It seems that the confusion concerning Stylast is related to what it is, by that I mean the purpose of the stuff. It is not a cleaner. The stylus must be clean before it is applied. The purpose is to increase the life of the stylus. It does so by reducing the friction created at the interface between the stylus and the vinyl as the record is played. There is a lot of heat generated that would allow the state change from liquid to gas that the manufacturer describes in their product description. This would be a different mechanism than simple evaporation at room temperature. Without knowing the chemical composition of the compound we cannot know exactly what the vapor pressure is or the boiling point is or any other pertinent details that would account for it's stability in the bottle vs. it's behavior on the stylus under dynamic load. I can attest that it does usefully extend stylus life. By profession I am, or was before retirement and befuddlement, a chemical engineer, but this is well outside my field of expertise. FWIW, to clean my stylus I use a little vibrating gadget that Hudson makes that works like magic.
Lost stylus seeking similar experience
I just got off the phone with Steve of VAS. The stylus went missing off the cantilever on my AT ART20. The cantilever is intact. This is a new one on me. Steve thinks it is because I use Stylast, but I have been using Stylast for decades and never had any trouble using it. Has anyone else had a stylus go missing with no damage to their cantilever? If so, were you able to determine a probable cause for the separation? Facts would be helpful, speculation not so much.
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- 30 posts total
- 30 posts total

