Styli

[jtb]

Hey fellow vinyl cutters,

recently completed a 12" pressed-style blank (bit warped) cut with no problems, Immediately after that switched to cutting a standard 7" (flat blank) but experienced significant distortion. Upon inspection discovered a small but noticeable dent on the cutting stylus.

I'm trying to pinpoint the possible cause. My primary suspects are:

- Warped Blanks: most 12" blanks I have are warped...
- Harder Particles/Contamination: Is it likely that harder particles embedded in the blank could have caused this?

Some additional context:

This Souri's stylus had approximately 30-40 hours of cutting time.
I consistently use conservative volume levels and cutting weight.
I've also noticed one side of the stylus appears "chewed," probably from the lead-out grooves, but if get this worn-out looking styli from only ~30hrs, why is it marketed to last 250?

Has anyone experienced similar stylus damage? Any insights into potential causes or preventative measures would be greatly appreciated. I'm keen to avoid/reduce this in the future.


Thanks in advance for your help!

[PMST]

I think you answered the question yourself, warped blanks are one of the biggest diamond killers. During cutting warped discs micro damage can happen to the diamond and likely just the lock groove on the end of the 12” finished it off.

If a blank is warped just put it aside and use a different one. It’s way cheaper to bin a blank than a diamond.

[Bladud Flies]

Hello jtb

- Warped Blanks: most 12" blanks I have are warped…

I would question why this is the case. If they are being stored correctly, and you’re following the guidelines for temperature (ambient) and where/how you heat the blanks, then you shouldn’t be getting ‘mostly warped blanks’. We have used thousands of pressed 12” blanks since My Shank released them in July last year - I’d say less than 1% came out of the box warped, and most of these could be corrected and used.

recently completed a 12" pressed-style blank (bit warped) cut with no problems, Immediately after that switched to cutting a standard 7" (flat blank)

If you didn’t calibrate your system specifically to use the pressed blanks, then I would start there. If you are not aware of these guidelines then feel free to PM me, happy to help.

There is a new Fb group that has been created where your question(s) would receive helpful and knowledgable responses. PM me if you want a link.

All the best with it!