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.
