Is my stylus bent? (Pictures)

[Evilash1996]

Resampled_2012-07-16_16-51-04_13.jpg (151.16 KiB) Viewed 1630 times

So as you can tell my stylus is bent. How necessary is it to buy a new stylus? Does it have to be done right away? How bad is the bend?

[bubba45]

That is quite bad although I've seen worse and yeah I would get a new one ASAP if I were you. A stylus that bent could cause damage almost immediately you use it so I'd stop using it until you get a new one.
How did it happen? Did you knock it or did you just discover it bent like that one day but last time you looked it was fine?

[Marcie]

So as you can tell my stylus is bent. How necessary is it to buy a new stylus? Does it have to be done right away? How bad is the bend?

It appears that 'only' the cantilever is bent, not the stylus itself, although you would need to check the stylus under a microscope. This might have happened even in the factory and it then slipped through the quality control.

It may be that it's not actually bent, just that it is not properly aligned inside. In that case, you might want to try to push it back very carefully, while taking the utmost care that you don't touch the stylus tip. Push the side of the cantilever with the (broad side of the) blade of a small screwdriver, and it may just 'snap' back. I once had a cart that had the cantilever come loose altogether and I managed to 'put it back' into the cart successfully.

You have nothing to lose by trying as you can always buy a new stylus. Just be sure that the stylus tip hasn't been damaged. Either way, I would not play any records with it in its current condition.

[duficity]

Yes

[kelvinMunson]

Yes, the picture depicts a bent cantilever.

[Russellc]

No, its your cantilever thats bent.

Russellc

[Blue Angel]

So as you can tell my stylus is bent. How necessary is it to buy a new stylus? Does it have to be done right away? How bad is the bend?

It appears that 'only' the cantilever is bent, not the stylus itself, although you would need to check the stylus under a microscope. This might have happened even in the factory and it then slipped through the quality control.

It may be that it's not actually bent, just that it is not properly aligned inside. In that case, you might want to try to push it back very carefully, while taking the utmost care that you don't touch the stylus tip. Push the side of the cantilever with the (broad side of the) blade of a small screwdriver, and it may just 'snap' back. I once had a cart that had the cantilever come loose altogether and I managed to 'put it back' into the cart successfully.

You have nothing to lose by trying as you can always buy a new stylus. Just be sure that the stylus tip hasn't been damaged. Either way, I would not play any records with it in its current condition.

Messing around a cartridge cantilever with a screwdriver is asking for more trouble. If you push the side of a cantilever with a screwdriver, things won't 'snap' back - they will 'snap' right off.

ba

[satanfriendly]

Just buy a new stylus for what they cost. Try straightening it and you'll only end up buying a new one anyway.

[Marcie]

Messing around a cartridge cantilever with a screwdriver is asking for more trouble. If you push the side of a cantilever with a screwdriver, things won't 'snap' back - they will 'snap' right off.

ba

Very constructive. Don't be stupid man. He's got nothing to lose. Push very gently with a very small screwdriver broadside. Have you tried? I have, successfully. And I know a guy who installs new cantilevers from the *outside* when they are broken; he uses tricks like these all the time.

[satanfriendly]

I guess Blue Angel being a manufacturer of cartridges has pretty good knowledge here

[13oots2]

You pipped me to the post SF.

[Dr Pan K]

Messing around a cartridge cantilever with a screwdriver is asking for more trouble. If you push the side of a cantilever with a screwdriver, things won't 'snap' back - they will 'snap' right off.

ba

Very constructive. Don't be stupid man. He's got nothing to lose. Push very gently with a very small screwdriver broadside. Have you tried? I have, successfully. And I know a guy who installs new cantilevers from the *outside* when they are broken; he uses tricks like these all the time.

And I know of a guy who creates some of the best MC carts in business and restores to perfection old ones. Wait , u just spoke to him too, he goes by the nickname blue angel..

[Zebbo]

Me being me, if I did have a go at pushing back in place, even if successful, I'd be paranoid that it wasn't right and might do some more damage. I'd just buy a new one.

[Marcie]

Me being me, if I did have a go at pushing back in place, even if successful, I'd be paranoid that it wasn't right and might do some more damage. I'd just buy a new one.

I can understand that, and usually I would do the same for exactly the same reason. If the cantilever is really bent, there's not much hope and I wouldn't try. But if it's 'just' dislocated, there is still a chance it can be put right. This was what I wrote, but some people either didn't read my response very well or chose to ignore that bit.

At the time I did it, I had nothing to lose but to try. It was for my brother's 'table (Marantz TT6000), and there wasn't time to order a new stylus. The cantilever was pointing up and to the side, so quite a bit worse than Evilash's. Moreover, I've seen new carts that had dislocated cantilevers much the same as Evilash's, probably factory-faulty or through handling error at some point. I also know that such carts (even really bent ones) are actually repaired by brave specialists (not me by the way).

I had a different spare cart ready, but curiosity got the better of me. The faulty cart was an AT OEM, a Marantz M500 if I remember correctly. Afterwards, I checked everything profusely with a special magnifying glass, digital USB microscope, old records, a test record, carefully observing the cart when playing etc. Everything checked out fine, in the end. So, on impulse, I decided to share my experience, not expecting a bashing.

I'm sorry for my irritated response though; I should have said "Ignorance is bliss" or something, and leave it at that.