does a stylus retip makea cartridge as good as new

agree with Stringreen....if possible I would use the original manufacturer for all the servicing....the re-tip is just that....new tip.

Unless the cartridge is very valuable, you use it a lot, it is expensive and you are relatively poor, I wouldn't even bother with retipping and rebuilding. And I would certainly insist on original everything because doing otherwise would be a big gamble. But if you buy used for a very good price, like it a lot, well maybe it's worth the risk. As for the longivety, it varies greatly, I understand.

Well 'necessarily so' because the styli wear out and nobody want to ruin his LP's. But it is also necessary to be very careful with the choice of the retip service. According to my information they buy the complete cantilever/stylus combos from their supplier and those are much easier to install than the stylus solo. By aluminum
cantilevers the styli are usualy 'pressure fitted' (see J.Carr ;MM thread 09-14-11) but it is questionable if this can be done by the retip of the stylus solo. In this case
one should probable do better to replace both. Assuming of
course that the new cantilever/stylus are so fitted. Ie this way of fitting is the primary advantage of aluminum. Or so I thought after reading J.Carr's contribution.

Regards,

no, the cantilever is often stressed in the retip and the seating in the cartridge can be damaged by the heating necessary to do the retip. Starting new is the best and most cost effective way. Think about it, Shure used a completely removal cantilever assembly to great advantage.

I have had a number of cartridges repaired by Soundsmith. They provide 3 levels of cantilevers and different stylus shapes. The basic aluminum cantilever is about what you would expect to find in a $1000 MC cartridge with an elliptical stylus. the next level up is a ruby cantilever with a fine line stylus, about what you would expect in a $2000 cartridge. there is another step up that I have not tried.
The soundsmith rebuilds sound very good, but I cannot claim that they do not change the sound, since there is no way to compare.

I think Fremer was stating tha the cartridge suspension deteriorates and thats what causes him to claim only 5 years out of each cartridge. I have MC cartridges that are 40 years old that seem to work great. (GAS Sleeping Beauty) Of course, I dont remember what they sounded like 40 years ago in the equipment I had at the time. Perhaps in dry areas, or areas where the house is heated, the suspension deteriorates faster than my humid Florida climate. I have never had a cartridge suspension fail and have purchased many used, older MC cartridges