21 replies to this topic

[deSitter]

Workable? I have a boatload of eyepieces to clean. Fiddling with Q-tips and tweezers seems so yesterday.

 

-drl

[firemachine69]

...

 

 

No. Just no. 

[deSitter]

...

 

 

No. Just no. 

Well you have to you know TAKE IT APART to get at the lenses!

 

-drl

[DAVIDG]

 I would not  do it on glass, metal parts are  OK  Ultrasonic can make bubbles  that cavate. When they cavate they will abrade a surface and your nicely polished glass may come  out frosted. 

 

                  - Dave 

[clamchip]

My father in law does antique clock repair as one of his zillions of hobbies.

He has a ultrasonic cleaner, it does a great job on clock parts but every time I use it I'm surprised

how effective it is, too effective. It stripped the paint from my prized Orwick 73 model airplane

engine and that was the last time I used it. I was able to have a quart made from one of the paint flecks

in the bottom of the cleaner tank. It's a wrinkle pea green. Orwick wrinkle painted the case because melted

down rivets were used and the castings were not up to Mr. Orwick's high standards. (right after WW2)

Be careful, I would not recommend using it for telescope parts.

 

Robert

[deSitter]

 I would not  do it on glass, metal parts are  OK  Ultrasonic can make bubbles  that cavate. When they cavate they will abrade a surface and your nicely polished glass may come  out frosted. 

 

                  - Dave 

Interesting, I considered this but didn't think it possible. I will practice on a throw-away.

 

-drl

[deSitter]

My father in law does antique clock repair as one of his zillions of hobbies.

He has a ultrasonic cleaner, it does a great job on clock parts but every time I use it I'm surprised

how effective it is, too effective. It stripped the paint from my prized Orwick 73 model airplane

engine and that was the last time I used it. I was able to have a quart made from one of the paint flecks

in the bottom of the cleaner tank. It's a wrinkle pea green. Orwick wrinkle painted the case because melted

down rivets were used and the castings were not up to Mr. Orwick's high standards. (right after WW2)

Be careful, I would not recommend using it for telescope parts.

 

Robert

This idea is only for the infinitesimal lenses of the short Huygens eyepieces. I have never been able to clean those with standard methods.

 

-drl

[clamchip]

This idea is only for the infinitesimal lenses of the short Huygens eyepieces. I have never been able to clean those with standard methods.

 

-drl

Those tiny lenses are murder.

I mix up the usual water with a splash of 91% Isopropyl and a drop of Dawn Original dish soap.

Only rather than using cotton balls soaked in this solution I submerge the lens in it between my

finger tips, give it a little scrub between your fingers and blot dry with a 100% cotton dish towel.

 

Robert

[KeelyCamacho]

I’ve had good results using ultrasonic cleaners, but the key is choosing the right frequency and cleaning solution. Lower frequencies can be too harsh on coatings, while higher ones work better for delicate surfaces. Also, always test with a less valuable piece first. Some high-quality options, like the ones from kaijo-shibuya.com, offer adjustable settings, which makes them more adaptable for eyepieces. Drying properly afterward is just as important to avoid residue spots.

[ayadai]

In addition to being an amateur astronomer, I'm also an amateur watchmaker/horologist. I routinely use a professional grade (read: powerful) ultrasonic cleaner to clean watch crystals, including sapphire, mineral glass and crystals with A/R coating with excellent results; I've never seen glass etched as a result. I've also restored vintage sextants, cleaning the lenses in the same manner with no ill effects. That said, I've not tried it on an eyepiece or eyepiece lens. Depending on the condition and hardness of the coatings, there could potentially be damage.

 

I use blitz cleaner concentrate to clean cases, lenses and crystals, finished with a distilled water rinse and microfiber cloth dry.

Edited by ayadai, 17 March 2025 - 07:31 AM.

[rfcooley]

Umm... No. Bad idea.

 

While there are ultrasonic cleaners that will work on optics that have variable frequencies  and all kind of bells and whistles. They are expensive $$$. My Ophthalmologist (MD),  sends me to my Optometrist to get my glasses made. The Optometrist cleans my glasses in a ultrasonic cleaner, made specifically for optics in glasses. This unit was not purchased on Amazon but from a reputable professional  vendor that knows what is needed and what will work and not damage sensitive coatings.  Sort'a like telescopes. You are always better off when you deal with a reputable vendor when purchasing a telescope and accessories. Besides you still have to take apart the eps to clean them correctly.  My Optometrist removes the lenses and cleans them separately from the frames and then re-adjusts every thing.

