Sensor Brush

[ehasler]

Just bought one of [url]these|http://www.visibledust.com/sensor_brush_details.html[/url] from [url]Fixation|http://www.fixationuk.com[/url] to clean the sensor on my 1Ds II, and having just used it, I'm very impressed!

It's easier and slightly less nerve-wracking than using digi-pads and cleaning fluid, and has got rid of 95% of the dust on the sensor after just a few wipes.

I've uploaded some test shots to show how effective it is:

[url]Example 1 - dirty sensor|http://www.haslersystems.co.uk/stuff/DSLR/WU0X2992.JPG[/url]

[url]Example 2 - Sensor after blowing with Rocket air blower|http://www.haslersystems.co.uk/stuff/DSLR/WU0X2993.JPG[/url]

[url]Example 3 - sensor after 4 wipes with Sensor Brush|http://www.haslersystems.co.uk/stuff/DSLR/WU0X2994.JPG[/url]

Files are ~1MB each, so it's probably best to right-click and save as.

Hopefully another couple of wipes will get it almost totally clean.

[_dobbo_]

Does look good. I'm still a way off really needing to do this, but might get prepared. Any chance of an idea of price? I find the fixation website inpenetrable!

[ehasler]

Prices are:

1.6X size for Nikon/Canon D30/60/10D/20D: £55 +VAT.
1.3X size for Canon Eos1D/1DmkII: £61 +VAT.
Full size for Canon Eos1DS/1DSmkII and Kodak: £67 +VAT.
8mm mirror-box brush: £18 +VAT.

This seems like a lot, but if you compare it to £25+VAT for them to clean the camera for you (£50+VAT for full frame!), or £2 each for digi-pads which I use 3/4 of per clean, then it starts to work out cheaper after a while.

You will still need to use the fluid and swabs sometimes, as the brush fails to clean the bigger bits of dirt that are more firmly stuck to the sensor, but the brush should do the job most of the time.

[Jenny Taillier]

£75 + postage is an awful lot of money for a plastic brush.

[simpo two]

Jenny Taillier said:

£75 + postage is an awful lot of money for a plastic brush.

Damn right. No doubt they cost about 20p each if you can find where they get them from. This is blatant profiteering.

[ehasler]

Jenny Taillier said:

£75 + postage is an awful lot of money for a plastic brush.

It's not your normal plastic brush that you can pick up from Homebase, although I agree that £75 is quite a lot for one! Then again, I'm not risking an expensive camera by using something that isn't designed for it.

[Ian_H]

There's an interesting website here
http://194.100.88.243/petteri/pont/How_to/a_Brush_Your_Sensor/a_Brush_Your_Sensor.html

I have a friend who has both the Sensor brush from visible dust and the sensor sweep from here www.pbase.com/image/42963246 and he reckons that they both work to a similar degree but you still need the 'wet' method to remove some stubborn dust marks, he uses them on a 1DMKII


Cheers
Ian