Best way to clean an eyepiece

[Stargazerkelly1989]

I have managed to get a fingerprint on a eyepiece. Courtesy of my brother. How can I clean this safely?

 

thanks for any advice or tips 

[DaveL59]

best to blow away any dust and then use a clean microfibre cloth or lens tissue moistened with lens cleaner to gently wipe it away. Don't overdo the lens cleaner or apply direct to the lens else it may find its way behind the front element and then things get a lot more involved to sort it.

[Timebandit]

 

 

Hello.

Blow any dust off initially . And then use a clean microfibre cloth with some Baader Wonder fluid.

 

 

[Stargazerkelly1989]

Yeah- I’ve just ordered some Baader Wonder Fluid. Thanks for the tip. 

[Dantooine]

Lens pen?

[Carbon Brush]

A bottle of Baader fluid and a cloth are a good investment.

[Rob_UK_SE]

Ditto on the Baader wonder fluid suggestion - it lasts for ages too.

For me, it works best if you spray the cloth and not directly on to the lens. Swipe from one direction to another (lightly) and avoid moving in circles. Try to use a different part of the cloth for each swipe.

[discardedastro]

33 minutes ago, Rob_UK_SE said:

Ditto on the Baader wonder fluid suggestion - it lasts for ages too.

For me, it works best if you spray the cloth and not directly on to the lens. Swipe from one direction to another (lightly) and avoid moving in circles. Try to use a different part of the cloth for each swipe.

Definitely never spray cleaning fluid onto eyepieces or objective lenses - the risk is high that fluid may migrate beyond the outside surface and between lenses, leading to condensation etc.

Ultra-clean wipes are the key, combined with a good fluid like the Baader stuff (Calotherm's lens cleaner is a good option also). I would generally recommend disposable lint-free wipes; e.g. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Solwise-Fibre-cleaning-Lint-Free-Pk-300/dp/B06XYRN5V2/ rather than using a microfibre cloth since there's no risk of foreign material being dragged across the lens coatings, but if you have to use a reusable cloth make sure you keep it impeccably clean and use it only for lens cleaning. The Caloclean cloths that FLO sell come in a resealable pouch which is ideal.

[CraigT82]

A big box of 200 Zeiss lens wipes can be had online for around a tenner. 

The Baader fluid is good stuff and so is the cloth, but you need to be sure the cloth stays clean and free of foreign material. No such problem with the Zeiss wipes.