david strachan Posted June 13, 2013 Share #1 Posted June 13, 2013 Advertisement (gone after registration) Suck don’t blow! Leica M sensors are often dirty even straight after a clean. They don’t do the shakeyshimmery thing. Dust accumulates and sometimes spots seem to grow! I’ve tried Giotto Rocket Blowers, Copperhill Method, SensoPens and super clean soft brushes by ClearSkies Sensor Brushes. The best is vacuuming the light box, brushing with sensor box brush (ClearSkies), vacuum, SensorPen rub all over mirror, charge and brush with ClearSkies Sensor Brush, last vacuum close over sensor…continual vacuuming and vacuum head of SensorPen and brushes (do not touch with nozzle), as well. Lens refixed, and take a test image…voila, first time every time. Four minutes. Blowers just spread the dust around, and it immediately seems to resettle on my sensor. Liquid cleans are messy and v fiddly. So now I only vacuum the camera, lens mounts etc. For vacuum use microattachments to your household vacuum cleaner. Have vacuum cleaner unit blowing into another room. Keep vacuum suck on LOW. Only vacuum when the shutter is tripped, and the sensor only is shown. Do not touch any of the light box, sensor, or shutters with the flexible sucking nozzle. Keep brushing as well, and be sure to keep your light box brushes separate to your sensor brushes. Works a treat…perfectly and long lasting clean. Cheers Dave S Here’s the link to a microattachments for vacuum cleaner. Micro Mini Accessory Attachment Vacuum Cleaner KIT FOR Small Spaces | eBay Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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Photoskeptic Posted June 13, 2013 Share #2 Posted June 13, 2013 Actually if you want to do something like this, there are tiny mini-vacs made for computers which could do the job. Using a household vacuum cleaner sounds like trouble to me. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
david strachan Posted June 13, 2013 Author Share #3 Posted June 13, 2013 Actually if you want to do something like this, there are tiny mini-vacs made for computers which could do the job. Using a household vacuum cleaner sounds like trouble to me. Thanks Photoskeptic... The minivacs don't have much suck. Dave S Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
algrove Posted June 13, 2013 Share #4 Posted June 13, 2013 Good idea, Ever since coming back from the very dry American South West sensor dust has again reared its ugly head. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kcnarf Posted June 13, 2013 Share #5 Posted June 13, 2013 Does anyone on this forum have experience with the Firefly ionized blower? On the Phoblographer of 1/28/13 Bobby Zhang claims, "Simply install a 9-volt battery into the Firefly which allows it to produce both positive and negative charged air ions which will neutralize the static charge in your camera. Without static, the dust simply falls off. No charge. No dust. Happy photographer." What say? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted June 13, 2013 Share #6 Posted June 13, 2013 Shutter is tripped? That kills shutters when your finger slips off the button. Use the sensor clean option in the menu. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
david strachan Posted June 13, 2013 Author Share #7 Posted June 13, 2013 Advertisement (gone after registration) That's right Jaapv. Must use the Sensor Clean in the menu...NOT using B! This safely holds the shutter open...best to use a fresh battery too. cheers Dave S Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
viramati Posted June 13, 2013 Share #8 Posted June 13, 2013 Does anyone on this forum have experience with the Firefly ionized blower? On the Phoblographer of 1/28/13 Bobby Zhang claims, "Simply install a 9-volt battery into the Firefly which allows it to produce both positive and negative charged air ions which will neutralize the static charge in your camera. Without static, the dust simply falls off. No charge. No dust. Happy photographer." What say? sounds interesting. would also like to know Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wlaidlaw Posted June 13, 2013 Share #9 Posted June 13, 2013 Thinking about how sensitive electronics are to static electricity, do you want to be firing charged ions around inside the Faraday cage of the outer shell of the camera. I also believe that ownership of these static/ionised blowers is prohibited in Europe, as they contain a microscopic particle of Polonium, which is a banned substance. Certainly when I still played vinyl LP's, I tried to get a US company to send me a Polonium based de-ioniser and they said they were not permitted to send them to Europe. I would hope for the next iteration of the M, it will have in body dust shaking, whose piezo motors can double up to provide image stabilisation. Using longer R lenses handheld, is easier on my Olympus EP-2 than on my 240, as it has IS. Wilson Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeleng Posted June 13, 2013 Share #10 Posted June 13, 2013 I've had a lot of success over the last five years with a 10mm nylon brush and a can of compressed air Charge the nylon brush with the canned air and gently move it across the sensor, back and forth . The charge in the brush causes it to pick up the dust particles You might have to do this a couple of times, but it works for me . My Canon 1D still attracts dust and so does my M9P, but it still works on both of them . Do not put any liquid of any kind on the sensor . Hope this helps Mike Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
david strachan Posted June 13, 2013 Author Share #11 Posted June 13, 2013 Mike I think you are on the same wavelength. It's more about v gently brush/wipe to pick up with a charged brush. And a rub with a Sensor pen to remove the greasey spots. The wet method using Copperhill often left microfibres, and seemed to get immediately dirty again. It is about the electrostatic dust particles. So keep everything dry and... Keep sucking. cheers Dave S Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
