S
Schroedingers_cat
Guest
As is the case with any user review, I can only report my personal, and in most cases limited, experience with any particular product. Such is the case with the pre moistened version of the Sensor Swab. As YMMV, please share your experiences if you have a better idea.
First off, this is not my first occasion to clean my own sensor. I realized shortly after purchasing my new Nikon D1 that learning to clean my own sensor was going to be a necessary part of using digital cameras.
This was about the time Thom Hogan was writing about how to use something like a cut off plastic knife from Wendys with a cleaning material folded over it. In fact I used a home made device very similar to that for my first venture into sensor cleaning.
When I finally purchased Sensor Swabs I was annoyed considerably at what I viewed as the high cost, but combined with Eclipse they were quite efficient and I have never had any issue with cleaning sensors. In fact, the only way I could find to really do the job wrong was by using too much Eclipse on the swab, leaving streaks on the sensor. As I recall, at the time the recommendation was 2 to 4 drops only, and this seemed to work fine in my case.
So I have continued over the years using the same materials and methods to great success, my sensors were clean and without streaks, and all was right with the world. I finally got down to being able to clean my sensor using only one swab most of the time, and the cost didn't seem like such an issue anymore. I've never tried Copper Hill's products, or anybody else's for that matter, and I'm sure some of them give fine results. I've just never felt the need to try a different manufactuerer.
So, as it recently came time to replenish my supply of swabs I logged onto B and H and noticed that there was now a pre moistened version of the Sensor Swab. It came neatly packaged in a little foil container and looked like a good way to prevent possible evaporation or loss from the container of Eclipse so I ordered 25 of them.
On first opening one of the foil packages I noted that the swabs appeared to have more Eclipse on them than I was accustomed to using. Since I couldn't exactly squeeze the silly thing between my fingers or soak some of the Eclipse up with a towel, I just used it as delivered and cleaned a D800.
And made a terrible mess. As I was moving the swab across the sensor I could observe a film of Eclipse being left behind on the sensor. A LOT of Eclipse. Enough that I had to watch a few moments in order to see it dry.
So I made a test image and looked at it on the computer. Yep, looked like crap. BAD streaks all the way across, with virtual pools of it at both ends. So I tried another swab. And another. And another.
I tried squeezing the swab inside the package before removing it, hoping to squeeze out some of the Eclipse. I tried allowing the swab to air dry a couple of moments to evaporate some of the Eclipse before use. And tried some more. And then tried some more.
And then went to the local brick and mortar shop and purchased the smallest box of original dry Sensor Swabs and a new bottle of Eclipse.
It took two swabs to get the residue left over from the prior cleaning off the sensor and leave it clean and streak free.
I've tried second round of cleaning with the pre moistened swabs and had similar results. For me, at least, they have WAY too much Eclipse on them for normal use. It does however occur to me that an excessively oily sensor or one with really stuck on debris might be an appropriate use for these.
If you are using these remoistened version and having success, and I suppose someone must be, well good on you. You're obviously better at the job than I am and I wish I had your talent, but for myself I'm going to stick with the original version and a bottle of Eclipse.
--
http://www.nightstreets.com
-
"Sick cultures show a complex of symptoms such as you have named...but a dying culture invariable exhibits personal rudeness. Bad manners. Lack of consideration for others in minor matters. A loss of politeness, of gentle manners is more significant than a riot."
This symptom is especially serious in that an individual displaying it never thinks of it as a sign of ill health but as proof of his/her strength. ...Friday, it is too late to save this culture--this worldwide culture... Therefore we must now prepare the monasteries for the coming Dark Age. Electronic records are too fragile..."
--Robert A. Heinlein in "Friday"
First off, this is not my first occasion to clean my own sensor. I realized shortly after purchasing my new Nikon D1 that learning to clean my own sensor was going to be a necessary part of using digital cameras.
This was about the time Thom Hogan was writing about how to use something like a cut off plastic knife from Wendys with a cleaning material folded over it. In fact I used a home made device very similar to that for my first venture into sensor cleaning.
When I finally purchased Sensor Swabs I was annoyed considerably at what I viewed as the high cost, but combined with Eclipse they were quite efficient and I have never had any issue with cleaning sensors. In fact, the only way I could find to really do the job wrong was by using too much Eclipse on the swab, leaving streaks on the sensor. As I recall, at the time the recommendation was 2 to 4 drops only, and this seemed to work fine in my case.
So I have continued over the years using the same materials and methods to great success, my sensors were clean and without streaks, and all was right with the world. I finally got down to being able to clean my sensor using only one swab most of the time, and the cost didn't seem like such an issue anymore. I've never tried Copper Hill's products, or anybody else's for that matter, and I'm sure some of them give fine results. I've just never felt the need to try a different manufactuerer.
So, as it recently came time to replenish my supply of swabs I logged onto B and H and noticed that there was now a pre moistened version of the Sensor Swab. It came neatly packaged in a little foil container and looked like a good way to prevent possible evaporation or loss from the container of Eclipse so I ordered 25 of them.
On first opening one of the foil packages I noted that the swabs appeared to have more Eclipse on them than I was accustomed to using. Since I couldn't exactly squeeze the silly thing between my fingers or soak some of the Eclipse up with a towel, I just used it as delivered and cleaned a D800.
And made a terrible mess. As I was moving the swab across the sensor I could observe a film of Eclipse being left behind on the sensor. A LOT of Eclipse. Enough that I had to watch a few moments in order to see it dry.
So I made a test image and looked at it on the computer. Yep, looked like crap. BAD streaks all the way across, with virtual pools of it at both ends. So I tried another swab. And another. And another.
I tried squeezing the swab inside the package before removing it, hoping to squeeze out some of the Eclipse. I tried allowing the swab to air dry a couple of moments to evaporate some of the Eclipse before use. And tried some more. And then tried some more.
And then went to the local brick and mortar shop and purchased the smallest box of original dry Sensor Swabs and a new bottle of Eclipse.
It took two swabs to get the residue left over from the prior cleaning off the sensor and leave it clean and streak free.
I've tried second round of cleaning with the pre moistened swabs and had similar results. For me, at least, they have WAY too much Eclipse on them for normal use. It does however occur to me that an excessively oily sensor or one with really stuck on debris might be an appropriate use for these.
If you are using these remoistened version and having success, and I suppose someone must be, well good on you. You're obviously better at the job than I am and I wish I had your talent, but for myself I'm going to stick with the original version and a bottle of Eclipse.
--
http://www.nightstreets.com
-
"Sick cultures show a complex of symptoms such as you have named...but a dying culture invariable exhibits personal rudeness. Bad manners. Lack of consideration for others in minor matters. A loss of politeness, of gentle manners is more significant than a riot."
This symptom is especially serious in that an individual displaying it never thinks of it as a sign of ill health but as proof of his/her strength. ...Friday, it is too late to save this culture--this worldwide culture... Therefore we must now prepare the monasteries for the coming Dark Age. Electronic records are too fragile..."
--Robert A. Heinlein in "Friday"
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Actually, the sign didn't say they only cleaned the sensor, so maybe they also do something else also.
