The Cost of Lens Cleaners (1 Viewer)

[WJC]

230814

With my last thread having been generally accepted and appreciated, I feel confident to offer the following.

Science teachers have been known to say that if you drop a frog into a pan of boiling water he will instantly jump out, but if you put him in the pan and slowly increase the heat, he will sit there until boiled to death. In many ways, humans are also subject to the same situation.

I am sure that for them to still exist, their product must be still selling. This particular lens cleaner is called AR Kleen. A 1 Oz. bottle of this miraculous chemical can be purchased for a mere $10.53 each (see attachment #1).

Now, I will turn up the heat a little. That price means the product costs:

$1,347.84 a gallon!!!

But, thinking on the small scale, some people wouldn’t furrow their brow ... THEY SHOULD.

In my first binocular book, I offer 6 pages on cleaning optics. Yet, those long on opinions and short on rational thinking each rush to their own fabulous lens cleaner and tout what a great job it does. I would say that for $1,347.84 a gallon, it should!

I use the product recommended by Boeing, NASA, the US Navy, Lawrence Livermore, Labs, Tele Vue Optics, and MANY others. It costs less than $1.50 a gallon. So, those needing to have an ego stroke should probably not consider it. REALITY BITES, doesn’t it?!

Yes, I know there be others who will dispute my findings, choosing instead to listen to some merchant who’s big on sales but lacking on realistic/practical experience. Not unlike those who have read enough garbage from “experts” to say you should never use acetone of optics, with all their irrational reasons. And as far as Acetone causing cancer ... IT’S BLOODY WELL CREATED IN OUR BODIES.

Attachment #2 is one page out of my 6-page treatise on cleaning lenses.

Cheers,

Bill

 

[dries1]

Sort of like the MIC making a machine the equivalent to a VW and charging a Lamborghini price.

 

[has530]

As someone who works at one of the aforementioned institutions and spends some time cleaning optics I will say acetone does a great job but is nasty stuff. I've used a lot to get residue off of diamonds but in most cases it is not used because there are safer solvents that do a bang up job. We usually use FO wipes or Kim tech wipes with high purity isopropyl. I would be wary to use acetone around binoculars with rubber armor/plastic parts. In general for binoculars I just use high purity denatured alcohol and a microfiber cloth and it seems to do the trick.

 

[Ignatius]

As someone who works at one of the aforementioned institutions and spends some time cleaning optics I will say acetone does a great job but is nasty stuff. I've used a lot to get residue off of diamonds but in most cases it is not used because there are safer solvents that do a bang up job. We usually use FO wipes or Kim tech wipes with high purity isopropyl. I would be wary to use acetone around binoculars with rubber armor/plastic parts. In general for binoculars I just use high purity denatured alcohol and a microfiber cloth and it seems to do the trick.

Is alcohol not also iffy to use with rubbers/plastics as longer term exposure can cause loss of elasticity?

 

[has530]

Is alcohol not also iffy to use with rubbers/plastics as longer term exposure can cause loss of elasticity?

I would generally try to avoid exposure of polymers to any volatile solvents but a little isopropyl every now and then likely won't do much harm (unless you have a swarovski... I joke please don't turn this into another swaro armor thread). Acetone on the other hand I have seen dissolve plastics on contact.

 

[Maljunulo]

Perhaps we need to define our terms.

“Alcohol” is a word which Is similar to the word “plastic”, it is a generic.

Methanol is also called “wood alcohol” and is deadly poison. Relatively small doses cause blindness.

Denatured alcohol is ethanol with something added to make it un-drinkable. (frequently methanol)

Ethanol is (usually 95%) grain alcohol.

Isopropanol is also called “rubbing alcohol” and is usually about 70%.

Other alcohols are uncommon.

 

[PeterPS]

230814

With my last thread having been generally accepted and appreciated, I feel confident to offer the following.

Science teachers have been known to say that if you drop a frog into a pan of boiling water he will instantly jump out, but if you put him in the pan and slowly increase the heat, he will sit there until boiled to death. In many ways, humans are also subject to the same situation.

I am sure that for them to still exist, their product must be still selling. This particular lens cleaner is called AR Kleen. A 1 Oz. bottle of this miraculous chemical can be purchased for a mere $10.53 each (see attachment #1).

Now, I will turn up the heat a little. That price means the product costs:

$1,347.84 a gallon!!!

But, thinking on the small scale, some people wouldn’t furrow their brow ... THEY SHOULD.

In my first binocular book, I offer 6 pages on cleaning optics. Yet, those long on opinions and short on rational thinking each rush to their own fabulous lens cleaner and tout what a great job it does. I would say that for $1,347.84 a gallon, it should!

I use the product recommended by Boeing, NASA, the US Navy, Lawrence Livermore, Labs, Tele Vue Optics, and MANY others. It costs less than $1.50 a gallon. So, those needing to have an ego stroke should probably not consider it. REALITY BITES, doesn’t it?!

Yes, I know there be others who will dispute my findings, choosing instead to listen to some merchant who’s big on sales but lacking on realistic/practical experience. Not unlike those who have read enough garbage from “experts” to say you should never use acetone of optics, with all their irrational reasons. And as far as Acetone causing cancer ... IT’S BLOODY WELL CREATED IN OUR BODIES.

Attachment #2 is one page out of my 6-page treatise on cleaning lenses.

Cheers,

Bill

Lucrative business idea: If your lens cleaner is not worse than theirs but is almost 1000 times cheaper, you can easily compete with them and make a lot of dough by selling it at a fraction of their price. Why not?

 

[fazalmajid]

Reading MSDS (material safety data sheets) on many common household products is quite instructive.

 

[Maljunulo]

It is my personal belief that acetone is best left alone.

I never really liked the stuff.

 

[Ignatius]

I am a Frascati man myself 🥂