short and sweet- i have a turntable. i play my parents LPs. Good stuff- Led Zep, Neil Young, etc. Thats beside the point.
There always seems to be very small fibers hanging off the needle while playing and after. Tried tweezers, didn’t work. Tried using my fingers, worked a little better, but that cant be too good for the needle. what should i do? should i just leave it?
The needle is very easy to damage and should not be touched by anything.
Go to an electronic shop and buy a can of compressed air. It costs about five bucks.
i have compressed air. good idea.
Clean the record before you play it too.
Blow on it. That usually does it. You can also carefully remove the dust with your fingers. The needle’s not all that sensitive (it’s made of diamond, after all). You could break it if you try, but touching it won’t be a problem.
My parents have some wonderful classic records, but both our turntables have lost needles…can anyone tell me where I might be able to still find turntable needles?
Needle Doctor:
1.800.229.0644
http://www.needledoctor.com
I have ordered from these folks and been happy with what I got. Needles cost more than you’d think. I’m sure they’d have the final word on how to clean 'em too.
Sweet Basil
Woo-hoo! Thanks, Sweet Basil…time to crank up the ol’ Kenwood and spin some original West Side Story, Beatles, and the Muppet Show soundtrack for the first time in about 5 years. 
Once upon a time, before CD’s took over the world, stores like Radio Shack stocked cleaning kits for stylii. These consisted of a small narrow brush with soft bristles, and a bottle of alcohol-based spirit that dried without leaving a residue.
Provided that you don’t bend the small metallic arm that the stylus is bonded to, you shouldn’t do any damage. It should not be forced in any direction other than what it assumes when tracking a record during correct use.
A good substitute for the stylus cleaning fluid would be tape head cleaner fluid (which also dries residue-free) or methanol. Methylated spirits would work as well. Incidentally, some VCR tech’s use methanol to clean video heads when they haven’t got any aerosol cleaner on hand.
Dvous,
I was reading the thread post by post, all the while mentally formulating my response when you beat me to it. Actually, you were much more specific. My father (who holds the welfare of his stereo in higher regard than anything else in the world (except for his family we hope )) has that small brush with the metal arm that you mentioned. It is a very effective way of cleaning the stylus, just a few strokes from under the stylus in an outward motion towards yourself and you are all clear. He’s had it for over 30 years (before I was born) so I would have absolutely no idea of any info on its availability, but if you get your hands on it, its all you need.
I have a stylus cleaning system as mentioned above.
It is made by Discwasher. I bought it about 12 years ago so I don’t know if they still make them. Here is a picture of what I have.
http://www.tweakshop.com/DiscwasherSC2.html
To buy directly from Discwasher here you go!
http://www.discwasher.com/5-1.html
Good luck!