K10D veiwer

Normie1 · 11-21-2009, 08:35 PM

When I look thru the veiwer getting ready for a shot, I have dust and it looks like a small hair in the veiwer. It does not show up on photos, you can take the lens off and look and its still there. I was wondering if anyone else has had a problem like this or anything close. This all started one night after I took some night shots, and was never there before. Thanks for any help.

**Rondec** · 11-21-2009, 08:38 PM

It is really easy to get dirt in your viewfinder. As you say, it won't effect your pictures. If it bothers you enough, you can clean it, or have it cleaned.

**Canada_Rockies** · 11-21-2009, 09:04 PM

Originally posted by Rondec

It is really easy to get dirt in your viewfinder. As you say, it won't effect your pictures. If it bothers you enough, you can clean it, or have it cleaned.

Every single time I have attempted to remove dirt from the viewfinder, I have made it worse. Look past the hair and dust. I've been doing that for a very long time, now.

KungPOW · 11-21-2009, 11:33 PM

I've given up carring if I have dust in my viewfinder. All of my cameras has some dust.

Death. Taxes. Dust in the viewfinder.

----------------

To clear it, take out the focusing screen, Give everything a good blast of air from your rocket blower, put the screen back in.

No not try to wipe the screen with a cloth or lense tissue. It has a very fine texture that can be damaged.

bymy141 · 11-22-2009, 06:07 AM

Most of the dust problems I have is with dust on the mirror or the focus screen.
Try blowing them with the camera opening downwards.

PePe · 11-22-2009, 06:21 AM

Originally posted by Canada_Rockies

Every single time I have attempted to remove dirt from the viewfinder, I have made it worse.

I am delighted to hear I am not the only one ...
Last time I ended up changing the focus screen

Normie1 · 11-22-2009, 08:08 AM

You people are the best, how big of a job is it to clean it?? and do I need any special tools to do this. Again thanks for the replys as they have been very helpful

**Canada_Rockies** · 11-22-2009, 10:04 AM

Originally posted by Normie1

You people are the best, how big of a job is it to clean it?? and do I need any special tools to do this. Again thanks for the replys as they have been very helpful

You need to drop the screen, and remove it. To do this you will need a pair of tweezers. I have several, I got one with every screen I purchased.

Turn the camera off.
Take the lens off.
Look carefully at the top of the opening, and you will see a hinged frame. This frame holds the focusing screen in place. At the front of the frame you will see a tiny wire loop.
Lift the wire loop gently. It is the release for the frame.
GENTLY lower the frame down.
With tweezers (not fingers!) carefully remove the screen using the little tab on the screen. Be careful - the screen is plastic and very easy to scratch.
Check carefully that there is not an additional metal shim in there. If there is, take it out.
Hold the camera mount down, and with your handy dandy rocket blower blow all the crud out of the camera.
NEVER USE COMPRESSED AIR. The propellant, and some almost always sneaks out, will really cause troubles in there, and you will have to pay to have the camera cleaned.
Blow off the screen.
Replace the shim. Tricky.
Replace the screen. Even trickier not to brush it against something and scratch it.
Make sure the screen is exactly where it should be, together with the shims, if any.
Latch the frame back up. If you are as ham handed as I am, you just might bend the little latch, making your life even worse.
Put the lens back on.
If you are me, you then look through the viewfinder and see more dirt than when you started.

Good luck!

Marc Sabatella · 11-22-2009, 10:04 AM

As the posters above point out, you don't need any special tools - you can ruin the focus screen by attempting to clean with or without special tools. By all means, give it a shot if you don't mind the risk, but it's a very real risk. Viewfinder dust happens, get used to it.

reeftool · 11-22-2009, 10:24 AM

I had a real mess on my screen and also the mirror. I had changed lenses during a hike in the mountains last summer and the black flies were still swarming and several got into my camera. It took several tries with my blower and some gentle brushing with the fine brush that came with my blower to get it somewhat cleaned out. The darn things were walking around on the sensor and messed up some shots also. There are some spots still on the viewfinder but I did get the sensor clean. My Spotmatic has a petrified bug of some sort in the viewfinder for decades. Looks like a tick.

KungPOW · 11-22-2009, 10:28 AM

Originally posted by reeftool

I had a real mess on my screen and also the mirror. I had changed lenses during a hike in the mountains last summer and the black flies were still swarming and several got into my camera. It took several tries with my blower and some gentle brushing with the fine brush that came with my blower to get it somewhat cleaned out. The darn things were walking around on the sensor and messed up some shots also. There are some spots still on the viewfinder but I did get the sensor clean. My Spotmatic has a petrified bug of some sort in the viewfinder for decades. Looks like a tick.

