emerycarr•19d agoProlific Poster

Wasted $80 on a fancy lens cleaning kit that ruined my front element

Last month I bought one of those expensive microfiber cloth and solution sets from a well known brand at a camera shop in Chicago. First use on a 50mm f1.4, the cloth left fine scratches I could see when I held it up to a bright window. Had to send the lens out to get polished. The guy who fixed it told me to just use distilled water and a clean microfiber from the auto parts store. Has anyone else had bad luck with the branded cleaning products?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_miles19d ago

Man same thing happened with mine. Total waste of cash.

maxmurphy19d ago

So they said just use distilled water and a cheap microfiber from the auto parts store, and that worked? It's wild how the big brands push these expensive kits and then a repair guy gives you the real answer for pocket change. The scratches you saw in bright light, could you feel them with a fingernail or were they just visual? I always wonder if these fancy cloths are actually just repackaged car detailing cloths marked up five times. Maybe the real trick is just keeping those auto store ones in a sealed bag so they don't pick up grit.