The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

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PetKal
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p.1 #1 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

What is the best microfiber lens glass cleaning cloth in your experience ? Something which is readily available from B&H etc.

I guess the qualities one is looking for are: the cloth doesn't shed fine lint, has a dense weave/pile so it has a good pickup, and also doesn't release chemicals of its own which result in glass smears ?

I still haven't found one I'd call excellent, although a Leica cloth is probably the best of the bunch which I have tried.

Secondly, what washing method do you use to maintain the cloth cleanliness ?
|'ve been using a regular dishsoap although I am not convinced that yields the best results.

Sep 05, 2012 at 12:56 PM

martines34
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p.1 #2 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

I have bought a pack of 24 micro-fiber cloths at Sam's club for under $ 12.00. These cloths are excellent for cleaning monitors and iPad screens. I have other more expensive micro-fibre lens cloths and am wondering why there is such a disparity in price.

Many items we buy are seriously over priced.

Sep 05, 2012 at 01:01 PM

sjms
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p.1 #3 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

i have been using this product since the late 90's (still the original and easily cleaned). purchased originally in Japan. i like it so much i bought spares then. available from Adorama much later.

http://www.adorama.com/CPCML.html

still the best to me

Sep 05, 2012 at 01:03 PM

broncoholic
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p.1 #4 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

Kinetronics Anti-static Microfiber Cloth...aka-Tiger Cloth.

I have tried several but this is what worked best for me. Does not leave any dust, or little balls of cloth and cleans very well.

Sep 05, 2012 at 01:13 PM

PetKal
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p.1 #5 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

Thanx gents.
What has prompted my inquiry is some difficulty I've been experiencing when trying to clean the front element of a Canon lens which has been coated with a fluorine compound.
The usual cloth (and Pec-pads) and liquid cleaner method just couldn't lift a fine film, almost a haze, off the glass. Finally I had to resort to a broad tipped Lenspen, which I do reluctantly, and that did a good job.

Perhaps it is premature to correlate positivly that fluorine coating with the cleaning difficulty. After all, the idea behind the new coating is to facilitate, and not aggravate, lens cleaning, however, something smells fishy there.

Sep 05, 2012 at 01:51 PM

sjms
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p.1 #6 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

i had from 16mm to 300mm (back when i did canon) and never had an issue with cleaning the front elements.

Sep 05, 2012 at 02:18 PM

broncoholic
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p.1 #7 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

The usual cloth (and Pec-pads) and liquid cleaner method just couldn't lift a fine film, almost a haze, off the glass.

I had the same problem and that is why I tried the Tiger Cloth and it worked much better.

Sep 05, 2012 at 02:54 PM

Frank_Maiello
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p.1 #8 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

PetKal wrote:
Thanx gents.
What has prompted my inquiry is some difficulty I've been experiencing when trying to clean the front element of a Canon lens which has been coated with a fluorine compound.
The usual cloth (and Pec-pads) and liquid cleaner method just couldn't lift a fine film, almost a haze, off the glass. Finally I had to resort to a broad tipped Lenspen, which I do reluctantly, and that did a good job.

Perhaps it is premature to correlate positivly that fluorine coating with the cleaning difficulty. After all, the idea behind the new coating is to facilitate, and not aggravate, lens cleaning, however, something smells fishy there.

Why would you be hesitant to use the Lenspen? I haven't cleaned my lenses any other way since discovering it. Microfiber cloths attract dirt and oil from the fingers we use to handle them.

Sep 05, 2012 at 03:35 PM

surf monkey
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p.1 #9 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

broncoholic wrote:
Kinetronics Anti-static Microfiber Cloth...aka-Tiger Cloth.

I have tried several but this is what worked best for me. Does not leave any dust, or little balls of cloth and cleans very well.

Broncoholic,
I looked at the Kinetronics website.
They have the Tiger Cloth as a film cleaner.
There Panther Cloth is for glass.
Have you tried both and prefer the Tiger for glass?

Petkal, thanks for starting this thread. I usually use whatever is available, but it would be nice to have a best method for quick cleanups.

Sep 05, 2012 at 06:21 PM

PetKal
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p.1 #10 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

Frank_Maiello wrote:
PetKal wrote:
Thanx gents.
What has prompted my inquiry is some difficulty I've been experiencing when trying to clean the front element of a Canon lens which has been coated with a fluorine compound.
The usual cloth (and Pec-pads) and liquid cleaner method just couldn't lift a fine film, almost a haze, off the glass. Finally I had to resort to a broad tipped Lenspen, which I do reluctantly, and that did a good job.

Perhaps it is premature to correlate positivly that fluorine coating with the cleaning difficulty. After all, the idea behind the new coating is to facilitate, and not aggravate, lens cleaning, however, something smells fishy there.

Why would you be hesitant to use the Lenspen? I haven't cleaned my lenses any other way since discovering it. Microfiber cloths attract dirt and oil from the fingers we use to handle them.

