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Contact Line stylus - gathering dust on stylus. Help!

Hi everyone,

I recently purchased a moving iron cartridge with a "high profile contact line" stylus.  I bought it because of the reviews that I had read, not because of the stylus profile.  I've had it for over a month now, and while I like the sound there is one VERY significant problem.  The stylus gathers so much dust on it that I can't get through one side of a record without having to get up multiple times to clean the stylus.  I've tried 5 or 6 other cartridges on my set up over the last few years without any difficulties.  I always clean the stylus before every side, usually by dipping it in Moon Gel.  With the other cartridges there is seldom any dust visible in the gel.  With the contact line stylus, there are large deposits of dust every time I dip it in the gel (sometimes even two or three times during the same track).

In over a month I have yet to get through one side of an album without having to clean it.  Often, I have to clean it 4-5 times per side.  This happens on every record, even newly cleaned ones.  It happens whether I've just cleaned the apartment and dusted or whether it's been a while.  I just dropped in two of my old cartridges to compare, and they sailed though record after record without any difficulty.  I guess I could have it re-tipped with a different stylus profile, but I hate to pay to have a brand new cart re-tipped.  

Any thoughts?  (and please, no jokes about my poor housekeeping :))

Thanks, Scott
smrex13
moonglum
605 posts
 

Nandric may be onto something. I’ve a theory that improper alignment can exacerbate static and that good alignment will minimise it. This means azimuth and even poor "averaging" of anti-skate could be influential. He may also have been referring to the fact that manufacturers/re-tippers can attach the stylus at the wrong angle leaving it looking like a "dragon tooth". In severe cases this angle is blatant e.g. 30 degrees off vertical, but there can be subtle variations that look fine at first inspection but may only be a few degrees off.

I don’t clean records at all unless they are 2nd hand and never use plush pads or brushes to pre-clean before play. I’ve always sworn by the Zerostat and anti-static sleeves and I always quickly vacuum the room with a Dyson  before a session. As a consequence there is rarely ever any lint accumulation and even 40 or 50 year old records played hundreds of times sound noise free.

I never apply sticky cleaners of any sort to a stylus (common sense) especially anything that exerts a "downward pull". (Never tempt providence ;^)


lewm
6,770 posts
 
This a typical thread found here with lots of the same well meaning advice given over and over again and once in a while a dispute develops between two of the well meaning responders that takes the thread in a whole new direction. I can only agree with several who have stated that your problem is very unusual. I use a Grace Ruby re-tipped by Sound Smith with one of their OCL styli, and I have no unusual problem with dust or dirt. In fact, you’ve reminded me that I have not cleaned this stylus in ages. The sound is too gorgeous to mess with.

The scientific approach would be to stop using that gel and stop using your current record cleaner. My bet is that one of those two cleaners is doing more harm than good. You could use Magic Eraser on your stylus, which seems to be sort of a gold standard among vinylphiles. (The very idea of a "gel" seems suspect to me. You say that you see dust particles in the gel after using it on your stylus; it makes sense to me that the gel also in turn must leave a residue on your stylus.) You could try cleaning one of your LPs that tends to gunk up the stylus with crud using some mild detergent and tap water. Then rinse with plain water afterwards. See if these new approaches do not at least reduce the problem. There is no amount of static electricity in the universe that can attract that much dust during the course of playing half an LP side. Unless your listening room is in a woodworking shop. If the gel is at fault, it may be a real problem to get it off  the stylus.
smrex13 OP
423 posts
 
@lewm Thanks for the response.  The moon gel isn't the issue here, as this cart is only a couple of months old and has had problems from the very first play.  Today I put my old cartridge in (which has been cleaned with moon gel for a couple of years) and it is sailing through record after record with no issue, even ones that I've not cleaned in a long time.  I imagine there's something wrong with the stylus that I can't see with my magnifying glass.  I might send it to be retipped or explore another cartridge.  Oh well, stuff happens.

Cheers, Scott
thom_mackris's avatar
thom_mackris
680 posts
 
This last comment leads me to think that the problematic cartridge's stylus is poorly polished.  Of course, a USB microscope would reveal more.

Regards,
Thom @ Galibier Design
larryi
1,972 posts
 
I too have some doubts about the moon gel being the sole cause of this dust issue.  But, if it is true that it uses silicone that can be transferred to the stylus, this is a very bad deal.  Silicone, like the stuff used in some lubricants is particularly adept at migrating.  It will spread until it is almost only a single molecular layer.  That film is somewhat tacky and will hold on to dust.  My concern with a cartridge is that this stuff will migrate up the cantilever and end up gumming the interior of the cartridge. 
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