2. analog
  3. 147540-12372

Koetsu Rosewood - Best/safest way to clean stylus

I have a Koetsu Rosewood Signature and have been cleaning the stylus using LAST (I think that is the brand) liquid with a brush, followed by using the cueing to drop the needle onto a Magic Eraser 4-5 times. I think this works pretty well, but I worry about the liquid... having read about liquid wicking up the cantilever, etc.

Could using liquid damage the cartridge? Could dropping the cueing down onto the Magic Eraser "grab" the needle and damage the suspension as I raise it? It seems like the only safe way to use Magic Eraser because I don't trust my hands to be steady enough to do it any other way.

Is there another cleaning method that has actually been proven (via microscope) to clean the needle safely and be safe for the cartridge?

Thanks
montaldo
stringreen's avatar
stringreen
6,386 posts
 
Magic Eraser or a blob of Blutac on a business card
terry9
2,251 posts
 
I found it useful to cut a small square of Magic Eraser into a wedge shape and glue it to a silver coin. A gold coin would solve the low-cost problem.

If you decide to glue the Magic Eraser to something, make VERY sure that the something, like a coin, is not magnetic. The cartridge magnets are strong and can attract anything magnetic, and that can do damage.
uberwaltz's avatar
uberwaltz
13,381 posts
 
So is my assumption that it is indeed Magic Eraser Sheets we are talking about before I go out to buy some to try correct?
montaldo OP
181 posts
 
Magic Eraser comes in rectangles...  Shaped like a sponge. Be very careful using them. I would not try to use them like sandpaper, moving the Eraser against the stylus. It is extremely porous and will grab onto the needle. I keep the Eraser fixed on the turntable plinth and lower the stylus in and out of it with the cueing. Others have raised earlier in this thread the potential risk of the Eraser grabbing onto the needle when  it is raised, which could pull on the cantilever. I personally am willing to take that risk but I don't think anyone can say for sure that this concern is unfounded. So proceed at your own risk. But many veteran audiophiles use ME and I know it works amazingly well to clean the stylus.
uberwaltz's avatar
uberwaltz
13,381 posts
 
Thank you
I did the Target run this morning and bought a pack of the ME sheets for a whopping $2.99!


Placed one on the platter and lowered and raised the stylus into it several times moving it slightly after one action each time so it dropped onto a different spot on the ME.
As it was being raised each time I could see the stylus lifting up the ME ever so slightly ( maybe 2mm?) but I do not see any issue with that.

I think will use in conjunction with the Onzow ( for dust) and Lyra STP as a routine.
More to discover