Wet Cleaning D3 Sensor

MichaelMoenning · #1 11-09-2008, 11:29 AM

Well I've done it now! Using my Arctic Butterfly, I smudged something on the sensor and must do a wet clean. I have the old Eclipse solution from previous cameras, but I thought I read somewhere the new E2 Eclipse solution has been upgraded and the old stuff will actually eat the coatings of the sensor when used over time. The E2 is recommended for Tin Oxide CCD and CMOS sensors. Does the D3 have this sort of sensor build? I couldn't find anything on the Nikon site. Thanks for the help!

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Luke_Miller · #2 11-09-2008, 02:27 PM

Yes, the E2 Eclipse is the one recommended for the tin oxcide coated D3 sensor filter. I just broke down and bought some for mine.

JerryLevin · #3 11-10-2008, 03:04 AM

Hi Michael -

Whatever you do, DO NOT use the cleaning solution that you had for older bodies (e.g. D2X).

While my D3 is OK, I found that out the hard way. I only had the Eclipse solution for my D2X bodies and hadn't heard this was the wrong solution. The nail-biting began when I used this on our brand new D3... while on an 80 foot boat traveling the Inside Passage through Alaska. And we were the hired shooters for the trip, and many days away from the nearest town that I could ship the right stuff into.

That was a very very tense set of days trying to get the crap from the wrong solution cleaned off enough to shoot without images looking like someone sneezed all over the imager.

So, yes - do be very very careful. Eclipse also makes a solution that works with the D3 - though I haven't worked up the nerve to try it yet (even though I need to).

Best wishes,

Luke_Miller · #4 11-10-2008, 08:35 AM

I haven't wet cleaned my D3 sensor yet, so my only "experience" is what I have read on several forums. I believe the problem Jerry had was with the lubricant that is reported at the edges of the D3 sensor. This lubricant smears over the sensor filter during the first cleaning and apparently is a real pain to get off. Others report haveing to use several swabs to finally remove it. This issue does not seem to be affected by the cleaning solution you use. So it seems you won't avoid it by using the recommended E2 Eclipse. Reportedly the lubricant will get removed from the sensor area after several wet cleanings and will not be an on-going issue. At that point the commonly use dry cleaning methods can be used, such as the cleaning brushes.

Again, this is internt lore, so YMMV.

I have several dust spots on my D3 sensor filter that I need to remove. I have all of the supplies needed for a wet clean, but I'll try my rocket blower first and hope that is sufficient.

MichaelMoenning · #5 11-10-2008, 10:05 AM

Thanks for confirming my suspicions. I have definitely smeared the lubricant from the left edge onto the sensor, so I'm going to change the direction that I clean from side to side, now it will be from top to bottom. I'll post my wet cleaning experience after I pick up some E2. Thanks for the replies!
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