farnsworth52 Loc: W. Pa.

That looks particularly dirty. I'd be afraid to drag something like that across the surface. Dust is one thing but that looks oily. I've cleaned mine with a new beaver hair watercolor paint brush (very soft) with 1" long hairs. It doesn't scrape as much as it just collects staticly. Good Luck let us know what happens

PhilGrant Loc: Pearland, TX

For me the Delkin Sensorscope was a great investment. It allows you to see the spots on your sensor before and after cleaning by looking onto the sensor cover. Comes with swabs and cleaning solution.

Hemi Loc: Aotearoa

I have cleaned my APC sensor on Sony Nex-6 with
Eviteo clear bulb..useless
Arctic Butterfly: good job but left some smudges/smears
Visible dust V swab and Ultraclean: got the smears and hard to remove stuff and not difficult to use...just take care and follow directions

qrpnut Loc: Brattleboro, Vt.

For sure, a lens pen is not for cleaning the sensor, lenses only. Following the instructions in your first hyperlink is not really that hard. I've cleaned about a dozen of my and other's sensors with no problems using the items mentioned and exactly AS they mentioned. Go for it! Good luck!

BrettOssman Loc: near Tampa, Florida

Just a quick update.

Wife got me a Delkin Digital Duster kit for Christmas. Seems to work well, but again my sensor was FILTHY (see original post photo). So, I used up their 4 swabs. Sensor is getting better, but need more swabs.

Anybody know where I can get a good deal on more swabs. I doubt I need Delkins. Frankly I had a few from way back that I never used. Almost seemed they worked better. I THINK they were American Recorder, but not sure. I suspect there isn't a major difference between sensor swabs.

By the way, this cleaning process really seems simple to do yourself. I followed the Delkin video on youtube. Of course, maybe me working at it so long indicates I may be doing something wrong or inefficiently. :shock:

mborn Loc: Massachusetts

Copper hill you make your own swab/ you get a re-usable swab and 100 quick strips and a bottle of eclipse for around $30 I bought mine 2 years ago and still have plenty left

BrettOssman Loc: near Tampa, Florida

Oh that's right. Forgot about those guys. Thanks for reminding me. :D

BrettOssman Loc: near Tampa, Florida

After going to a local camera store to get some swabs, I found I may have gone a little overboard on the sensor testing. They actually use the F22 photo test as well (vs. a loupe), but don't put it through a Photoshop Levels adjustment. They also don't go beyond F22, say to F29. They say purists may do that, but you will see every little sensor imperfection, even ones you MAY not need to worry about.

Just a little FYI on what I found. :-D