Nikon F100, what is up with the sticky leather!!

dpurdy · Sep 15, 2017

I have researched it and figured out how to clean it but what is the reason for it. I was just given an F100 unused for a few years and it had a corroded batter compartment and the leather was sticky as hell. I went to check my own F100 a couple of years unused and discovered it is getting stick too. Nasty.

blockend · Sep 15, 2017

dpurdy said:
I have researched it and figured out how to clean it but what is the reason for it. I was just given an F100 unused for a few years and it had a corroded batter compartment and the leather was sticky as hell. I went to check my own F100 a couple of years unused and discovered it is getting stick too. Nasty.

It was the soft touch covering era. The buying public beta tested an underdeveloped camera coating at their own expense. Nikon weren't the only culprit but were probably the best known. It was too volatile for camera use.

Chan Tran · Sep 15, 2017

Well the battery compartment got corroded it's not Nikon fault but the battery or owner fault. For the sticky covering I think too many manufacturers use that stuff. It provides better grip new but deteriorate so fast. The leatherette covering of older camera last a whole lot longer. Well I understand that they used it without knowing the problem. But now the problem is so well known they should use a different materials but obviously they don't.

dpurdy · Sep 15, 2017

Yes the friend who gave me the camera left batteries in it. I definitely don't do that. Odd that the material used was untested for deterioration issues. I can clean it and put some protective wax or oil on it but I guess it will keep deteriorating. Otherwise I have always loved the camera.

blockend · Sep 16, 2017

Chan Tran said:
But now the problem is so well known they should use a different materials but obviously they don't.

As far as I'm aware none of the current manufacturers use the coating that went sticky. It was prevalent in the 1990s. It varied, some just went slightly tacky and is useable with powdered chalk or similar, others have become unusable. I had a set of Sigma lenses that literally melted in a drawer.

G1DRP · Sep 16, 2017

I think that people who have greasy skin accelerate the deterioration of certain types of synthetic rubber.

Alan9940 · Sep 16, 2017

Whatever the coating was on my N90s, it developed the "sticky problem" after a few years of no use. I can't remember what I used to remove the coating--you could probably find out with a Google search--but I removed it all and the camera is perfectly usable now; a bit more slippery in the hands, but at least my fingers don't stick to it!

jwd722 · Sep 16, 2017

Mine got sticky too so I used some rubbing alcohol on a cotton ball. May have to go over it several times but it works...just don't flood the camera with it or let it seep into any openings, just common sense.

AgX · Sep 16, 2017

Over the the last few yeas I bought several non-photo appliances with a rubberlike coating (similar to that on these cameras). These surfaces turn sticky to due to skin grease, but maybe even without. Annoying stuff.

In general in "old" photo stuff using or colllecting I consider plastic decay, of whatever kind, a major issue.
These sticky surfaces typically do not hamper use as they can be removed (though troublesome), but other parts just break. My worst cases are several just 20years old cables from Metz.

rrusso · Sep 16, 2017

My N70 developed this problem; I used alcohol and steel wool to remove everything I could, and it was a mess.

Then I put a new battery in it and discovered it had decided it wanted to be a paperweight.

My method worked, but significant elbow grease was required.

dpurdy · Sep 16, 2017

Thanks for all the info. My research led me to try rubbing alcohol and it does work. Though I also found info that a tooth brush is a good cleaning tool and that plain soap and water will do the trick. Then after it is cleaned off to rub a little mineral oil into the material. Think I am going to try that.

GarageBoy · Sep 18, 2017

People have also tried armor all. Perhaps 303 protectant can help (used for convertible top)

I really hate the soft touch rubbers. My n90 is melted, I have to clean my f100 regularly, my maxxum 7 melted, and my older minoltas cracked apart

RichardJack · Sep 21, 2017

I had that problem with a Minolta. It turned out that it was a common problem for that model and the material of the covering was breaking down. I was able to make it about 80% less sticky cleaning it with a product called "Goo Gone", it still has a slight tacky feeling. There is a seller on Ebay who sells complete recovering kits for most cameras, they cost about $20. I've recovered some 6x6 SLR's and they look like new.

pentaxuser · Sep 21, 2017

I do not wish to highjack this thread about the F100 and my question is loosely related as it concerns another Nikon of the same era, namely, the F5. Is sticky leather a problem that inflicts the F5 as well? I don't think I can recall the F5 being cited in this sticky leather context but as someone who has wondered about buying one I'd appreciate your experience. It doesn't seem to merit a separate thread. especially if the answer is hopefully a simple: " No, the F5 is not affected.

