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Bought a $200 ultrasonic cleaner and ruined two lenses last month
Thought I'd save money cleaning my own gear but the solution was too hot and it stripped the coating off a 50mm f1.4 and a 28mm. Have any of you found a safe way to use these things without wrecking glass?
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simonreed23h ago
Damn, that's rough man. My buddy tried the same thing with his vintage Canon glass. He filled it with warm water and a drop of dish soap, ran it for like 2 minutes on low, and it actually worked okay for getting dust off the barrel and threads. But he said you gotta keep the lens absolutely sealed in a ziploc bag with just a little distilled water inside the bag, otherwise the vibration alone can shake loose the elements inside. He learned that the hard way when his 35mm came back with a loose front element that wobbled.
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ray21018h ago
Heard the same thing from a repair guy @simonreed. Said even with a sealed bag the ultrasonic bath can knock a lens slightly out of alignment if it's old and the adhesive has dried out.
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