There's a fungus among us!

Captain Slack

Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2005
Messages
100
Location
North Carolina
Format
Medium Format
Awhile back, my uncle gave me his old Canon AE-1 and a couple of lenses. One was a 50mm and the other was a Vivitar 70-210mm Series 1 zoom. Unfortunately, the Vivtar was stored in it's case and the elements are coated in fungus:



Is it possible to clean this out? Would it be worth my time to do so?
 

Steve Bellayr

Member
Joined
Dec 2, 2006
Messages
137
Format
35mm
Assume minimum of $100 to clean fungus, if possible. Check auction site and Keh for a new lens. My guess it is probably better to buy a Canon lens.
 

John Koehrer

Subscriber
Joined
Apr 3, 2004
Messages
8,277
Location
Aurora, Il
Format
Multi Format
Worth your time? Sure but not worth having to pay to have someone else do it.
Why not? It's a pretty good lens and there's a possibility the fungus isn't that deep.
They are complicated little things though so notes & pictures are a REAL good idea.

You may or may not find some information on fixin' it at KYY or Classic repair forum archive on rangefinder forum.
 
OP
OP

Captain Slack

Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2005
Messages
100
Location
North Carolina
Format
Medium Format
Thanks, everyone! I don't feel like either taking it apart or paying someone to fix it. Someone on another forum suggested getting a UV emitting bulb and shining it through the lens for a day or two. That may or may not fix anything, but it's worth a shot!
 

DannL.

Member
Joined
Oct 13, 2013
Messages
617
Format
Large Format
These lenses can be had via eBay for very little. $10-$20 + shipping. eBay is my best friend. I had to replace a "fungy" lens for my OM-1 last week. Took about an hour to find one.
 

John Koehrer

Subscriber
Joined
Apr 3, 2004
Messages
8,277
Location
Aurora, Il
Format
Multi Format
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn more…