What devices have you found useful when inspecting your stylii for cleanliness?

De nada.

I just use my iPhone, put it in camera mode, then zoom in.

lak,

interesting, but the max is only 3.5x, and getting the right distance to the object is important, not to mention, viewing the underside which is why a magnifying mirror works well.

@lewm

Thanks, I can see where you are coming from, even if I cannot see my own stylus! Just as an aside, what do you consider the back of the stylus to be, the bit that faces the oncoming groove or the bit that is essier to see?

My tone arm dates from about 1972, and is an SME 3009 Series II improved with fixed head shell.  SME sold almost half a million similar arms but I have no idea how many had fixed head shells.  Secondhand it is worth less than 1/10 of your Tri-Planar!

SME gets most of the credit for the industry standard head shell socket, which was actually by Ortofon.  The advantages of a fixed head shell include less mass, more rigidity and fewer electrical connections.  The disadvantage is, er, it is fixed.

My current cartridges are both Moving Magnet types, so the stylii can be pulled out of the cartridge body, though I have not been game enough to try this yet.

I takes just a few minutes to unscrew the four screws holding the arm to the base and unplug its DIN connector, so I can look at the whole assembly upside down.  Or just undoing two bolts achieves the same thing but does not guarantee to keep the previous alignment.

Happy to do this every few months to look for wear, but I really want something that helps each day, and ideally has near zero set-up time

I have a variety or loupes, magnifiers, microscopes, including a Shure SEK, and digital scopes. For routine checking of muck on the stylus, and general state of cantilever, I found a 7X magnifier to be the best for my aging eyes. I got one with a Mint protractor for one arm, but the lighting was intermittent, and bought another one of the same power which seems to be a little more robust. It was cheap. I’m using these to inspect whether there is any build up on the stylus and to make sure the cantilever is straight. This is not meant for examining stylus wear. I run good cartridges, have gone to great lengths to develop a record cleaning regime, and try not to obsess over it.

Currently run a Koetsu Tiger Eye in a Kuzma Airline arm on the main system.

My second system (vintage) involves a little less compulsive behavior, but have a similar assortment of loupes and magnifiers in that set up.