mold on my 1st element

[ryee3]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

My 280 apo telyt-R has a <.5mm spot of mold on the front element. I tried to gently wipe it off with lens paper and was not able to remove it. It has been a nuisance even though I can photoshop the spot without too much difficulty.

 

Any suggestions? Should I send it in to NJ USA to get it cleaned?

[offshore]

My 280 apo telyt-R has a <.5mm spot of mold on the front element. I tried to gently wipe it off with lens paper and was not able to remove it. It has been a nuisance even though I can photoshop the spot without too much difficulty.

 

Any suggestions? Should I send it in to NJ USA to get it cleaned?

 

Fungus among us does not wipe off and is hard to kill and will leave a spot in your coating when it is removed. Unless some other method has been developed that I'm not aware of element replacement is the only way to return things to normal. Leica can certainly treat it or replace the element and I believe Don Goldberg aka DAG can do the same but I don't know if he is any cheaper. I've heard that exposure to UV kills fungus but it doesn't remove the spot it creates. Two recommendations I read were to leave your lens wide open to direct sun or to fire a series of flash bursts through the lens. Can't attest to either working.

[earleygallery]

Are you sure it's fungus? Have you tried a liquid lens cleaner rather than just a dry tissue/cloth?

[doubice]

My 280 apo telyt-R has a <.5mm spot of mold on the front element. I tried to gently wipe it off with lens paper and was not able to remove it. It has been a nuisance even though I can photoshop the spot without too much difficulty.

 

Any suggestions? Should I send it in to NJ USA to get it cleaned?

 

A 0.5mm spot of anything on the front element of a 280mm lens cannot be a problem that would require 'photoshoping'. Even if the spot was 5mm in diameter, it would not affect results on a 280mm lens to such a degree that would require post processing.

 

If it is fungus and if it is on the front element (fungus usually grows on the inside of lenses), try vinegar on a cotton swab. I tend to agree with James - try wet cleaning rather than wiping with a dry tissue paper. That is also the best way to put cleaning marks ito coating, short of using a sand paper.

 

Best,

 

Jan

[lct]

A 0.5mm spot of anything on the front element of a 280mm lens cannot be a problem that would require 'photoshoping'. Even if the spot was 5mm in diameter, it would not affect results on a 280mm lens to such a degree that would require post processing...

Agree.

[daveleo]

i agree with others here ..... a 0.5mm spot on a 280mm lens will not appear in the image.

 

if there is a spot on the image, then i will be crazy and suggest that the "spot" is possibly not where you think it is ..... it is somewhere deep inside the lens groups and simply appears to be on the surface of the outer element.

 

actually, if you could photograph the spot from 2 different angles and post those here, i will shut up and admit i am wrong.

[earleygallery]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

Hopefully it doesn't look like this - might cause a spot on the image........

[micky]

There´s a lot of talk about fungus, espcially on older lenses. But are we sure it is fungus?

I mean, fungus is a living trhing. It needs to "eat"., not even fungus could live from "Love and clean air".

I think when it comes to older lenses, it is actually the lenscoating that´s coming off, and there´s nothing you can do about it.

A newer lens could have any kind of spot, and as said, anywhere on the inside. A repairshop could fix that with some liquid or just a bit of airblowing.

I once buoght an old 4,5/135 with "internal dust" I screwed the head of (as you do when you want to put it on a Visoflex), blew some air and the problem was gone.

:) Micky