Richard wrote:
> here are a couple of links that speak to the use of collodion
> usp for mirror cleaning:
>
> http://www1.tecs.com/oldscope/atspages/techtips.htm
>
> http://www.ghg.net/cshaw/clean.htm
>
>
> I am not so much interested in this for mirror cleaning as I
> am for dust particle removal from CCD gear, notably filters
> and the front window of the camera. I bought a pint some time
> back but have not used it yet, so I cannot speak to the
> effectiveness but the operational concept is appealing to me.
I've very successfully used collodian USP for cleaning mirrors, and had very
good results using it for cleaning corrector plates on SCTs.
It really is as simple as Richard says, just "paint" it on (I usually "pour"
it on, then tilt/tip the surface to be cleaned so it's completely covered so
I don't use a brush which could scratch), then peel it off when it's dry.
A couple of hints: for a mirror, put a 1/4" or so "dam" of masking tape all
around the outside edge, so it won't run off the side of the mirror. When
it's dry, remove the tape, and the collodian sheet will be easy to grab by
the edge and peel off.
For corrector plates or refractor optics, try to not get too much overflow
onto plastic retaining rings/secondary holders -- it can get messy to remove
the last little bits, as it will stick to the textured plastic. For easy
removal, wait until the collodian is nearly dry/gelled, then put a small tab
of masking tape down on top of it near the edge of the corrector (sticky side
down). Let it finish drying, then lift up on the masking tape tab, and you
can peel the whole thing off from that point.
Collodian has provided the best cleaning results from all of the methods that
I've tried. It won't get rid of really nasty "stuck-on" stuff (bird poo,
tree sap, etc.), but works wonders on dust, water spots, pollen, etc.
Paul