Carbon Fiber Brush with Milty Gun?

HI Moonglum - I find the timings interesting. Thought I was doing it slowly enough...I'll try going even slower. I do hear the occasional "pop" from the gun...will try to avoid this. Actually thought the popping noise was a good thing.

Positive static charges are not good for the sound. However, negative static charges are very good for the sound.

There's also a trick to charging the brush with the gun and then using the brush. Without sounding dogmatic, I've never found any of the brushes terribly effective- they push the surface dust around, but I've never found a good way to remove it, apart from pushing the collected dust sideways across the grooves and off the record. I suppose if you reduce the charge that is attracting the dust to the record surface, this may make the whole process easier. I never liked that darned gun- had one back in the day, and have a relatively fresh one now. I think it is strong ju-ju by 'counter-charging' the record, rather than getting at the source of the charge to begin with; shoes on carpeted floors; paper sleeves, low relative humidity all contribute. Also, if the record has been cleaned on a wand type vacuum machine and you've been a little too enthusiastic in the vacuum drying, you can add a charge.
FWIW, if you wanted to use one of those anti-static machines, you can buy the industrial type (used for electronics assembly) for less than the audiophile approved versions, used.
By playing in bare feet, changing my cleaning practices, and resleeving with a good aftermarket sleeve, I've virtually eliminated static problems.

Hi Ghosthouse,
Not to worry m8. Mine cracks at least once per LP no matter how slowly it's driven. I even know a few folk who went further and used "rapid fire" all over the disc surface.
That method probably still works ok - just wears out the gun faster(!) ;^)

...and the prices have escalated considerably in the last 3 or 4 decades. Bring back the £6-99 price tag! :D

Dear Whart,
There is an alternative to the gun. During flipping just put the LP back in its anti-static sleeve for a short while then remove it again. That would help to neutralise the charge?

A good practical test of the gun's effectiveness is when the kid's hair has been brushed and is so charged that it is standing on end and strongly attracted to nearby objects. Zap it with the gun and it will fall flat instantly. Pass your hand close to the hair, no attraction whatsoever. ;^)
In retrospect probably best not to encourage them with the gun... :) :)

speaking of bare feet you've reminded me of my worst static experience...
Arriving earliest for work I had the duty of switching all the fluorescent lights on. The switch panel was outside the old fashioned office in a long corridor...
The panel consisted of banks of chromed toggle switches and the panel itself was chromed steel.
As I reached for the switch all the static charge for miles along those corridors erupted through me and sparked onto the earthed panel. An analogy is when driving a perfectly balanced mid-engined sports car you can feel the communication of each tyre? Well, on that day I could feel the charge rushing from the farthest reaches of the carpet and funnelling through me in one mighty discharge. My trouser legs must have been flapping! A lesson learned.
An even worse one I'd heard about was the unfortunate guy who decided to take a leak on the synthetic hull of a boat. That makes mine pale by comparison! Talk about St.Elmo's Fire!! :D :D