mirror cleaning

[rjvb1]

Tell me I have been stupid (or not)....

 

I must have had a lapsus this morning. Cleaning my F3, I noticed some dirt on the mirror.

It didn't come off with the blowbrush, or maybe it was even caused by the brush itself

(brush tips can take up grease, after all). Anyway, I got out a soft cotton tip, moistened it

with 70% ethanol, and wiped very gently, followed by a similarly gentle wiping with a soft

and dry paper towel.

Now there's some sort of sheen on it, that hasn't yet come off completely with the paper

towel. I stopped short when I realised what I was doing when I saw that the foam mirror

buffer was falling apart as well (of age, I suppose!).

I'm mildly reassured by reading elsewhere that one can use methanol to clean an F3's

mirror. It stands to reason that servicing to replace the foam will include mirror cleaning

(the bits gets everywhere, and are a real PITN!), no?

 

Any ideas on what sort of servicing costs I'd be looking at? Would the mirror have to be

replaced (and would they *check* if that is necessary)? Should I just look for another (used)

exemplar? Should I find a local Nikon repairshop, or can I do this through just about any

good photo shop?

Minor but important detail: I'm living in Paris, France.

 

Thanks in advance (for the lesson...?)

 

René

[james_lai]

Look at your mirror again in a day or so. I did the same thing with a Nikkormat and an Olympus, after a day or so the marks disappeared by themselves (assuming, of course, that you didn't actually damage the silvering on the mirror).

[aslan_ivo]

Considering that the mirror which flips up in an SLR has no effect on the picture, is getting a perfectly clean mirror really worth it?

[rjvb1]

Thanks for the suggestion, James.

 

No, perfect cleaning is not worth it, but a dirty mirror *may* have impact on metering and

probably even focussing. (In fact, a smear is more likely to affect focussing than

exposure.) I was going over my equipment just because I had some issues with a series of

recent shots that look mis-focussed. We'll see if I have made things worse in this aspect.

[arnabdas]

Though not recommended for this purpose, I found PEC-12 to work exceptionally well for oily stains/fingermarks. No streaking.

 

For water based stains, pure methanol/ethanol would probably be better, perhaps followed by a PEC-12.

 

Again -- this is not what PEC-12 is meant for, but it has worked very well for me. YMMV.

[Robert_Lai]

A dirty mirror won't affect metering unless it covers up a significant percentage of the unsilvered pinholes in the mirror that allow light to go to the secondary mirror on the F3. Focusing will not be affected unless you've pushed on the mirror so much it is moved from its rest position. A camera technician would have replaced your foam seals and cleaned your mirror for you (chemically) for about $30 here in Syracuse, NY, USA.<p>Cleaning your mirror by yourself in my opinion is as smart as peforming your own appendectomy on yourself. Not only does it hurt a lot, but one slip of the knife and you've committed seppoku (hara-kiri).

[erik_loza]

I have always cleaned the mirrors on my SLR's on a routine basis and never had issues.

There seems to be lots of anxiety about scratching the silver, so I actually dismantled an

old SLR and tried to scratch the mirror during normal cleaning operations myself. I was

finally able to do it, but not with a proper lens cloth and fluid, only piece of dry cotton

cloth. The mirror surface is more durable then we think. I have always blown the surface

clean with compressed air, then thorougly soaked it with alcohol (Eclipse is the best,

lately). Then, blot (not wipe!) it clean. Never a problem during nearly 10 years. Good luck

with your project.

[james_lai]

Have to disagree with your second paragraph, Robert. Would you likewise advise DSLR owners to send their cameras back to the factory every time their sensors needed cleaning?

 

To date I have replaced the rotted foam in 5 or 6 different cameras, and invariably there are foam bits on the mirrors. All came through unscathed with a little gentle, careful cleaning. Don't clean the mirror as a matter of routine, of course, only when absolutely necessary (which should be maybe every 10 to 15 years!).

 

If you're worried about the mechanics of the mirror being messed up, consider that the mechanism is made to withstand flipping up and down at high speed, at up to 6fps in the case of your F3. Touching it very very lightly is not going to harm it!

