Tedcritch Loc: Lexington, KY

Does anyone on the forum have knowledge about electrostatic cleaning of older leaf shutters, specifically what chemical solution is best?
Thank you in advance,
Tedcritch

Rongnongno Loc: FL

That is best left to the pro repair shop. The blades are fragile, so trying to a DIY kind of thing is a sure recipe for disaster.

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I use Ronsinal lighter fluid. I think its either naptha or benzine.

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I have no idea what you mean by electrostatic

Rongnongno Loc: FL

You clean the shutter blades???

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

Most are made with very thin metal, some were made with fine cloth. Cleaning these are not for amateurs.

therwol Loc: USA

Naptha was removed from that lighter fluid in around 2010. Benzene is carcinogenic. It is used in manufacturing but is not supposed to be in any consumer products at greater than 0.1% by weight. But whatever works. I just like to look things up.

dbrugger25 Loc: Raleigh, NC

I just cleaned a Synchro Compur shutter blade assembly with Zippo lighter fluid and Q-tips. I used a very light touch and was very careful to not leave any cotton fibers behind. I changed Q-tips with every pass. The process did pick-up some black residue and the appearance of the shutter leaves improved. I worked the shutter with the manual shutter lever quite a lot during the process. My shutter was from a Crown Graphic "press camera" that was made in 1958. The lens board was removable so I could unscrew all the glass.

After cleaning, I placed the shutter assembly in a 120 degree oven to evaporate all the solvent prior to reassembly. I had tested the shutter for speed accuracy before and after. At all speeds the shutter was more accurate except at the highest speed setting of 1/500. At that speed it tested closer to 1/400. Still, cleaning caused a big improvement at all lower speeds.

You should know that almost no mechanical leaf shutter is extremely accurate at all speeds, even when new.

dbrugger25 Loc: Raleigh, NC

I have never considered ultrasonic cleaning of a mechanical leaf shutter. Even 70% alcohol would dissolve the internal lubrication and subsequently cause friction damage. The people who service those shutters are skilled like old-time watchmakers. I am extremely mechanical but would never consider attempting to fix one. There are videos that can be found by searching "repairing a synchro compur camera shutter".

If I attempted to service one, there is almost as much chance of getting it right as there would be of building a 747 aircraft out of parts found in a junkyard.