2. tech-talk
  3. 1143316571

Any Walker SST users?

I've been using the Extreme SST with great results for several years. But recently I noticed my SST dried up and became very thick, so according to their website I put a few drops of Canola oil into the vial but somehow I had some doubts of this Canola oil application. A few days later I tried to check its conductivity with a Multimeter set on "Continuity". I made a line with SST on a piece of wood and tried to test it on both ends of the SST line, but no sound from Multimeter, no continuity, no conductivity? Then I dipped the multimeter probes into the SST vial, still nothing. If it's so conductive, as they say, shouldn't it pass the continuity test? I was expecting that it will be more conductive than copper but obviously it looks very resistive. Am I doing something wrong here? Or has the SST lost its onductivity after I applied Canola oil?

Can somebody with a multimeter and SST check this?

Thank You
muratc
rushton's avatar
rushton
2,445 posts
 
Trelja is exactly correct. I just talked with Lloyd to confirm: he says, as Trelja points out, the silver is in an organic oil suspension (carrier). The oil is not very conductive and will show no conductivity with a multimeter due to the low voltage being applied. When the SST is applied to a connnection and the connection is then tightened down, the carrier is forced to the outside and the silver remains, creating a highly conductive interface. The carrier dries on the outside of the connection forming a seal that helps prevent the connection from corroding.

By the way, the carrier used is not canola oil but something else. Canola oil is simply the best readily available material for us users.

Hope this explanation helps in confirming and supplementing Trelja's comments.
.
piedpiper
753 posts
 
SST now comes with a small vial of oil to add later if necessary.
david12
1,454 posts
 
Just a bit of info re using SST. I really like what the treatment does for my system, but recently had a problem I thought I would share. I recently sent my Koetsu cartridge for retipping and treated the cartridge tags when reinstalling. I also changed the phono lead at the same time.
when re setting up, there was a loud hum audible from across the room. I struggled with this, thinking it was the new lead. As a last resort I cleaned the SST from the tags and the hum went. Just something to bear in mind using it, though others may not have the same experience
piedpiper
753 posts
 
SST is meant to be used VERY minimally; a barely discernable film. It's possible that you shorted the pins slightly or some such abberation.
More to discover