The reason is in the Lenspen price. Somehow, I have a fear of trapping a grain of sand or something similar in the felt tip and then scratching the glass surface with it when cleaning. Therefore, I tend to discard Lenspens after several uses which then raises the cost. Microfiber cloths I can wash every so often, so it's a safe and economical solution.

Sep 05, 2012 at 06:36 PM

jcolwell
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p.1 #11 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

I'm quite happy using a microfibre MSR PackTowl Ultralite towel from MEC. See link below. I cut off useful sized chunks and throw them away when they get dirty. One towel lasts a very long time.

I use ROR (Residual Oil Remover) for the most stubborn cleaning jobs. I just touched up my 500/4L IS front element today - first time in about a year. Some dust from gardening yesterday

and a few small, dried on raindrops. No problem for ROR.

http://www.mec.ca/AST/ShopMEC/HikingCamping/HealthSafety/BathProducts/PRD~5025-400/msr-packtowl-ultralite-towel.jsp

Sep 05, 2012 at 09:18 PM

PetKal
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p.1 #12 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

Jim, I also use ROR for more thorough cleaning.

Many years ago while I still had a job

, I met a fellow from a US company which was making high grade industrial quality microfiber products. They had a special line of microfiber cloths, rollers, mitts and mops which had been used in diverse nuclear/radioisotope industries for surface/loose radioactive contamination detection and removal.

Unfortunatelly, I can not possibly remember the company's name, and it is not even certain that their product would be available in smaller quantities. Now, as luck would have it, I've just found one of their sample microfiber towelette in the box of my past work related memorabilia.

That stuff is so fine that it clings to my hands (skin roughness). Need to wash it now and then give it a try.

Sep 05, 2012 at 09:47 PM

broncoholic
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p.1 #13 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

surf monkey wrote:
broncoholic wrote:
Kinetronics Anti-static Microfiber Cloth...aka-Tiger Cloth.

I have tried several but this is what worked best for me. Does not leave any dust, or little balls of cloth and cleans very well.

Broncoholic,
I looked at the Kinetronics website.
They have the Tiger Cloth as a film cleaner.
There Panther Cloth is for glass.
Have you tried both and prefer the Tiger for glass?

Petkal, thanks for starting this thread. I usually use whatever is available, but it would be nice to have a best method for quick cleanups.

I have only used the Tiger Cloth, sorry cant help you with the Panther cloth, I am guessing they like Big Cats at Kinetronics.

This what they say on the site;

Anti-Static Tiger Cloth - (ASC) - A lint-free, anti-static microfiber cloth for cleaning film, lenses, glass, crystal and plastics.

Anti-Static Panther Cloth - (MPC) - A lint-free, anti-static, microfiber cloth that has been specifically engineered for use with cleaning solutions.

No mention of lenses on the Panther Cloth, so that is why I went with the Tiger cloth.

I hope this helps.

Sep 05, 2012 at 11:37 PM

Bearmann
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p.1 #14 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

My favorite is the Mikros. I haven't seen one for sale at a store in years, but you can get them here:

http://www.filmtools.com/filmikclot.html

It's not as thick as the Microdear and I prefer it that way. I wash in Joy dishwashing solution, rise it well, and dry it with a hair dryer.

Sep 06, 2012 at 03:37 AM

Rajan Parrikar
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p.1 #15 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

The cloth that comes with the Singh-Ray lens cleaning solution. Check it out on their site at singh-ray.com.

Sep 06, 2012 at 04:32 AM

sjms
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p.1 #16 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

Bearmann wrote:
My favorite is the Mikros. I haven't seen one for sale at a store in years, but you can get them here:

http://www.filmtools.com/filmikclot.html

It's not as thick as the Microdear and I prefer it that way. I wash in Joy dishwashing solution, rise it well, and dry it with a hair dryer.

it's the microdears thickness that makes it more my choice. more like a chamois. it increases the actual contact area w/o the need to increase the pressure.

Sep 06, 2012 at 12:21 PM

Bearmann
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p.1 #17 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

sjms,

We've been down this path before. If fact, I tried the Microdear on your recommendation.

I still prefer the Mikros, though. You'll have to give it a try.

Sep 06, 2012 at 01:18 PM

sjms
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p.1 #18 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

ok then, enjoy yours and i'll stick with mine as i have since '91. i like mine cushie

got the old microdear? send it to me

so many choices so little time

Edited on Sep 09, 2012 at 11:34 AM · View previous versions

Sep 09, 2012 at 12:33 AM

Jim McCann
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p.1 #19 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

Well, I use a good quality camel hair brush now and then; Canon or Leica micro-fiber cloths; and lately I've been using the Wet/Dry packets from Hoodman. Quite happy with the Hoodman product.

Jim

Sep 09, 2012 at 04:31 AM

runamuck
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p.1 #20 · The best microfiber lens cleaning cloth

martines34 wrote:
I have bought a pack of 24 micro-fiber cloths at Sam's club for under $ 12.00. These cloths are excellent for cleaning monitors and iPad screens. I have other more expensive micro-fibre lens cloths and am wondering why there is such a disparity in price.

Many items we buy are seriously over priced.
+1

Sep 09, 2012 at 11:02 PM

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