Thanks

pentaxuser

Kevin Ekstrom · Sep 27, 2017

pentaxuser said:
I do not wish to highjack this thread about the F100 and my question is loosely related as it concerns another Nikon of the same era, namely, the F5. Is sticky leather a problem that inflicts the F5 as well? I don't think I can recall the F5 being cited in this sticky leather context but as someone who has wondered about buying one I'd appreciate your experience. It doesn't seem to merit a separate thread. especially if the answer is hopefully a simple: " No, the F5 is not affected.

Thanks

pentaxuser

The Nikon F5 has the hard leatherette back not the rubber back.

pentaxuser · Sep 27, 2017

Thank you, Kevin

pentaxuser

Bud Hamblen · Oct 3, 2017

I've read that baby wipes are good for unstickifying rubber. So far I don't have a Nikon of the proper age to experience the problem.

Bud

mjork · Oct 3, 2017

Canon EOS cameras have the same issue. I got rid of the stickiness by cleaning it with alcohol and paper towels. It took a little bit of effort but not too bad. Less than half an hour to get rid of all sticky surfaces.

monkowa · Oct 4, 2017

THis is good to know. My F100 film door was super sticky and nothing I tried worked. I just taped the shit out of it and that seems to work alright. Still annoying though.

tokam · Oct 4, 2017

I was given 2 Minolta Sigma 7's, (JDM version of Maxxum / Dynax 7), which both are affected by sticky rubber syndrome. To date I have cleaned up one of them with a cotton cloth and naptha. By cleanup I mean remove the rubber coating completely. You will need to use fairly wet cloth and change it frequently as the rubber is dissolved and migrates to the cloth. Be careful around any switches / buttons on the back and, in the case of the Minolta, take great care around the LCD panel. Also be careful along the edges of the film back.

At the end of this exercise you are left with the bare plastic mouldings of the camera. A bit shiny but thankfully your fingers won't stick to the camera.

Not sure if I can be bothered doing the second camera. Off to eBay or Gumtree methinks. (I was also given a Minolta 807si - 800si to westeners with a grip for AA batteries. A little less sophisticated than the 7 but I'm not to keen on paying for CR123 batteries or extending the 7 with appropriate grip. The 807si may be the keeper as it appears to have a different coating which hasn't gone sticky).

mgb74 · Oct 7, 2017

I suspect Nikon and others were lied to by the supplier of the coating and didn't do enough testing or validation on their own. But in the end, the camera manufacturer should be responsible.

An analogous situation here with a different approach:
https://mobile.nytimes.com/1999/03/...-quarrelsome-product-of-a-handshake-deal.html

cooltouch · Oct 14, 2017

The Nikon N-series has the same stickiness problem. I've owned several N80s and they've all suffered from this affliction. The solution to the problem is simple, however. A light dusting of talcum powder is all that's required. I put it on my hands, and rub it in well until I have a thin coating on my hands. Then I massage the camera all over. The talcum powder turns translucent, so you don't see it. This is a permanent solution, near as I can tell. I've kept one of the N80s and a year later, there is no sign of stickiness.

AgX · Oct 17, 2017

mgb74 said:
I suspect Nikon and others were lied to by the supplier of the coating and didn't do enough testing or validation on their own. But in the end, the camera manufacturer should be responsible.

But such stuff is still applied. I got kitchen utensils and a beard-trimmer that get sticky in short time. These rubberlike surfaces are trendy and thus applied.
My impression is that there is a general trend to manufacture things only good for a short period. Either with built-in decay to sell a succeeding model, or just to sell a product even without any interest for a follow-up or the product's longevity at all.

cooltouch · Oct 17, 2017

My brother in law is the production superintendent at a well-known US based manufacturer of durable plastic goods. Once when I asked him about it, he told me that the phenomenon is known as "plasticizer migration." It is where a component of the plastic begins to separate from the material and make its way to the surface, and this component is what feels sticky or, in other cases, oily. He told me that the condition can be prevented, typically with the use of more UV resistant materials, but that this adds to the price and that often the customers will balk at the additional cost. Isn't that the way it always goes?

Kino · Oct 17, 2017

You could just replace the grip...
http://camerarepairparts.com/nikon-f100-grip-rubber-unit-genuine-12842-p.asp

Nikon F100, what is up with the sticky leather!!

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