Is this the solution to LP static issues?? Seems to be!

One of our crazy designs (never made it to production) generated so much static, that, you could see sparks jumping from the platter to the turntable base. I kid you not. It didn't manifest until we hit the low-humidity Winter months, and needless to say, it came as quite a surprise ;-)

... Thom @ Galibier Design

Hi @daveyf,

Grounding the bearing is specific to the turntable and its construction.

On our turntables, we have a dedicated grounding screw on the bottom of the bearing. You’d have to look at your turntable to see if you can adapt something in order to accomplish this.

I’m not current on Linn subchassis construction (they used to be stamped sheet metal). I’d look somewhere in this general area, while of course, taking care to not mess up your suspension tuning.  I'd do so by probing with an ohm meter (one end on the record spindle), to see how far away from it you can find continuity (to attach a ground lug).

Your tonearm cable ground (the 5th wire) is primarily intended to carry the shield through the arm tube (metal arm wands, obviously). Finishing methods like anodizing aluminum or titanium create an insulating layer, and this will interrupt the connection to the armboard, etc.

... Thom @ Galibier Design

Back when I was developing the Redpoint Turntable with Peter, we had terrible static issues in the Winter. The solution for our designs may be relevant to you.

We grounded the bearing to the phono stage (any earth ground will do). You might not expect a bearing whose only electrical path from the platter surface to ground is the capacitive coupling between the bearing spindle and body (a distance on the order of .0001", separated by lubricant), but it does.

Obviously, there are two approaches to this problem: (1) keeping static from being generated, and (2) draining it to ground. Either one or both are viable solutions. I don’t want static production to dictate my record to platter interface, so I prefer option 2. Anyone who has experimented with the sonic effects of different mats (and their effect on energy transfer) will understand why.

I rebuild Fender Telecasters as a diversion, and I’ve found that some pickguard materials generate quite a bit static. Irrespective of whether I shield the pickup cavities, I’ll use some conductive foil under the pickguard to connect it to ground. Problem solved.

... Thom @ Galibier Design

This conversation inspired me to document how to work with the shielding tape.  Check this blog post if you're interested:  https://galibierdesign.com/dont-give-me-no-static/

... Thom @ Galibier Design

Following on from my comment yesterday (08-Dec), it dawns on me that you could achieve a static drain connection to some bearings with adhesive backed shielding tape - the material I referenced earlier.

The adhesive is conductive, and you can solder to the foil.
Depending on the construction of your turntable bearing, you could solder a ground wire to the foil, then peel the backing off and affix it to the bearing.

It might take some fiddling, and obviously won’t work in all situations, but it’s something that might work for you.

I just finished a roll of this, and it works as advertised: https://www.stewmac.com/electronics/shielding/conductive-copper-tape.html

I recently picked up a roll of this, but haven’t used it yet: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07C6YLNYL/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

... Thom @ Galibier Design

Not sure how my thread went from inquiring about the age old anti-static formulation that RCA was using on their vinyl, and which seems to work like a charm, even decades later...to: Brake Cleaning fluid used to clean one members LP’s!! Just goes to show how fast these threads can and do go off rail!! LOL

Why address the original question when you can have a food fight instead. Ah ... the joys of the interwebz ;-)

I stopped hanging out here for the longest time, primarily because of the snark factor and poor signal to noise ratio. I suppose that the passage of time has taught me how to filter it out for the most part, so there’s that ...

... Thom @ Galibier Design