Conquest HD 10x42 surface dust. (1 Viewer)

I hadn't used the Conquest 10x42 HD for quite a number of months.

There seemed to be dust on the whole rubber body and the eyecups cover.
This couldn't be as it was in its case.

It was I think a powder emanating from the rubber.

Wiping with a Kleenex for Men white tissue cleaned it all off in about a minute.

It seems similar to to the whiteness from Minolta AF autofocus SLR cameras from 1985 and a few years later., which was much worse as they go very white.

Is this from artificial rubber?

It's a compound called zinc stearate:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinc_stearate

We sometimes get it appearing on scopes which have been stored for a while and in conditions where the temperature has fluctuated. It can also appear on incoming stock from our suppliers due to the varying conditions of storage en route from the Far East.

It can be removed using a microfibre cloth dampened with soapy water. You could also try a diluted isopropyl alcohol solution - there are various branded cleaning agents with e.g.70% dilution on the market in the US but not sure about the UK.

HTH

Cheers, Pete

Thank you Pete.