DIY stylus retip now enjoying music again!!

[cafe latte]

Been planning this for a while but I did not want to try it on any of my carts that actually worked.. Anyway the cantilever on my Ortofon VMS 30 was bent since I got it and worn stylus too so it was a perfect candidate for a test retip
First I cut off the bent cantilever leaving a stub. Next I cut donor conical cantilever. This will not be permanent I will be removing this again and fitting something like a AT vm95 ml stylus. Anyway the cheap conical first, with larger tube it slid nicely over the stub, happily the AT has a finer cantilever so it hopefully will slide inside without a splint. Anyway into position I did not want to glue in a way that cant be removed so a tiny droplet of nail varnish so little that it can be removed and not so little that it might not hold. Aligned perfectly, just low riding slightly as only glued top edge and I was happy to let it sit this way for a test as long as secure. Also tracking force needed 0.5g more for cheap conical. Next retip this wont be an issue.
Here are the pics

 

[cafe latte]

Second pic makes stylus look off to side, it is not it is just the angle I took the pic. Now to order some stylus for retipping
Chris

 

[likebike23]

Cool project. So how did you cut the cantilevers without deforming them?

 

[boreas]

The next Needlestein?

 

[cafe latte]

Cool project. So how did you cut the cantilevers without deforming them?

A razor blade does a great job but you cant just cut it you need to gently saw through it slowly and support cantilever.
Chris

 

[Chubba]

I am very interested Cool

 

[cafe latte]

The next Needlestein?

I am just learning. I have been quietly trying a few things for a while, I redid the tieback on my Decca Super Gold and realigned the pole pieces. I have done a few mock retips on dead carts but this is the first retip I tried on something I care about.
Now I need to order a few decent stylus to cut up and then I can do the job properly which will be more scary cutting up an expensive stylus.
Chris

 

[Chubba]

Where do folks order new stylus's from? cheers

 

[cafe latte]

Where do folks order new stylus's from? cheers

I will be ordering AT vm95 ml stylus and cutting the cantilever off and transplanting it onto the carts I want to retip. Under the microscope the new AT vm95 ml nude mounted tip is beautiful and the cost of the stylus is cheap all things considered.
Chris

 

[Chubba]

Cool.

 

[Jelloalien1]

I‘d love to learn to retip, guessing a lot of trial and error eh. Very cool!

 

[Grbluen]

You guys are amazing!

 

[cafe latte]

I‘d love to learn to retip, guessing a lot of trial and error eh. Very cool!

Yes a fair bit, I bought some garbage 10 dollar stylus to cut up. Squashed a few cantilevers before I worked out what to do.
Chris

 

[tubeactive]

Congratulations cafe latte !!!!!...and Welcome to the DIY Retipping world. This is no easy chore you have chosen. Perserverance will undoubtedly be worth it.

At this very time, I am amazed how many "retipped cartridges" are appearing and available online when searching . Simply type that in the search while lurking online, like on the bay, and you too might be amazed. Apparently, there are quite a number of USA retipping "practitioners" selling their services or completed wares. I have also seen available stuff from serious artisans worldwide, including Australia, Japan, Italy, the UK and more...Tread softly and buyer beware if you are considering purchase of a completed retip job, since a quality retip job really does need many factors to be considered and addressed. This is not a simple cut and paste....

While meticulous and intricate, retipping or recantilevering is not rocket science. The ability to see "level, plumb and square" while acquiring dexterity with technique is required. Learning while doing is the key. Cafe latte operated very resourcefully, practicing on old replacement needles, methodically determining how cutting and resizing works for him. He should be proud, very proud. I thoroughly recommend stocking up on old styli for anybody interested in this endeavor. There are reasonably priced stylus lots on the bay all the time. Practice makes perfect...

The art of actual retipping, that is removing the stylus tip, or the remaining bonding stub which held the diamond stylus tip on the cantilever, then installing and mounting a replacement stylus tip on that same cantilever, has more considerations. With the ability to see "plumb, level and square," after you successfully remove the original stylus stub, very carefully, you might then need to drill through the cantilever, "plumb level and square," in order to accommodate a new donor stylus.

Simply lifting a stylus tip with a tweezer requires an agility the tweezer may not have. The tweezer I use to lift my stored tips has such a tiny tip, I cannot see the tweezer tip with my eyes alone. As you grab a stylus, more often than not, it can "spring away" only to land...where ? If it lands on a workbench, good luck finding it. If it lands on the floor, forget about it. If it lands on a carpet, don't even bend down. What to do, what to do ? Work over a large basin, until you learn to do the work over a smaller basin or tabletop area. There will be dropsies...

I will try and shoot some pics to add into this post/thread and I hope this thread becomes worthy for many styli adventurers....

 

[cafe latte]

I started repairing watch movements as watches are my other hobby evolving into totally dismantling movements for cleaning and lube so the leap to retipping for me was not so huge as used to dealing with tiny stuff that if it pings out of the tweezers is lost forever. Room I work in has polished wooden floor so you have half a chance of finding things again
Chris

 

[Grbluen]

Subscribed!

 

[tubeactive]

Great ! Those are some serious noble beginnings, coming from a watchmaker's perspective. Intricate work, precision mechanical devices, serviced by only a few. Congratulations on that. So, down the road, cafe latte, maybe you could fix some open moving coils and structures ? I know that service is very needed, currently. Most "blossoming" retippers who "recantilever" do not want to perform suspension or coil repairs. The guys who will do the work charge serious money...I know I have at least one very vintage moving coil cart with an open coil winding.

With the newer, USB optical equipment available at reasonable prices, combined with an ever-growing demand for phono playback gear, the various methods of retipping are surely blossoming among many professionals and amateurs alike...

 

[pfcs49]

subscribed and interested!
PM sent to tube active

 

[radkosechko]

Hi All!
Writing from Bulgaria.
I have an ORTOFON MC20 MKII cartridge with tip gone, and saw this thread while searching on Google.
Anyone trier laser cutting of the cantilevers? (both on cartridge and on the donor stylus)
Think it will be a perfect cut, since no mechanical contact is made.
All you have to do is select the donor cantilever piece according to diameter needed.

 

[Tiver]

Hi All!
Writing from Bulgaria.
I have an ORTOFON MC20 MKII cartridge with tip gone, and saw this thread while searching on Google.
Anyone trier laser cutting of the cantilevers? (both on cartridge and on the donor stylus)
Think it will be a perfect cut, since no mechanical contact is made.
All you have to do is select the donor cantilever piece according to diameter needed.

Of course, and it should be mentioned, one needs to have a cutting laser lying around