Stylus cleaners

@faustuss  A little bit further down the road for “The Green Stuff” tip.

Not strictly a sand paper. I put that in to make readers research further because it sounds so stupid it must be true. “The Green Stuff” is more like the finest grade of emery board.

l believe it was originally marketed by Linn, so if true,  “Go figure”

I bought a Lepro LED light from amazon. Yeah it will allow you to see more dust on the record. ZeroStat it then use a brush. You will never get a 100% perfectly clean surface. Using blacklight will show more crap but there’s nothing you can do about it, so I don’t bother. I’m just going to get it as clean as I can, as safely as I can for both the record and the stylus. I really enjoy the entire process but I don’t want to obsess over things I can’t entirely control. 

Back to stylus cleaner…according to MoFi, “Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab LP#9 is both a stylus cleaner and a stylus preservative in one bottle.” So it’s kind of like LAST kit but all in one. I hear improved clarity and dynamics with overall better and quieter sound after using it. We’ll see what LAST brings to the table. 

It might have been I who posted that “ultrasonic” stylus cleaners are not ultrasonic. They vibrate at about 450-500Hz, but mine does work to clean styli very well. It is my last resort method. I think they’re all made in the same place but sold under different brand names. Mine is Audioquest. I’m not sure you’d want ultrasonic even if that were possible.

Totally agree with above comment from tablejockey. I have been using the Magic Eraser sponge for many years now to clean my stylus'. Under a microscope they show no signs of wear and still look brand new. I will follow up occasionally with a stylus brush to clean the debris from the cantilever. I steer clear of any wet cleaners.

Bravo a worthy thread - agree on good lighting - so far nobody has gone off the deep end and built a positive pressure clean room… maybe…

I use the black light to trigger another run thru the US cleaner…