Did I damage my cartridge?

Scott,

You may indeed have bent/damaged the cantilever or suspension. Try to find someone with the same cartridge and get them to send or post a photo so you can compare cantilever angles. If it isn't obvious by now, NEVER apply more downforce to a cartridge than the maximum tracking force recommended by the manufacturer. :(

If it turns out the cantilever is okay, then here's another possibility. I used to use the ExtremePhono stylus cleaning gel, which is similar to the ZeroDust. If I let the gel get above the top of the cantilever tip, it would scoop some up like a little shovel. That stuff would then grab onto every piece of dirt it could find and hold onto it. I had to scrape it off the stylus/cantilever. Try inspecting the stylus area with a good magnifier. A detachable wide angle lens for a 35mm camera works well if you have one, film end of the lens toward the stylus.

In 'cleaning' my zerodust, it doesn't seem to be as sticky any more. What's up with that?

John

Am I crazy for not cleaning my stylus?

DTM: Crazy? Yes...just not for having a dirty stylus :-)

I still use the good old Discwasher stylus brush and fluid, but am not really sure if this is even made any more.

Anyhoo: I am a little skeptical about DD's theorizing that vertical deflection force applied during cleaning can't exceed the recommended max VTF without risking catastrophic results. The VTF will only deflect the cantilever to a midway position vertically, but the cartridge suspension is by design necessity capable of sustaining a deflection larger than that without damage. Depending on the type of cantilever material used, the compliance of the suspension, and the configuration of the cart's underbody, deflecting the cantilever as far as it can physically go may result in a bent cantilever, a snapped cantilever, a detached cantilever, or often no problems at all. Personally, with most carts I would be surprised if light extra pressure applied into a soft gel bed would result in any damage of this sort. My suspicions run more toward what DD experienced in terms of gel adherence, or possibly undetected detachment of the diamond tip. Clues might be revealed if Scott tells us what model cart is involved.

Record Research #9 stylus Cleaner is all you need to get the job cleanly and safely.