Now that is hard core.

aerodave · 11-22-2009, 11:35 AM

I have washed focus screens before with no ill effects. Just a gentle rubbing with bare fingers and a tiny drop of mild detergent, followed up by a good rinsing. The reason you can get away with bare fingers is that the detergent is taking care of your fingertip oils while it's doing the same thing for the screen. Just don't get your fingers on the screen once you start rinsing it. From that point, hold it with a good pair of tweezers instead. If it's just a minor bit of dust or hair on the screen, you can skip the detergent and just rinse it well. That avoids the rubbing which could potentially scratch the screen if you're not careful enough.

Finally, I give it a thorough drying using my foot-pump blower. The drying is the critical step. You don't want drops of water to evaporate on there, or you'll be left with mineral deposits that will definitely be noticeable. Just make sure you blow all the water out of the little micro-ridges on the matte side of the screen.

Disclaimer: I'm not advising you to do this. If you try it and screw it up, it's not my fault, nor the fault of PentaxForums. However, I have found it to be simple and effective in the past. Wouldn't hesitate to do it again if I felt the need. Unfortunately, I can't simply look past the dust...drives me crazy.

Spongefingers · 11-22-2009, 01:25 PM

Originally posted by reeftool

I had a real mess on my screen and also the mirror. I had changed lenses during a hike in the mountains last summer and the black flies were still swarming and several got into my camera. It took several tries with my blower and some gentle brushing with the fine brush that came with my blower to get it somewhat cleaned out. The darn things were walking around on the sensor and messed up some shots also. There are some spots still on the viewfinder but I did get the sensor clean. My Spotmatic has a petrified bug of some sort in the viewfinder for decades. Looks like a tick.

This happened to me earlier this year. I was at a zoo and there were a lot of tiny thrips (thunderbugs) in the air - getting all over everyone's skin and clothes.
I was using my FA50 on my K10D and one of the critters must have crept in through the gap under the focus ring, I presume this would be the only gap it could have gotten through. Soon after I noticed an enlarged and very detailed thrips crawling across my focusing screen! Not a pleasant sight.
I decided not to take any more pictures until I got home, just in case the mirror squashed it into the screen. I would try to blow it out in a bug-free indoor environment. This was very annoying as I missed taking some good pictures of the very entertaining prairie marmots.
I got home, dusted myself off, removed the lens and gave the mirror box a thorough blowing out. I did this over a sheet of white paper so I would notice if the bug had come out, but no bug! At least it had left the viewfinder.
It may still be in there to this day, but if so it hasn't caused any problems. Maybe it got stuck on the tacky floor of the mirror box...

A pity I've got no weather-sealed lenses. If so, then I wouldn't mind getting a camera out with thrips around. I suppose I could tape a plastic bag around it though!

Normie1 · 11-22-2009, 04:21 PM

I want to thank everyone for there help and say thank you very much

11-21-2009, 08:35 PM	#1
Normie1 Inactive Account Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Mesa Arizona Photos: Gallery Posts: 12	K10D veiwer When I look thru the veiwer getting ready for a shot, I have dust and it looks like a small hair in the veiwer. It does not show up on photos, you can take the lens off and look and its still there. I was wondering if anyone else has had a problem like this or anything close. This all started one night after I took some night shots, and was never there before. Thanks for any help.

11-22-2009, 10:04 AM	#8
Canada_Rockies Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Sparwood, BC, Canada Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 12,385	Originally posted by Normie1 You people are the best, how big of a job is it to clean it?? and do I need any special tools to do this. Again thanks for the replys as they have been very helpful You need to drop the screen, and remove it. To do this you will need a pair of tweezers. I have several, I got one with every screen I purchased. Turn the camera off. Take the lens off. Look carefully at the top of the opening, and you will see a hinged frame. This frame holds the focusing screen in place. At the front of the frame you will see a tiny wire loop. Lift the wire loop gently. It is the release for the frame. GENTLY lower the frame down. With tweezers (not fingers!) carefully remove the screen using the little tab on the screen. Be careful - the screen is plastic and very easy to scratch. Check carefully that there is not an additional metal shim in there. If there is, take it out. Hold the camera mount down, and with your handy dandy rocket blower blow all the crud out of the camera. NEVER USE COMPRESSED AIR. The propellant, and some almost always sneaks out, will really cause troubles in there, and you will have to pay to have the camera cleaned. Blow off the screen. Replace the shim. Tricky. Replace the screen. Even trickier not to brush it against something and scratch it. Make sure the screen is exactly where it should be, together with the shims, if any. Latch the frame back up. If you are as ham handed as I am, you just might bend the little latch, making your life even worse. Put the lens back on. If you are me, you then look through the viewfinder and see more dirt than when you started. Good luck!

