocery store. The Magic Eraser renders all other forms of liquids, gels, and brushes completely moot. I know old habits/dogmas are hard to break, but the green paper is an anachronism. Good listening,

-Richard

The problem with the green paper is that dirt builds up around the base of the diamond where it mounts to the cantilever, therefore one needs to "edge clean" the diamond. This is a difficult and dangerous thing to do. One must "sand" around the area where the diamond mounts, one false move spells trouble. I've used it years ago but felt the stylus was not clean. I used a proper cleaner and fell off my chair over the improvement.

No worries, guys... I don't listen anywhere near that often. Probably only 2-3 hours per week. Even though it sounds fine I'm sure it is on it's last leg. I have two LP12s, and the main rig just got a new Lyra Dorian installed. I'm using the same sandpaper technique on that cart.

Headsnappin, do you use a magic eraser for the edge clean, or is that something you get done professionally?

The Mr. Clean Magic Eraser is definitely the way to go:

o It's safe! It works dry, so there's no danger of fluid wicking up the cantilever to short the coils or otherwise damage the innards. Bonded, nude, tetrahedron, square shank--it doesn't matter. Just brush from back to front or lower the stylus into the Eraser.

o It's thorough! It cleans the entire stylus--tip, sides, front.

o It's effective! I had just gotten back into vinyl and played my new cartridge for something like 300 hours without a cleaning. Under a magnifier the stylus looked like a miniature black fuzzy hornet's nest. A few passes of the Magic Eraser removed all the fuzz, goo, and gunk--even the black baked-on residue that clings so stubbornly to the stylus shaft. The diamond shined through again.

o It's readily available! Pick up a 2-pack at any grocery store or drug store. No waiting 3 months for your local high end store to get in a special order. No long wait for mail order from the UK. No translating British pounds or Euros into ever-increasing numbers of dollars.

o It's affordable: That 2-pack at the grocery store is $3.99 tops, which is enough to ensure two dozen audiophile lifetimes of gunk-free stylus nirvana.

o It's sociable! You can easily slice a single block eraser into a dozen 1"x2" rectangular panels and hand them out to at your next audio society meeting. Give your entire audio club the gift of a lifetime of gleaming stylii and be the envy of all your audiogeek buddies.

The only caveat I have with the Magic Eraser is that after using it, follow up by dusting the Magic Eraser residue off the stylus with any stylus brush. Since the Magic Eraser is abrasive, you don't want the stylus grinding any of its residue into your vinyl grooves. I've been doing the Magic Eraser/dust brushing approach for a year now with no ill effects. And I play vinyl about 1-2 hrs/day.

Great tip on the majic eraser. Getting one tomorrow! thanx much!

Magic Eraser--wow. Picked up a 4-pack for 3.49 at Target today, sliced off a thin strip of one, and it's perfect. Thanks, guys!