I am waiting on the delivery of a Nikon F90x which will be a good match for my Nikon AF Nikkor 50mm 1:1.4D and Nikon AF Nikkor 24mm 1:2.8D (Nikon D200 "backup").
I know already I will need to deal with the sticky back problem. From what I read in the forums, I can use denatured alcohol with some cotton swabs to clean it off after having removed it from the camera body.
This camera will also be traveling to Japan with me soon! Unfortunately, I will most likely be leaving the Pentax 6x7 home. It would add to my luggage weight significantly.
Any handy tips for making the F90x work well for me?
Not much of a tip, but if you never used a Nikon AF made before the F5, be aware the aperture has to be set on the lens ring.
The sticky back is over-rated. The F100 and F80 that follow the F90X also suffer from it, despite having a different rubber. Of the 4 F90X I had, only one had the rubber peeling apart. Still not sticky.
The back on the F90 series is replaceable for another one. You can get the MF-26 multi-function back for it. It adds a few nice features.
After cleaning the back, apply some ArmorAll Conditioner (or something similar) which is available at auto parts stores. This worked on my F80D, N80 and F90x.
The only gotcha I run into is when using AF lenses between bodies like the F90x and other AF bodies, don't catch yourself with the aperture not at min aperture on the D200 and the aperture ring locked on the F90x. Be mindful when switching you adjust accordingly.
For starters, get some 99% isopropyl vs. the watery stuff from the grocery store (handy to have for cleaning negs and lenses, and adding to final film rinse - kind of a must-have in my book). Or get some denatured alcohol from the hardware store.
Take the back off the camera. Get some tissue or paper towels and some Saran wrap (plastic food wrap - or a plastic grocery bag).
Soak some scraps of tissue in alcohol and lay them on the sticky. Squirt some more alcohol on, then cover it all with plastic wrap and let it sit for a while - let the alcohol do the work. (the plastic wrap keeps it from evaporating).
Scrub, scrub scrub… use a paper towel or a sponge. One of those plastic "scouring" sponges will go faster, but might scuff up the back a bit (or remove the white program key icons). Keep repeating the process until you're happy with it.
Thank you everyone for the feedback!
Yesterday I got the stickiness off. Followed the recommendation to place some tissues on the back and soak them with alcohol (96%), wrap it with plastic wrap and let it set for a while. Did this twice and then did a final wipe with a cloth dipped in mild dish soap and wiped dry.
The icons on the back did come off early on but I don't think I will need them. I suppose the same info is in the manual I downloaded.
Next I will run a roll of film through and have it processed just to see it is fundamentally operational.
-Bill
The N90s/F90x has alot of good features. Fairly fast motor drive, metering with non cpu manual focus lenses, takes easy to find AA's..... About lens compatibility, do not attempt to mount non AI lenses. A and M modes are available with non cpu lenses. S and P are available with G lenses. The aperture is adjusted on the ring as someone else pointed out. In S or P mode, the aperture ring MUST be set to min aperture.
I've been using my N90s again. Giving my F100's a break. I had forgotten how good this camera is. I really like it. I once shot a wedding in the rain with it. No problem. I removed the sticky rubber on the back with Isopropyl alcohol. I screwed the superb Nikon 28-105 AF lens on it, and having a blast with it.