Replicant 100 stylus

@pindac , I would love some of what you have been smoking.

@nandric , Wally Tools is about to release a specialized stylus microscope which is really not that expensive. Get one and have at it. 

The various fine line styluses are converging on one basic design. The replicant 100, Gyger S and Soundsmith OCL look surprisingly alike under magnification. All serve to maximize contact area while keeping it as narrow as possible front to back. All three seem to minimize surface noise to the same extent. It is impossible to say if they actually sound different. I think that is more dependent on the cartridge they are attached to. Any difference in wear characteristics is more likely due to the quality of the diamond more than anything as their contact areas are very similar. I am sure rauliruegas would have something to say about this. His experience is broader than mine. 

It must be my dyslexia but I am having trouble following pindac and nandric. 

@pindac, styluses are typically made of diamond which is the hardest jewel.

@nandric, there are large models of all the styluses you can look at. It all has to do with the angles the stylus is ground at. It is a pretty incredible process which I am sure you can see online. The diamond itself is dirt cheap, pennies. It is the process of shaping it that results in the expense. The more complex shapes are probably made possible by robotic control of the process.