Is it acceptable to use the same cloth and cleaning solution for oakley sunglasses on brand new leupold scope and 30 year old ziss binos? Light dust and spotting from condensation. Nothing heavily soiled? Thanks.

I would say so. I've been doing the same thing without issue for years. More recently I've been using Zeiss cleaner though. Most cleaning solutions are pretty mild and if it is made specifically for lenses, I'm would gather it would be designed for coated lenses.
Here's a video from US Optics' website, a little off topic, but... http://usoptics.com/video/cln1.wmv

To even think of cleaning lenses through physical contact will cause damage to them. You have really blown it by going a step beyond thinking about it to actually speaking of it, thereby causing complete and irreparable damage. You might just as well go ahead at this point and rub them with sandpaper as the harm you do could not be any greater than that already visited upon them.

May I ask how one would clean said lense without any physical contact? Do I wish them clean. And lucky me I haven't ever made any contact to the lenses of my new scope!

I used to wonder about keeping them clean. Now, I usually hope mine stay clean. Following a particularly dirty day in the field, I step it up to dreaming.

I knew a guy who touched his lenses... he voted for Obama.

Figures. If he touched his lenses his vision was obscured and he voted wrong. That goes down as a bad decision day. Poor guy.
Seriously!

I hear if you touch your lenses you'll go blind. Not for sure on that one....

I'd like to know that one too.
We get a discussion here every once in a while about this.
Blow off anything you can. Canned air is probably best for this.
I usually use a lense pen, either a Leupold or a Nikon. If I must, I use the capped smudge/smear remover. After a while, I replace it with a new lense pen.
This concern about degrading the coatings on the lense can apparently be comnpenstated for by buying optics with tough coatings. E

rbodenburg529
Depending on the age of your loopie.
If it has MC4.
You have to be very careful with the cleaning as MC4 is a very light duty,delicate,optical coating.

dave

Now, Dave, that's not accurate. All of them have delicate, light duty coatings with the exception of the super hard ones.
Leica apparently uses them on their binoculars as does Pentax on their ED binoculars. Cabela's is advertising a rifle scope with such coatings and Leupold has had it's very tough Diamond Coat Coatings for many years now. E

The scope is new this year. The SABR ultimate slam 3x9. So a lense pen is acctable physical contact? How about any solution for water spots?

I use air, then a camels hair optics brush, and then..

Cotton swaps and lens cleaner if needed. Will this damge your lenses? I don't really know. Its how the Zeiss rep taught us to clean the lenses on a Ziess Axiophot Microscope. Zeiss sold the swaps..but The cotton didn't look special.

One key question I have had was are the microscope lenses coated? I don't know, but one objective for that scope cost way more than a set of alpha binos.

I will be the first to admit that I don't use alpha binos..My current set are Vortex vipers, I teat them pretty poorly, Usually I wear them uncapped/unprotected in a bino harness, or a fleece bag in my pack. They get wet and dirty. In 5 years or so when they get really beat up.. I will probably buy another set.

Here is a link to the Zeiss optics cleaning directions. They make some reccomendations for cleaning solutions, wipes and swabs as well as technique

www.zeiss.com/industry/general_clean_microscope.pdf

I start with a shirttail and end with paper towels.

Oh, the humanity!

What about throwing binoculars in the dishwasher using the "gentle" cycle?

Would that work? No touchy the lensies.

I'm surprised that no one has come up with the idea of using their case polisher to clean scopes during the few minutes each day when it is not cleaning cases.

Walnut or corncob media?

dang, and I thought the little zeiss wipes were the cats azz....

No, no, ... just compressed air and a few camel hair bristles.

Is it acceptable to unscrew the eyepiece to make it fit in the tumbler?

I don't use the smudge remover anymore, found some light scratches on a scope after cleaning and decided it might be a small hunk of grit in the fabric.

How can you tell if you have these tough coatings ?

Easy - see if they degrade.

Well, we all know that super tuff, super hard coating, come with real catchie names like....diamond coat.......


dave

That's a really stupid idea there fish. Just get a bigger tumbler, like I did. Then you can put the whole scope in and do both lenses at the same time.

So should I just put a new scope in the freezer bag I didn't use cuz I didn't bag a deer cuz I was too worried about dirt on the lenses? That should keep it clean.

Basically only for looking. Not for using in the field.

So a lense pen is ok for light dusting or lint. What about the spots from rain water? I can't see them thru the scope only when I look into the objective end. Leave it alone?

Sheesh! You mean you guys actually take your scopes outside??

I an all seriousness, I wouldn't touch anything I own with the chamois end of a lens-pen, and the brush end is stretching it. If your lenses are real dirty, rinse them under a slow running sink or use a can of compressed air or lens brush to remove any sand, grit, dirt, then follow with a microfiber cloth and lens cleaning solution. Zeiss pre-moistened lens cloths work great also and you can buy them at the local Wal-Mart optical center for not a whole lot of money. A tip when using the Zeiss lens cloths is to double them up because the oils from your fingers can bleed through.

Having said that, my theory on lens cleaning is, the less you do it the better off you are.

When removing an oil smudge, the standard is usually acetone but this is done under strict guidelines as excess soaking of acetone can break down the seals and lens glues. Most of the homeowner cleaning solutions contain alcohol which will not damage the seals and glues if over applied. Zeiss cleaner wipes uses isopropyl alcohol. At one time they were using ethanol, also called ethyl alcohol, pure alcohol, grain alcohol, or drinking alcohol. In a pinch, one of the European companies says to use Vodka. Eclipse is nothing more than a small bottle containing 100% methanol, also known as methyl alcohol, wood alcohol, wood naphtha or wood spirits. They sell it to be applied with Pec pads.

In addition, most frown upon using cans of compressed air, unless using specific types under strict guidelines. If done incorrectly, the propellants are at such an extreme low temperature that they can cause permanent damage to the lens.

You are always safe using clean water to flush dirt and mud, while using an air bulb to remove dust. Alcohol applied with a non scratching cloth or applicator to remove oil should be safe. I'd avoid any rubbing if the lens is covered with debris as it could act as a grit to damage the surface. I'd also not soak the lens in acetone, only use small amounts at a time.

Best

I like my Nikon Lenspen. Works for me on my Z5's...

First while wearing safety glasses blow as much junk off of the lenses as you can. Then use 90% or purer rubbing alcohol or Acetone to flush more stuff off the lenses. (Do this outside with plenty of ventilation and away from sparks or flames as these fluids are flamable. Wear rubber gloves and safety glasses too.)

Follow up by using more of these fluids and a pure soft cotton cloth to remove any remaining film. A soft camel's hair brush works ewll too. Finnish with pure soft cottom lightly wiping the lenses.

These are more agressive methods but they work better than cleaning kits from camera shops.

Thank you.

Charlie Sunderlin

Right from leupold customer service. What do you think of that?

I just pour the alcohol in the end bell and light it off with a match. Requires no wiping.