Who cleans lenses ???

C

ChipThome

Well-known member
I am looking over a Panny 14-140 lens and it appears there may be a fleck of dust inside the front element.

Is this something you have done locally, or is this a "send it in to someone" to have it done ???

So who can you recommend that can clean this lens and do it correctly ??? I do not think we have any real "camera store" left here in Green Bay.

Thanks...appreciate your input !!!

PS....with all the horror stories I have heard about Panny Service, that suggestion is a non starter, thanks.
 
Not really.

The reason I am asking is I have never owned lenses or cameras worth having a lens cleaned or repaired. I have read often where people have made statements about dust, fungus or oil on the blades. I also don't know if a piece of dust now is an indicator of a lot more dust to enter in the future (aka blown seal or something like that).
 
Don't worry about a spec of dust. It shouldn't affect the image quality at all.

On a side note, I've cleaned a couple of lenses. It's not as hard as people think, all you need is a wachman's screwdriver set, a compass, and some cleaning fluid (I use 'optical wipes', and 'stardrops'). I wouldn't do it on any lens worth more than £50 though, lol.
 
Matthew P said:
I wouldn't do it on any lens worth more than £50 though, lol.
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That is exactly how I feel !!!! I have an old 50mm manual here and I wouldn't be against trying to knock that apart and put it back together again. But with the auto focus assembly and all it entails, I'd be scared to death of screwing that up. I googled a bit and came up with one guy who does it but his page doesn't list his location etc. I also would be much more comfortable going to someone that someone knows and recommends. The guy I found it looks like it's only around $50.....or did I read it wrong? Does that sound right, $50 to clean a lens ??? Anyone know someone or knows if this sounds right ???
 
Matthew P said:
Don't worry about a spec of dust. It shouldn't affect the image quality at all.

On a side note, I've cleaned a couple of lenses. It's not as hard as people think, all you need is a wachman's screwdriver set, a compass, and some cleaning fluid (I use 'optical wipes', and 'stardrops'). I wouldn't do it on any lens worth more than £50 though, lol.
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What do you need a compass for?
 
ChipThome said:
The guy I found it looks like it's only around $50.....or did I read it wrong? Does that sound right, $50 to clean a lens ??? Anyone know someone or knows if this sounds right ???
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Here in New York City, a cleaning of a simple manual lens starts at around $70. Don't know about more complex lenses.
 
Ralph B said:
What do you need a compass for?
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A maths compass. Buying a dedicated 'lens opener' would have cost at least £30, which would have made it more expensive than the lens I was repairing, so it made much more sense just to use a compass. It's to undo lens rings.

ChipThome, if the dust is literally just on the inside of the first lens element it might be possible to unscrew the lens ring and get inside that way. I'm not familiar with the kit lens though, so I don't know for sure.
 
Thanks again guys for your input. It doesn't seem to be affecting image quality right now, it's more that "it is there" that is pissing me off and will bug me until I get it handled.

It would be great though to know who does this and who I could send it to who won't rip me off or screw it up worse. So any suggestions are greatly appreciated yet !!!
 
All of my old Olympus OM lenses, that I now use on my GH1's, have dust and fungus and crap in them. :D I can't see it in the image recorded. Hell, you can stick your finger directly in front of the lens, and barely see it, so I wouldn't worry about it too much.

Being OCD about that stuff can drive you nuts. I used to clean my lenses religiously, but now I rarely do, unless I get a big greasy smudge on it. It sure makes shooting less stressful. ;)

Shooting with a 1/3 Handycam, with a wide angle converter attached, at full wide, in bright sunlight, dust on the lens was a problem because of the huge DOF. I've never had that problem when shooting pics/video with an SLR.

Good luck with it!
 
Apologies in advance for hijacking this thread a little .... but is there a home remedy for re-blackenening badly faded rubber on the zoom and focus rings of an old lens?
 
GrahamH said:
Apologies in advance for hijacking this thread a little .... but is there a home remedy for re-blackenening badly faded rubber on the zoom and focus rings of an old lens?
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From back in the days where I was "in the shop" for my day job, so take this as really dated and also non cam oriented.

What we perceive as "rubber" is often a variation of plastic. For rubber what you are seeing is the breakdown of the surface layer that has become contaminated with dirt, dust, oil etc. What we used to do was use an acetone type "cleaner" and wipe down the surface which would strip away a lot of the junk. Once stripped it looked "better" but not perfect. You then could treat it with a rubber conditioner, think the stuff for your tires and dash etc. IMO, here is the HUGE downside of trying to do that with a lens though.

Where say cotton fibers are porous and will absorb liquids into them, rubber or plastic are not and anything you place on those materials functionally just sits on the surface. As it ages or evaporates etc, it will "leave" where you put it and head into the atmosphere, or possibly the surrounding areas too. My concern would be it could seep into the lens itself and end up coating the elements, really screwing things up. As far as just using the "cleaner", repeated use of that is going to dry out and hasten the breakdown of the rubber/plastic itself. I'd use it once and be satisfied with any results you get. I would not put any conditioner or other "covering" on the rubber/plastic, as "coverings" as functionally paint.
 
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