250swb Posted June 13, 2013 Share #12 Posted June 13, 2013 Can I just remind people that one of the elements on a new Leica sensor apart from dust is oil. So on a new camera you shouldn't be wiping anything across the sensor, instead be safe and wet clean the sensor for the first few cleanings until the oil has dissipated. Steve Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wlaidlaw Posted June 13, 2013 Share #13 Posted June 13, 2013 Can I just remind people that one of the elements on a new Leica sensor apart from dust is oil. So on a new camera you shouldn't be wiping anything across the sensor, instead be safe and wet clean the sensor for the first few cleanings until the oil has dissipated. Steve Steve, Leica deny emphatically it is oil or lube of any description. It does seem odd however that it is always worse with a new camera. On a thread some years ago, it finally acquired the name of "Solms Shutter Goblin Snot". Even a sticky stick would not clean my M240 the first time. It needed multi cleans with Visible Dust Smear Away, including the use of the mini wands to get right into the corners. Now the sticky stick seems to work fine Wilson Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
david strachan Posted June 14, 2013 Author Share #14 Posted June 14, 2013 Hi Wilson I think it was Jaap mention the shutters are made by Copal. Maybe some greasing happens there. A sensor will attract dust from cosmic through to pollens, and skin dander, etc. If slightly edible they are soon invaded with micro organisms; they live, eat, excrete....and leave oily deposits. The Sensor cleaning pen by Lenspen is an excellent residue remover...I'm sure we all use them on our lenses now...results on lenses look v suitable for sensor cleaning too. The wet method by Copperhill, I used on my Canon 60D...which attracts buggerall dirt anyway. I found I had to do it a few times to get it to spotless. Whatever method is used, a vacuuming environment is great for charging brushes, sucking dirt off brushes, sucking stuff out of the camera. Thanks for your thoughts. cheers Dave S Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Duane Pandorf Posted June 14, 2013 Share #15 Posted June 14, 2013 I just shoot wide open I never see any dust. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
250swb Posted June 14, 2013 Share #16 Posted June 14, 2013 Wilson, as David says, Leica cleverly sidestepped the question, or misunderstood it, by saying they don't grease the shutter. But it must have some lube on it, and it must be applied when the shutter is built, and it is built by Copal. I wet cleaned my M9 to get rid of the oil for the first few months. But even after it had stopped regularly throwing off oil regular maintenance with an Arctic Butterfly brush was tricky because every time even one fine hair strayed over the edge of the sensor it dragged oil/grease back on, and of course contaminated the brush. However after the camera went back to have the sensor replaced (cracked sensor syndrome) it came back perfectly dry and clean and it has never needed wet cleaning since, the shutter having thrown off as much lube as it's going to. Even when the Arctic Butterfly brush stray's between the sensor and the back of the shutter it now comes out dry. Steve Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wlaidlaw Posted June 14, 2013 Share #17 Posted June 14, 2013 Wilson, as David says, Leica cleverly sidestepped the question, or misunderstood it, by saying they don't grease the shutter. But it must have some lube on it, and it must be applied when the shutter is built, and it is built by Copal. I wet cleaned my M9 to get rid of the oil for the first few months. But even after it had stopped regularly throwing off oil regular maintenance with an Arctic Butterfly brush was tricky because every time even one fine hair strayed over the edge of the sensor it dragged oil/grease back on, and of course contaminated the brush. However after the camera went back to have the sensor replaced (cracked sensor syndrome) it came back perfectly dry and clean and it has never needed wet cleaning since, the shutter having thrown off as much lube as it's going to. Even when the Arctic Butterfly brush stray's between the sensor and the back of the shutter it now comes out dry. Steve Steve, My experience mirrors yours, even down to the replacement of my M9 sensor. I too firmly believe it is lubricant of some description, even if it is assembly rather than continuing use lubricant. Another thought is plasticiser evaporating from the plastic interior and re-condensing on the sensor. We will all have experience of this from cars, where the plasticiser evaporates from all the interior plastic and re-condenses, as a very hard to remove film, on the interior of the glass. Wilson Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wjkotze Posted June 14, 2013 Share #18 Posted June 14, 2013 If you think your sensor is clean try the new " Visualize Spots" feature in Lightroom 5. Definitely not recommended for anybody with OCD. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wlaidlaw Posted June 14, 2013 Share #19 Posted June 14, 2013 If you think your sensor is clean try the new " Visualize Spots" feature in Lightroom 5. Definitely not recommended for anybody with OCD. I have just tried this and it seems pretty useless to me in its current iteration. If you have an image that is either high contrast or taken with a high contrast lens, with the level even set to minimum on Visualise Spots, it shows up every high contrast edge. On a couple of photos I looked at, it showed the outline of every leaf. Nice idea Adobe but a "fail" in practice. Wilson Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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