Cleaning question for vintage camera

<p>Hi!<br>

I'm the proud new owner of a Kodak Signet 40! I received it in the mail today and it looks like it could be cleaned up a bit. A little dirty, a bit dusty on the outside window of the viewfinder. Just wondering if it would safe to clean this vintage beauty with the cleaning kit I have here that I use for my Canon Rebel.<br>

Thanks in advanced!<br>

Liana</p><div></div>

<p>Always put the cleaning solvent (e.g., alcohol from hand sanitizer, naphtha (lighter fluid)) on a paper towel or, better, lintless (often washed) cotton rather than on the camera itself. Use any standard lens cleaner and lens tissues for the lens and viewfinder windows. Q-tips are good for getting into corners</p>

<p>I had one of the most negative interactions with any camera in my life with a Signet 35, but I actually found the Signet 40 to be a pleasant, if a little retro for its time, camera(<a href="00Sx2C">link</a> ). Show us some of your results after you get it cleaned up.</p>

<p>(P.s. if you make your pictures no more than 700 pixels wide (resize with resample on) and put a caption on them they will display along with the text here).</p>

<p>Welcome to Photo.net.</p>

<p>You can certainly use your Hurricane blower brush and soft-hair brush to blow and brush away loose dust from VF and lens. Just be gentle and use TLC. I also use the Zeiss Lens Cleaning napkins you can get at Walmart. These are soft, lintfree, pre-dampened with an isopropyl alcohol solution, napkins. They come 50 per box, and one box costs about $2.50 plus tax. You can use use to clean the lens and the VF glass. They might also work well on the body of the camera. I use them to clean up old cameras I buy from thrift stores.</p>

<p>Thanks to you both for the tips! It was a lot dirtier than I thought. It looks good as new now!<br>

Alan, thank you for tips on where to get cheap napkins.<br>

JDM, I researched this model before I decided on purchasing it. It seems to be the best of the Signet models. I was really looking for a vintage Konica like the one my dad had that I took my first photos with. However, I saw this one and thought it looked really interesting. I had to have it. It was a nice surprise to see that there is still a roll of film in it too.</p>

<p>JDM: should the (nobrand) cleaning solution I got with my new (plastic) reading glasses be safe for camera & lenses ? </p>

<p>Markus, I just don't know, although you'd think that if it is safe for plastic, it would be at least neutral for lens coatings, and the like.<br>

I <em>have</em> used the hand-cleanser on a lens tissue for the really oily, grimed lenses, but always very carefully and wipe them off right away. Most of the time, I just use a commercial camera lens cleaner fluid I get in bottles that last for years.</p>

<p>Thanks, I will just try it on an old doggy zoom lens coating first. By hand-cleanser to you mean that pure mild soap you can use to rinse dishes and more and what is that commercial camera cleaner fluid called in german Europe? "Pure" 98% alcohol from the pharmacy or the stuff that is used to clean tape and video heads should be fine as well or not at all?</p>

<p>No I mean the 62% alcohol or so "Waterless Hand Sanitizer" items. The best ones evaporate with little residue (try some on a mirror or glass first), but last longer than un-"thickened" liquid ethyl alcohol. Some plastics may be affected so try a little in a hidden place first. Pure 190-proof alcohol would do, but it evaporates rather quickly and may pose more of a fire hazard because of its greater volatility.</p>

<p>Thanks again for your professional advice, now I understand.</p>

<p>Nice buy Liana. I see you got it with the field case too, that makes it look cooler and protects it when knockin around. I have the same camera with case. Also i have the flash and a bunch of bulbs. I have two Signet 40's now.. A while back i was thinking of having the one i use sent somewhere for a CLA but picked up another for next to nothing.. Its great too, but sometimes the advance lever doesn't catch</p>

<p>For the plastic and metal bits I recommend using Dawn dish soap and water applied and removed with a rag. Not the "consentrated" Not the "scented" Not the "antibacterial", just plain old Original Dawn, and non-consentrated, non-scented, non-antibacterial generics work just the same. I've researched hundreds of cleaning products and this is the only thing I've found that is safe to use on metals and plastics of all kinds. Using a micro-fiber cloth you can even use it on glass like viewfinder windows, but for the main lens you should use a proper alcohol-based lens cleaner. Specifically, you should never use any product containing alcohol, ammonia or organic (petroleum-based) solvents on any plastics. Especially if the camera has a faint formaldahyde smell... that means it's got parts made from Bakelite, an early plastic that is dissolved by alcohol! Some cameras have plastic lenses, and typical glass cleaners should not be used on these. If you have ever accidentally used Windex on a plexiglass window then you know first hand what alcohol based cleaners can do to plastic! Be sure to dry everything off with a clean rag and set the camera in a window to be sure it's good and dry afterwords. Sunlight can also help cure mold problems if there is a faint mildew smell to the camera or case.</p>

<p>You should also never ever use cleaning products made specifically for metals on cameras. "Metal cleaners" are typically some kind of buffing compound which can destroy paint or the matte chrome plating on the metal parts of most cameras. It's also important to know that cameras are very deceiving in terms of materials. Most camera bodies are brass plated in matte chrome. Parts that look like metal can also be chrome plated plastic. Parts that look like plastic can be enameled metal. Parts that look like glass can be plastic! Stainless steel and aluminum may also be found on cameras in addition to plated brass. Because many metal cleaners are formulated for a specific metal they may cause chemical reactions with other metals, it's a very good idea to stay away from these kinds of cleaners. For instance, many cleaners that are good for stainless steel may promote corrosion on brass or badly damage aluminum and plastic.</p>

<p>And the leather part is the worst, this can be anything from cardboard to real leather to plastic to rubber. Real leather is by far the least common material, typically only found on very expensive cameras. Cardboard was used more commonly on turn of the century cameras, but may still be found on cheap cameras even into the 50s. And the vast majority of cameras use a leatherette covering made of some kind of vinyl and in some cases plasticized cloth, with rubber being introduced more recently. Dish soap and water (in very small amounts!) is safe for all of these materials. Many people recommend using "saddle soap" for leather but saddle soap is actually bad for leather over the long run and can promote cracking, as it typically contains mineral oil, and is not good for either cardboard or plastic at all! </p>

<p>So my advice is to be careful, take your time and use cleaning products that are neutral to as many materials as possible, which is why I recommend dish soap. And the most important advice off all.... less is always more! Don't overuse any cleaning product, no matter what you use! If there are hard-to-reach areas you can use a q-tip or a tooth-brush to help you get in there, be aware that Q-tips can leave little cotton hairs on rough surfaces.</p>