Camera maintenance, DIY ?

[Martin Brazil]

Hi guys, my question is does anyone do their own camera maintenance ? Being terrified of breaking or scratching my camera and lenses my maintenance is limited to blowing dust out with a puffer brush and wiping over lens surfaces with a microfiber cloth. The inspiration for this thread is that I saw in another post that breathing on the lens is not recommended as the acids in your breath can damage the lens surface, that is something I have been doing regularly.
How far do you go with your DIY ? Any tips for dos and don'ts when cleaning up the camera ? How about repairs, does anyone undertake their own repairs ?

[photophorous]

Hi Martin,

Depends on the camera. I have several old manual film cameras and lenses that I've worked on, but I won't do much to a modern camera or lens. As far as lens cleaning is concerned, I have not heard that your breath is acidic. I guess it's possible. The best thing you can do for your lens is to keep a UV filter on the front of it. Most damage to lenses comes from cleaning the front element, so the less you do that the better. The filter can be replaced. Also, make sure you blow off any dust particles before you wipe with a cloth. The only other thing I'll do to a modern camera is clean the sensor. And I will only do that with a bulb blower. If you have a DSLR, the manual probably tells you how to do that. There are kits you can buy that include a brush for hard to get dust, but if it gets to that point, I'll take it to a pro.

If you have an older camera, there are several maintenance tasks that are pretty easy to do, such as replacing light seals and cleaning the focusing screens. Light seal kits can be bought cheap on ebay from a very reliable seller that goes by "interslice." The task is dirty but not hard. You have to be very careful with a focusing screen and I would not touch one at all unless it was in really bad shape, but it can usually be removed and cleaned if you're careful. Search the net for instructions if you ever decide to do that. Or, if you have a rangefinder camera, you can calibrate the rangefinder and clean the viewfinder yourself. Those instructions can also be found on the net.

I've also cleaned oil off the aperture blades of a few old manual focus prime lenses. It's tedious, but not intellectually challenging. You just have to work slowly, be very careful and clean, and take notes. You also may need a few special tools to loosen the retaining rings. You can get them from a website called micro-tools.com.

Paul

[Sushigaijin]

I know the thread you are talking about - I took part in it!

Breath is definitely acidic, no doubt about that. I'd wager that a person is MUCH more likely to scratch a lens with a lens cloth than damage one with breath.

That doesn't mean don't clean your lenses, it just means be careful. A camera is a product you use, and eventually use up. Just like a car, or a house. Take good care of it, and it will last a long time - but maybe not forever...

My camera only needs routine lens cleaning; the camera takes care of the sensor on it's own. I use a microfiber cloth and make sure to remove any large particles before I wipe the glass. I keep the lens caps on the lenses whenever applicable, and keep them in a padded bag for storage and transport. Other than that, I just try to not drop them off any cliffs or into any tar pits.

[WesternGuy]

Martin, my DIY is very similar to those posted so far. I use a blower to clean dust off the sensor and a Lenspen or micrfibre cloth on my filters and lenses. If there is anything more, then it goes to the pros. In my many years of both digital and film photography, I have never had to take any of my Canon equipment to the pros. Don't know if that is just luck or the fact that I look after my equipment as well as possible. HTH.

Cheers,

WesternGuy

[Martin Brazil]

OK, so pulling my camera apart and poking about inside is not advisable.
It seems my professional friends put their cameras in for a service once a year and don't touch any repairs themselves either.
WesternGuy, I wish I could say the same about my Nikon. One year and 20 days after buying my D40X the mirror has gone wrong and does not return to its proper position. The nearest repair place to me is about 400km away and they wont do it under warranty because its 20 days out and because I bought it in the US. What a joke ! I treat my camera like a new born baby and until last week I was totally in love with Nikon, now I'm not so sure.

[Sushigaijin]

The way I see it,

It's already broken. They won't fix it free anyway.

I'd get out the screwdriver and see what I can do myself

[Medley]

Martin, here's a site for you to look at: http://www.cleaningdigitalcameras.com/

I have done my own wet sensor cleaning, because you and I are pretty much in the same boat- distance to professional cleaning. I'm not going to make a recommendation one way or the other about wether or not you SHOULD do your own cleaning though- that has to be a personal decision.

But if you do decide to do your own cleaning, read through the site. It has lots of useful information that will help you avoid some of the pitfalls. Of all the information provided on the website, the one point I would emphasize is to use a swab that is at least as wide as your sensor, so that you only have to make one swipe to cover it. And never EVER use a swab more than once. They're cheap- buy in abundance.

If you can get past the thought that a mistake is likely to cost you your camera, the process really isn't that difficult. That thought is always in the back of my mind, but it kind of helps me to focus my concentration.

And there's always this other thought:If I mess it up royally, it's a perfect excuse to upgrade! (though I've never really had a chance to put that one to the test)

Best wishes-

- Joe U.

[hollis]

My camera shop had an annual "Canon Day" event.
I'm not sure they still do this (I always took my Elan to this event).
Anyway, service techs from Canon would set up shop,
clean, service & test your camera...all for free.

It wouldn't hurt to chat up your local authorized dealer
and see if they still offer this service.

[freygr]

Well there is only one camera repair shop I think, that is left in the Portland OR Area now days. But I'm doing my own repairs on the large format film cameras.

I'm work in the electronics field and I don't have the special tools and jigs needed to work on the new digital cameras. Some repairs are doable but for most repairs it's cheaper just to replace the camera