Repair quote from a shop in Austin made me rethink my lens cleaning routine

They charged a customer $140 to clean fungus out of a 50mm prime, and when I asked how they do it without scratching, the tech said they just use a UV lamp and a steady hand, so how many of you actually break down cemented groups vs. just swab the outer elements?

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1 Comment

sean1191mo ago

Oddly enough, that UV lamp trick works better than most people expect, but it only helps with surface fungus on the outer elements. Once spores get between the glass groups, you are looking at a full tear down and that's where the real skill comes in. I have done a few of those myself and honestly, the risk of scratching goes way up when you are prying apart cemented groups, so most shops will just quote you high to cover the hassle. A $140 charge sounds steep, but if they actually separated the groups and cleaned every surface, that's a fair price for the time and the risk.