There's a fungus among us!

[Captain Slack]

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]

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]

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.

 

[Captain Slack]

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.]

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]

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!

A window sill & sunlight does as well and is a bit less $$$.
The UV kills the fun but leaves the traces.