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300mm Nikkor ED-IF 4.5 Front Element
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PostPosted: Tue Jul 02, 2019 9:36 pm    Post subject: 300mm Nikkor ED-IF 4.5 Front Element Reply with quote

Does anyone have experience with this cool lens? I've got one, and it's a beauty, but it's got some fungus traces around the edges of the front element and I'd like to clean them.

That's all I want to do - remove the front element, clean the edges, then put it back. I've managed to unscrew the ring holding it in place, but just as it gets close to coming free it jams up and stops turning. Naturally I don't want to try to force it or do any damage.

Worst case scenario I'll just leave it as-is, since the effect on the image of a 300mm is negligible. Still, it would be an easy job if I could only get the front element out.

Thanks.


PostPosted: Wed Jul 03, 2019 2:03 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'm thinking that a very light squirt or two of penetrating oil on the threads of that retaining ring might help getting it to back out the rest of the way.

I have a Tamron 300mm f/2.8 LD that I picked up for well below what this lens typically sells for because it had some light fungus along the perimeter of the front element. Same as yours, it sounds like. Removing that retaining ring is an easy job to pop out the front element. But failing that, all it takes is some healthy doses of sunlight to kill the fungus, and then you won't have to worry about it spreading. Keep the lens in a dry environment and the fungus should stay gone.


PostPosted: Wed Jul 03, 2019 9:17 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

cooltouch wrote:
I'm thinking that a very light squirt or two of penetrating oil on the threads of that retaining ring might help getting it to back out the rest of the way.


Thanks, I think I'll give that a try. Since I can get the ring unscrewed most of the way it shouldn't be hard to work the lubrication into the threads.

EDIT: Yeah, that's not going to work.

The retention ring must be glued or something, because turning it seems to screw out the whole front optical group. Makes a little more sense why it doesn't come all the way out now.

Somehow I've got to figure out how to turn the ring without turning the whole group.