Need help cleaning Vivitar Series 1 24 - 48 aperture blades

dbuergi · Joined: 30 Sep 2015 Posts: 102 Location: Germany

Hi all!

I got the named lense and the aperture blades show some oil at the front. Cleaning the back was easy but now i need help how to reach the front.
Somewhere i read that you can unwind the lense in two parts but i didn't find out how to do this.

Attila · Expire: 2021-11-18

Zoom lens, not DIY job Sad

I think you will not get any reply , plus this lens is pretty rare.

Gardener · Joined: 22 Sep 2013 Posts: 950 Location: USA

Well, many Vivitar zooms follow the same scheme when it comes to accessing aperture, but, as the old dirty joke goes, "there are nuances".

guardian · Joined: 18 Mar 2009 Posts: 1747

I cannot think of a straightforward way to accomplish what you want. So I guess I agree with the other posters. Best bet is to take the lens to a good lens tech who will do the job right.

Of course if (and only if) you're stubborn and do not want to spend the money to hire the work done, here is a thought:

This assumes you have access from the rear with all lens elements to the rear of the aperture removed and safely set aside out of harm's way. Also, since I do not know this lens in detail, this is assuming there is a bit of working room forward of the aperture. If the aperture is very close to the lens element immediately forward, this will not work:

Prepare to work on the lens upside down, meaning the mount end of the lens is facing down at all times. Select a suitable solvent, something highly volatile. I think I used naphtha last time, or else benzene. I really cannot recall which. Obviously these are dangerous solvents and it would be best to perform this work outdoors.

You're going to need a thin hollow tube with either a hook or at least a 90 degree bend at the end. Tube outside diameter needs to be less than diameter of smallest aperture opening. With the lens upside down, and with the aperture open sufficiently wide, insert the end of your hooked (or bent) tube up through the aperture. The tube opening will now be pointing toward the inside surface of the aperture. Close the aperture around the tube. Allow your solvent to flow through the tube, land on the inside surface of the aperture, and run out the rear of the lens. Rotate the tube so the aperture is flushed with solvent in its entirety, all the way around. You do not want a gusher, just a gentle flow. If the flow is too vigorous it could splash solvent onto the lens element in front of the aperture. Be certain all solvent has evaporated before you set the lens upright.

cooltouch · Joined: 15 Jan 2009 Posts: 9109 Location: Houston, Texas

I have this same lens and I have cleaned the aperture blades before. I didn't have to dismantle it any further than removing the group of rear elements, which came out as a unit.

It requires some patience and many applications of solvent to finally rid the blades of all traces of oil. Yo don't need to unwind the lens so you can get to the front of the aperture blades. You just need patience.

I left the iris alone. I didn't try to remove it. So this gave me a small "pocket" to work in. I used cotton swabs dunked in either alcohol or naphtha. Naphtha usually works better, but alcohol will work too, you just will have to be more patient. It's also important to recall that the alcohol you buy at the drug store is not 100%. It's mixed with water. The stuff I have is 70%, which is about as strong as I've been able to find. Still, what happens when I use the 70% stuff, after the alcohol has evaporated, some moisture is left behind, and takes longer to evaporate. This is one reason why I prefer naphtha.

You can buy quart cans of naphtha at the big box stores. 1 qt will last you a lifetime. You can also use it to fill the old Zippo lighters. It's tie same thing as lighter fuel -- just a lot cheaper. So, yes, naphtha is flammable, but it has a very low combustability, unlike gasoline (petrol), which should never be used.

So anyway, using whichever solvent you prefer, just get a stack of cotton swabs and start by saturating the iris blades, then wiping each one down. Just keep doing this until you can operate the iris without seeing a trace of oil.

Next comes the fun part. You have to clean the inside of the element in front of the iris. It's been repeatedly coated with solvent and oil from the blades, so you'll need to clean it as well. I used lens tissue soaked in lens cleaner and then pushed the tissue around the lens surface with cotton swabs. Repeat the process until that element is shiny with no streaks.

Then reassemble. You should be good to go. This is actually one of the easier iris cleanings I've had to do over the years.