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Cleaning Nikon prime lens

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by George Whalen on Sat May 02, 2015 1:11 pm

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Just wanted to get some feedback on cleaning the front element on my Nikon 300mm F2.8 VRll with nano coating. Can I use a solution or just a micro cloth?

Thanks

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by Gary Briney on Sat May 02, 2015 4:15 pm

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Information from the owner's manual says that you can use ethanol or lens cleaner.

...
• Clean lens surfaces with a blower brush. To remove dirt and smudges, use a soft,
clean cotton cloth or lens tissue moistened with ethanol (alcohol) or lens cleaner.
Wipe in a circular motion from the center to outer edge, taking care not to leave
traces or touch other parts of the lens.
• Never use organic solvent such as thinner or benzene to clean the lens
...

G. Briney

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by Robert on Mon May 04, 2015 9:40 am

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I have found that even the Eclipse fluid can leave streaks. So unless I have a smudge on the front element all I do these days is dry clean with a blower bulb to remove particulate and a microfiber cloth gently swiped across without pressing down to remove dust. I don't press down with the microfiber cloth just in case my eyesight did not notice the "dust" was really a solid particulate like sand.

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by E.J. Peiker on Mon May 04, 2015 10:23 am

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Streaking is eliminated by finely misting the clot. I never spray stuff on the lens itself.

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by Robert on Mon May 04, 2015 12:14 pm

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E.J. Peiker wrote:Streaking is eliminated by finely misting the clot. I never spray stuff on the lens itself.

What do you mean by finely misting the clot EJ? When I needed to do a wet clean, I would always put a couple of drops of Eclipse on a PecPad and wipe the element. I'm always open to learning new-better ways of cleaning, etc.

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by E.J. Peiker on Mon May 04, 2015 12:30 pm

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Cloth

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by Robert on Mon May 04, 2015 12:33 pm

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E.J. Peiker wrote:Cloth

Yea, I do a few misspellings too! But how do you mist the cloth when it comes out as drops? Are you using something other than Eclipse?

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by E.J. Peiker on Mon May 04, 2015 2:11 pm

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Mine doesn't come out as drops. I use a small pump spray bottle. I use the Zeiss optical lens cleaner from a spray bottle.

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by Robert on Mon May 04, 2015 6:20 pm

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E.J. Peiker wrote:Mine doesn't come out as drops. I use a small pump spray bottle. I use the Zeiss optical lens cleaner from a spray bottle.

Thanks. I had never heard of the Zeiss cleaner before but I see it's readily available at B&H and other dealers. Seems like it's worth a try, and affordable too.

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by kiwijohn on Tue May 05, 2015 2:03 pm

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Robert wrote:
E.J. Peiker wrote:Mine doesn't come out as drops. I use a small pump spray bottle. I use the Zeiss optical lens cleaner from a spray bottle.

Thanks. I had never heard of the Zeiss cleaner before but I see it's readily available at B&H and other dealers. Seems like it's worth a try, and affordable too.

Use a LensCoat "Hoodie" cover on your 300mm f2.8 to protect it from fingers, salt spray, dust etc, and you will have far less cleaning to do.
Like sensors, the less you do to the front element of your lenses the better!

Just out of interest - the Nikon super telephotos (and Canons too, I would think) have a non refractive meniscus protecting the front of the lens (the equivalent of a protective skylight filter). I understand it is replaceable if the worst happens. Has anyone ever had to do this? And at what cost?

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