That feedback about my groove depth totally changed how I cut

Some guy on the lathe trolls forum told me I was cutting way too deep, like 4 or 5 mils, and it was killing my stylus life. He said to back off to around 2.5 mils on my Presto 6N and honestly I thought he was full of it. Tried it on a run of 45s I was doing for a local band out of Portland last month and the records came out cleaner with way less surface noise. Anyone else get a piece of advice that completely flipped their cutting routine?

2 comments

2 Comments

wendy_wilson19d ago

Billy from the shop next door tried 2.5 mils on his 6N and his next batch of punk 45s came out dead quiet for the first time ever.

thomas_brown20d ago

and it's not just the groove depth either, that same guy probably told you to check your cutting angle because if you're off by even a degree it messes everything up. once i dialed in the depth to 2.5 on my 6N like you said, i also had to adjust the stylus heat a bit lower because the shallower cut was burning the lacquer more. it's wild how one little change opens up a whole chain of adjustments you never thought about before. now i check my setup every time before i start a run just to make sure i'm not leaving anything on the table.

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