[rjvb1]

Hmmm, thanks again. Yes, those mirrors are built to withstand considerable stress, but

there is a difference between the shock it gets when flipping up and back, and the force

that is exerted on it when wiping it. In the first case, the frame takes most of the stress,

and the centre can move/flex freely. Wiping, and exterting a little too much pressure could

be more than it is designed to handle.

I wasn't really afraid of damaging the silver mechanically. Even if: a little scratch wouldn't

be a big deal (probably). I'm sure I did this on my old AE-1 (where the mirror is just and

only a mirror). But seeing the sort of residue made me fear some subtle layer might have

been altered chemically. It is probably just a residue of years of built up grease, which will

come off with some additional cleaning.

What is PEC-12? Some poly-ether compound? (Now that's something I wouldn't have

thought of using!)

I'm waiting for a reply email from Patrick Rouillard (not unknown here, I think), he'll

probably know where (or how) to get the foam replaced. After that, I'll give the mirror

some more attention, if necessary. There's a good chance I could get at high-grade

methanol, would that work better than ethanol (leave less traces, e.g.)?

In any case, thanks for the discussion!

 

BTW, Robert: I'd rather compare this to vasectomy. You can almost see what you're doing,

you can mess up considerably, but with a bit of luck, aiming and a steady hand, you can

do it yourself :)

[lex_jenkins]

James, cleaning a flip-up mirror and cleaning a dSLR sensor are very different things. Most flip-up mirrors are silvered on the front - the silvering is extremely delicate and vulnerable to damage from inexpert attempts at cleaning.

 

Sensors are relatively less vulnerable to damage and there are plenty of good cleaning materials and thorough instructions for their use.

 

For many folks the same guideline that applies to cleaning ears applies as well to cleaning cameras - nothing smaller than a soccer ball should be inserted into the ear canal or beyond the lens mount.

[jeff h.]

For all the hype about not touching a camera's mirror, I've had good luck over the years

cleaning mirrors on Nikons, Kodaks, Pentaxes, Leicas ®, Yashicamats, and Hasselblads

using: alcohol, Q-tips, lens cleaning tissue, compressed air, my own warm breath, and

common sense. Frankly, it's not like performing your own appendectomy or vasectomy, it's

more like trimming your nails: something you don't do often, something where you can

hurt yourself by doing it incorrectly, and something that needs to be done periodically. It's

just a camera mirror, not an eyeball.

[james_lai]

Lex, in my experience (and in the experience of at least a few others, it appears), the delicacy of the front surface silvering is overrated. At least if you scratch your mirror, it won't affect your photos and probably won't even be visible through the viewfinder. With a DSLR, if you mess up your sensor you might as well chuck the whole camera because a sensor replacement will likely cost you more than a new camera. Both the mirror and sensor are fragile, but my point was that with a little care, both can be cleaned safely by the owner. Especially by owners who are capable of performing appendectomies and vasectomies on themselves!

 

I guess this is an issue that we mirror cleaners will have to agree to disagree with the non-cleaners. If you're not comfortable with touching your mirror, then don't do it!

[rjvb1]

Just for information: it appears that Leica advises a 50/50 mix of ether and ethanol to

clean microscope lenses, or else lighter fluid. I'm still a bit sceptic if it is a good idea to

apply either ether or a petrol-like compound in the vicinity of rubber (?) foams and other

components in the mirror house which could be attacked by them?

[david_h._hartman]

<em>with the paper towel. -- Ren頊.V.

