TIL ultrasonic cleaning is worth it for shutter blades

Bought a cheap ultrasonic cleaner off Amazon for $40 two months ago. Had a set of sticky shutter blades from a 1970s Pentax that I'd been soaking in lighter fluid for days with no luck. Dropped them in the cleaner with some Ronsonol for 10 minutes and they came out perfect. Thought it was overkill but now I use it on everything. Has anyone else had bad results with certain solvents in their cleaner?

3 comments

3 Comments

leo_black7614d ago

Yeah I was the same way honestly. I used to think ultrasonic cleaners were just kind of a gimmick for people who had more money than sense. I remember reading posts about them for years and rolling my eyes like "just use lighter fluid and a brush like everyone else." But then I had a set of shutter blades from a broken Yashica that were absolutely stuck, I mean like cemented in place from old oil. I tried everything, naptha, alcohol, even left them in brake cleaner for a week and nothing worked. Finally broke down and bought a little cleaner and threw them in with some isopropyl alcohol and within 5 minutes they were free and spinning perfectly. Totally changed my mind, I think the vibration gets into those little hinge points where a brush and soak just cant reach. Did you ever try using pure isopropyl in yours or did you stick with the Ronsonol? Ive heard some people say the additives in lighter fluid can leave a residue if you dont rinse after but I never had that problem myself.

the_rowan13d ago

Oh man, that Yashica story hits close to home. I had a similar moment with a seized up lens that I'd practically given up on, felt like a fool for stubbornly avoiding the ultrasonic route for so long. Now I half expect my next camera repair to involve me just sitting there watching the cleaner buzz away like it's a magic show.

ivan_murphy8014d ago

Maybe it's just me but did you rinse them after or just let em dry?