 

My two-cents.

 

Clear Skies,

 

RF

[Kasmos]

The hardest part is the disassembly and reassembly so I'd just stick with manual cleaning. I've had to open up or sometimes re-arrange and clean some small 5mm-6mm .965"EPs and while it's kind of a pain it's not the end of the world. I basically do what Robert said in post #8 but do it with a piece of Kim Wipe between my fingers. Some small precise tweezers are handy for resetting the spacers and lenses in the cell. Take yout time and get set up for the work, keep in mind, photograph, or sketch how they are aranged, and work over a surface where if you drop anything you can find it.

[CharlieB]

This idea is only for the infinitesimal lenses of the short Huygens eyepieces. I have never been able to clean those with standard methods.

 

-drl

Like this one - 6mm Swift HM 

 

 

But I did get it clean and I'll never do that again.

 

Charlie

[Kasmos]

Like this one - 6mm Swift HM 

 

6mmSwift-2.jpg

 

But I did get it clean and I'll never do that again.

 

Charlie

Hey Charlie.

That's the 6mm I was referring to in my post above.

Those eye lenses are teenie!

 

My Swift 839 came with a incomplete one jumbled with parts from the H 20mm. 

That's the 6mm lens cell jambed sideways inside the center barrel body from the 20mm housing.

 

The two upper left barrel parts and everything but the larger lens was made into a working hybrid 6mm.

 

I once did it by trial and error but latter made this diagram by copying and flopping one side of the

EP cutaway diagram that's in the instruction manual to use as a re-assembly guide.

It was still tough to interpret what's going on in the drawing.

 

Later Charlie came to the rescue with a good original 6mm

And later the original H 20mm as well!

 

Thanks again!

[clamchip]

Something that would really help is a dissecting or a industrial microscope. Low power and illuminates the subject

from above. A friend does watch repair and you should see some of the neat microscopes he uses. I've looked thru

them and they turn the impossible into a fun job.

Here's a Edmund 1/4" for reference. And would you believe a clamchip! at the red arrow. 

Robert

 

[jragsdale]

I had a 1700s brass and wood refractor and the lens was fogged up between the 2 elements but they are burnished in the brass cell, so you really can't remove them at all. There was enough room between the lens and elements for water to seep in though. I used distilled water and an ultrasonic cleaner and after half a dozen rounds, it cleaned up nicely. I would use a compressor to blow excess water out and then stored it in a ziploc with desiccant packs to remove the remaining water droplets from between the elements.

[deSitter]

I had a 1700s brass and wood refractor and the lens was fogged up between the 2 elements but they are burnished in the brass cell, so you really can't remove them at all. There was enough room between the lens and elements for water to seep in though. I used distilled water and an ultrasonic cleaner and after half a dozen rounds, it cleaned up nicely. I would use a compressor to blow excess water out and then stored it in a ziploc with desiccant packs to remove the remaining water droplets from between the elements.

Outstanding! I wonder if this would remove the colored paint from Sears eyepieces? I have several hundred of those that need a bath. The hardest part is the eye lens - if that can be cleaned in place I can do the field lenses by hand.

 

Let's see, maybe I can enlist a volunteer from the dirty dozen The 4mm is black, and can be repainted

 

-drl

[ayadai]

Outstanding! I wonder if this would remove the colored paint from Sears eyepieces? I have several hundred of those that need a bath. The hardest part is the eye lens - if that can be cleaned in place I can do the field lenses by hand.

 

Let's see, maybe I can enlist a volunteer from the dirty dozen The 4mm is black, and can be repainted

 

-drl

Paint will typically be partially removed by an ultrasonic.

[Kasmos]

 I have several hundred of those that need a bath.-drl

What?!!!

[deSitter]

What?!!!

Well - maybe more like 12 They seem to be everywhere. I found one in my soup.

 

-drl

[Profguy]

Ah, would that be eyepiece soup, something akin to stone soup? 

 

Gary

[ccwemyss]

Is that how they make those Souper Plossls?

Chip W.