Bertin<br>

</em><br>

Please DO NOT EVER use a paper towel on a lens and especially NOT

on an SLR mirror. SLR mirrors are front surface mirrors and

normally covered with fairly soft aluminum. They are quite easy

to scratch. Ive seen a camera repairman friend use a Q-Tips

on lenses and mirrors many times but paper towels are not a high

quality paper and they can have abrasive foreign material

manufactured into the paper. I would guess that paper towels are

often made with recycled paper which means that paper may have

been sweep off a concrete floor. <br>

<br>

I used to run a 48 (122cm) guillotine paper cutter in a

print shop. Sometimes we needed to cut chipboard, gray cardboard

often used at the bottom of a note pad. This stuff had so much

abrasive martial in it that we only cut chipboard just before

changing the blade. It really took the edge off the blade and the

blade was no longer suitable for or regular work.<br>

<br>

Most cleaning materials will not scratch a lens or its

coatings. Its the foreign material that may be in or

acquired by the cleaning material. Cleaning materials need to be

protected until used than thrown out. If I set a piece of lens

tissue down I through it out. If I drop a pack of lens tissue I

throw it out. It can also be foreign or abrasive material that is

on the lens itself. Dust the lens with air from a HD blower bulb

before cleaning. Blower brushes usually acquire oil from ones

skin and apply that to your lens, mirror or negatives. I dont

use them. <br>

<br>

Again SLR mirror are front surface mirrors and normally coated

with rather soft aluminum. If you do not know how to clean them

properly just dont. Let a camera repairman or woman clean

them.<br>

<br>

Absolute methyl alcohol is the lens cleaner prescribed by Nikon

for its view camera lenses and is safe on modern Nikon lenses. <br>

<br>

Regards,<br>

<br>

Dave Hartman.

[rjvb1]

Just a note about paper towels: I referring to the dust-free ones that we use with

microscopes (and as I used to use for my contact lenses when I still wore those).

I'm a bit amazed about your claim that the mirrors are made from aluminium. Aluminium

corrodes with air contact, covering itself with a thin layer which is both protective and not

quite brilliant. I (and others who posted here) were under the impression that silver is

being used instead?

[marius_vanderwalt]

I have several (18) nikon cameras in a collection and yearly clean the enitire camera, incl the mirror.

 

I 1st blow off the dust and grit with a blower. Then using cotton wool wrapped around a forceps I drop a few drops of Eclipse Methanol on the applicator and gently wipe the mirror. Thereafter you will see streaking and a few small drops that do not evaporate - this is normal.

 

Then take a optical grade microfibre cloth and gently wipe the mirror, 1st the sides then the middle (about the sam pressure as rubbing your eyeball gently). Then I finish with a final blast of air.

 

The mirror is returned back to pristine condition, metering is accurate, and focus spot on.

 

Living in Durban South africa is pretty humid, so a yearly clean to my babies helps prevent fungus and mildew formation.

 

I do not think it is really possible to rub the mirror out of alignment, i mean it;s a gebtle rub, not being forceful at all and as someone had posted prev, that mirror is subject to torture every time it slaps up and down.

 

Regards

Dr Marius van der Walt

Durban

South Africa

[steve_marino]

Just cleaned my Nikon 8008s mirror. Used the cheapo lens cleaning kit that comes w/ a lil bottle of fluid, brush, and lens tissue papers. I first blew the mirror off to remove, hopefully, grit. Then soaked a lens tissue, blotted off the mirror, and wiped it dry w/ a clean tissue. Took all of one minute and it looks like new!

[teresa_morgan]

Being the ignorant photography novice that I am AND having to learn everything in life the hard way AND being poor as a church mouse, I was mortified when I scratched the tar out of the mirror in my Nikon D40 this weekend. As silly as it may sound to some of you pros, it is my first love and I was absolutely devastated that I treated it so inappropriately trying to remove dark specks from the viewfinder.

 

I was just getting ready to box it up and send it in with my $20 check for the diagnostic examination - for an undetermined amount of time and cost - across state for repair(oh, the very thought of its absence was nauseating I tell you ...).

 

I'm so glad I ran across this post. I can and will live with the scratchy mirror and view. I tested more pics and the photos ARE still unbelievably nice. Nonetheless a hard lesson to learn. Thank you for such wisdom. I promise to pay attention from now on.

[emiliogtz]

I have an F4 just fresh out of storage. There's plenty of dust in the finder and the mirror.

Since my nearest Nikon Service Facility is about 500 miles away, I intend to do the cleaning

myself based on the comments and recommendations I found on this board. I will shortly

report on my experience.

 

I expect it to go really smooth. I used to have old Minolta equipment and I never had any

problems cleaning the glass surfaces with the proper tools and common sense.

[tim_caldwell]

I would be interested in hearing how this goes for you. I am in the same situation.