The $80 lens cleaning kit that scratched my front element - user error or junk product?

I bought this fancy cleaning kit from a camera show in Chicago for $80, supposed to be professional grade cloths and solution. After one careful wipe on my old 50mm, I found fine scratches that I swear weren't there before. Do you guys think it's possible to ruin a lens with a cheap kit like that, or am I just blaming the tools?

3 comments

3 Comments

abby_morgan189d ago

Yeah I saw this thing online where someone tested those cheap booth cleaning kits and apparently the "microfiber" is just polyester that literally has glass fibers in it... wild stuff. Wouldn't be surprised if yours was the same, $80 or not.

jason_stone599d ago

What kind of cloth was in that kit specifically... was it microfiber or some generic polyester blend? I've seen those booth guys push all kinds of stuff that's just relabeled garbage. Pretty common for cheaper cloths to trap dust and just drag it across the glass.

fiona_kim979d ago

The booth guys are straight up predatory with this stuff, @jason_stone59 is right on the money. I've seen "premium" kits that come with a cloth that feels fine out of the package but after one wash it turns into sandpaper basically. Some of them even use tacky glue on the edges to look fancy, but that glue picks up every speck of dust and turns your wipe into a grinding wheel. The solution is usually just isopropyl alcohol mixed with water and maybe some cheap fragrance, nothing special. Total joke to charge $80 for that.