cleaning correction lense

[vince 66]

Are there any products on the market for cleaning maksutov correction lenses or do we have to leave them alone until we can see no more surely if they are so fragile they would not be worth bothering with. I know we have to be careful and not use abrasive materials etc so I was just wondering if there are any products available such as wipes etc.

[Space Cowboy]

Just found this thread....I too would like to know how best to clean my Mak corrector lens. Would the cleaning solution I use for my specs be ok with the cloth?

[Iris]

The manual you get with your scope should tell you what the manufacturers' recommended cleaning fluids are.

I think that some generic optical cleaning fluids can damage the coatings.

I have had a Meade Mak and now a Celestron SCT - both manufacturers recommended a solution of Isopropyl Alchohol (IPA) diluted in distilled water, though each suggested different concentrations of IPA (if I recall Meade said 25% and Celestron 60%)

Meade strongly discourage the use of regular optical cleaning fluids.

Both offer very small concentrations of bio-degradable liquid soap as alternatives (something like one drop! per pint or so of water)

I would suggest that you check the manufacturers advice and if you are able to follow that first - that way you cant fall foul of warranty issues etc.

But you should only clean them if they really need it - most marks and dust won't impact the perfomance that much.

HTH

[Space Cowboy]

Thanks Iris!