wsa111 Loc: Goose Creek, South Carolina

What is the best way to clean lens & body contacts on any Nikon camera. Referring to my Nikon D-750.

jtang2

I have used q-tips and rubbing alcohol.

E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada

I use a soft, DRY, lint-free, clean cloth regularly to prevent the buildup of dirt, grease, or any contaminants that could cause a loss of contact. This is ongoing maintenance to avoid having to use liquid cleaners that can be harmful to your lenses if accidentally misused. The lenses that I use on location and tend to handle more frequently are cleaned in this manner routinely- if they look nice and bright and shiny there will be no issues.

If, however, somehow the contacts become siloed, dirty, tarnished, etc., or you suspect poor contact you can use a good quality electronic contact cleaner but there are some important precautions. Someof these cleaners are highly volatile and evaporate quickly so they are no sold in jars or bottles but only in spray cans. Never spray this stuff on a lens or body or near a lens. Spray it onto a good quality cotton swab (I use fresh, new Q-Tips that will not fray and leave behind fragments or lint. I apply the cleaner sparingly to the offending contacts and wipe them off almost immediately with a lint-free gauze pad. Several applications are safer than soaking with lots of licqued. I use a cleaner that does NOT contain a lubricant. The lubricant is OK for electronic components like switches, volume controls, variable capacitors (tuners) but leave unwanted residues in external camera contacts. I use CRC 5103 Quick Dry Electronic Cleaner. Many of these sprays contain Isopropanol- the same ingredient in rubbing alcohol, however, the industrial type contains less water than the drugstore variety and therefore dries faster and cleans more efficiently.

Ongoing maintenance is better than having to clean a really dirty set of contacts. Rear lens caps and body caps should be used if you store yo lenses and bodies unattached.

I also vacuum my camera bags out regularly. You'd be surprised what accumulates in those compartments! So, if I am in a hurry and just stuff an uncapped lens in there, it is relatively safe. I don't pack my lunch in there anymore since the advent of digital cameras.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

I use a lens cleaning tissue. I just rub-a-dub-dub and I am done.

User ID

I use contact cleaner sprayed on a swab.

LXK0930 Loc: Souh Jersey

I don't understand why anyone would use rubbing alcohol on delicate electronics like cameras. I believe that RA contains lubricants that aid in rubbing down skin, and can leave traces of those lubricants on other surfaces. Also, RA comes in various levels of potency (70, 90, 95, etc), so some contain a lot of water.
Better to use cleaners specially formulated for delicate electronics.

GLSmith Loc: Tampa, Fl

I do NOT recommend using rubbing alcohol due to the water in it. , I use a dry lint free photo lens cloth or photo lens non fibrous paper. There is also a product called DeoxIT . I believe B&H sells the packets. Cleans & protects the contact points. I've used it on my lens contacts & also camera contacts (As I shoot near the ocean most of the time, I periodically clean contact points about every 6 months

bweber Loc: Newton, MA

I use a pencil eraser. I would never apply any liquid to a lens.

RoswellAlien

Same type cloth used on my glasses. Works great and no liquids.

PHRubin Loc: Nashville TN USA

I was taught at work in a high tech electronics company to NEVER use a pencil eraser to clean contacts. While it removes dirt, it also wears the contacts. If they were gold plated, you are also removing some gold and the metal beneath the gold tarnishes quickly requiring cleaning much more frequently. We were supplied with contact cleaner.

bwilliams

deoxit works great on all contacts battery also