Help! How to clean antinewton neg carrier

[pericles]

Hi: I just bought a Leica Full frame neg carrier (it has antinewton glass) and want to know how to clean one of those and what to do to keep off the dust, without damagin the coating

 

 

Thanks a lot in advance

[chris_mearns]

Pericles,

 

don't know how the hell you do that but man...you have a tremendous name.

[james_.1]

One would think using a lens cleaning technique would suffice. That's what I did with my new V35 that came with the top glass neg carrier- used Eclipse cleaning kit. No apparent results other than cleaning.

[james_.1]

Oh yah for dust prevention I just keep a plastic bag over the head, after it's cooled down of course!

[lacey_smith4]

clean the glass as carefully as you would a lens. I've no problems.

 

But, as far as dust, welcome to the world of glassed negative carriers -- they really attract it. Many, me included, would recommend an anti-static brush wiped across the negative and/or glass before you stick it into the enlarger. That way, dust specs are reduced (I did not say absent). Every once in a while I decide the flatness/sharpness is not worth the nuisance of the dust, and go back to glassless, then I go the other way round. I've even got one glassed carrier that the glass pops in/out of (this glass likes dust problem is not unique to LEica, incidentally).

[h._p.]

There used to be a product called a Dustbuster anti static gun which looked like a refugee from the first series of Startrek but actually worked quite well. It uses a piezo electric element and a little bellows to blow positively charged ions (can you have such things, my physics is a bit hazy) over the object to break down the static charge.

 

I've had one for a very long time and it still works surprisingly well on negatives so if you can find one, that might be the thing to use on your glass.

[peter_mackay2]

It is not clear from your post whether you're talking about a double-glass negative carrier and whether you actually have a problem trying to remove some "dust" from the glass. I have had the opportunity in the past few months of handling several double-glass holders for my Focomat V35. Some of them had microscopic crystal inclusions (black when viewed on the baseboard) in the glass that could not be removed by any means. These all came straight from Leica. When I took the enlarger down to Leica in Germany to get another problem fixed, the neg carrier was replaced with a good one. I asked the technician what those inclusions were and he said "faults in the glass". I post this just for your information.

[carter_martin]

I have a focomat 1c not the same animal as the V35 but it has a anti-newton ring filter(?) that slips on to the condenser. I clean this as I would a lens but mine is very VERY soft glass and can be scratched easily. I found that out the hard way after I first bought it 25 or so years ago.