Cleaning dirty optics

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Arizona_Mike

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What cloth or paper and soap/solvent do most of you use when cleaning dirty optics. I have been having mixed results with typical lens/eyeglass cleaning fluids.

  • Accidental fingerprint or cheek print?
  • Bad dust or sand?
  • Recessed lenses pretty deep in the tube--how do you get the edges clean?

Mike
 
Follow the mfg recommendation. It depends on coatings and they are different.
 
BLOW Off the dust with compressed air before touching it with anything.

Then brush it off again with a soft lens cleaning brush to knock off any grit stragglers.

Then, I use lens cleaning tissue and lens cleaning solvent to get oil film off.

You can wad it up and swirl it around the inside edges to get-R-done.

rc
 
You can get a lens brush and a little air blower from a camera supply store. Like suggested, check with the manufacturer (and try the above) before resorting to chemicals. Sometimes, just a little water will do the trick.
 
Be careful with compressed air. The folks at Leupold told me not to use compressed air cause grit can act like a sand blaster, and put deep scratches in the glass. Instead, they told me to just rinse the optic really well under running water before doing any wiping at all. Then is necessary, use soapy water with a cotton swab and very light pressure to remove any finger / cheek prints. They said acetone and a cotton swab is fine also, if they've been rinsed first to remove any grit that might be present, which there usually is some.

It was either me or one of my Son's, don't remember, but one of us spilled a soda pop all over a pair of 10x42 Leupolds and didn't realize it until it had dried on for a couple days. I filled the sink with warm soapy water, let them soak for a few minutes, then just rinsed them off real well, and then one more rinse with distilled water so they wouldn't have water spots after drying. But compressed air is a no, no on dirty optics, clean one's I suppose, but it's not necessary, or recommended.

GS
 
again, some mfg recommend acetone and not water. others say no, use water. some provide lens pens, others say do not use a lens pen. some say blow it off with compressed air and others say do not.
 
My bad, not all coatings are created equal. If it's Leupold, just about anything goes, they're coatings are impervious to soap and water and acetone, but compressed air can cause the grit to scratch the glass of any optic.

Acetone will damage glass, that is in fact not glass at all. Poly carb lenses would be such an example.

GS
 
Lenspen. You can buy them from most sporting good stores or you can get one for cleaning camera lenses at most places that sell camera parts.
 
Who makes the glass? That right there will help in identifying what is safe and effective for cleaning purposes. But I can' say this much, if it's Leupold glass, thoroughly rinse them in running water to remove any grit, then you can use cotton balls with a soap and water solution if necessary, then rinse with distilled water to prevent water spots. If they still have some smudges, you can use cotton balls and acetone for a spotless job.

But all that aside, I learned many years ago that constant and obsessive wiping on optics is unnecessary and risky. I ruined the lenses on a pair of expensive Pentax binoculars about 25 years ago by constantly wiping them off. That's why it's imperative to make sure there is absolutely no chance of any grit on the glass or the cloth being used. Now days I only clean my glass when it's absolutely necessary.

GS
 
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