11-22-2009, 11:35 AM	#12
aerodave Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Dayton, OH Posts: 365	I have washed focus screens before with no ill effects. Just a gentle rubbing with bare fingers and a tiny drop of mild detergent, followed up by a good rinsing. The reason you can get away with bare fingers is that the detergent is taking care of your fingertip oils while it's doing the same thing for the screen. Just don't get your fingers on the screen once you start rinsing it. From that point, hold it with a good pair of tweezers instead. If it's just a minor bit of dust or hair on the screen, you can skip the detergent and just rinse it well. That avoids the rubbing which could potentially scratch the screen if you're not careful enough. Finally, I give it a thorough drying using my foot-pump blower. The drying is the critical step. You don't want drops of water to evaporate on there, or you'll be left with mineral deposits that will definitely be noticeable. Just make sure you blow all the water out of the little micro-ridges on the matte side of the screen. Disclaimer: I'm not advising you to do this. If you try it and screw it up, it's not my fault, nor the fault of PentaxForums. However, I have found it to be simple and effective in the past. Wouldn't hesitate to do it again if I felt the need. Unfortunately, I can't simply look past the dust...drives me crazy. Last edited by aerodave; 11-24-2009 at 08:51 AM.

11-22-2009, 01:25 PM	#13
Spongefingers Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: UK Photos: Gallery Posts: 237	My Viewfinder Bug Story Originally posted by reeftool I had a real mess on my screen and also the mirror. I had changed lenses during a hike in the mountains last summer and the black flies were still swarming and several got into my camera. It took several tries with my blower and some gentle brushing with the fine brush that came with my blower to get it somewhat cleaned out. The darn things were walking around on the sensor and messed up some shots also. There are some spots still on the viewfinder but I did get the sensor clean. My Spotmatic has a petrified bug of some sort in the viewfinder for decades. Looks like a tick. This happened to me earlier this year. I was at a zoo and there were a lot of tiny thrips (thunderbugs) in the air - getting all over everyone's skin and clothes. I was using my FA50 on my K10D and one of the critters must have crept in through the gap under the focus ring, I presume this would be the only gap it could have gotten through. Soon after I noticed an enlarged and very detailed thrips crawling across my focusing screen! Not a pleasant sight. I decided not to take any more pictures until I got home, just in case the mirror squashed it into the screen. I would try to blow it out in a bug-free indoor environment. This was very annoying as I missed taking some good pictures of the very entertaining prairie marmots. I got home, dusted myself off, removed the lens and gave the mirror box a thorough blowing out. I did this over a sheet of white paper so I would notice if the bug had come out, but no bug! At least it had left the viewfinder. It may still be in there to this day, but if so it hasn't caused any problems. Maybe it got stuck on the tacky floor of the mirror box... A pity I've got no weather-sealed lenses. If so, then I wouldn't mind getting a camera out with thrips around. I suppose I could tape a plastic bag around it though!

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11-21-2009, 08:38 PM	#2
Rondec Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Gladys, Virginia Photos: Gallery Posts: 27,653	It is really easy to get dirt in your viewfinder. As you say, it won't effect your pictures. If it bothers you enough, you can clean it, or have it cleaned.

11-21-2009, 09:04 PM	#3
Canada_Rockies Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Sparwood, BC, Canada Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 12,385	Originally posted by Rondec It is really easy to get dirt in your viewfinder. As you say, it won't effect your pictures. If it bothers you enough, you can clean it, or have it cleaned. Every single time I have attempted to remove dirt from the viewfinder, I have made it worse. Look past the hair and dust. I've been doing that for a very long time, now.

11-21-2009, 11:33 PM	#4
KungPOW Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Vancouver, Canada Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,699	I've given up carring if I have dust in my viewfinder. All of my cameras has some dust. Death. Taxes. Dust in the viewfinder. ---------------- To clear it, take out the focusing screen, Give everything a good blast of air from your rocket blower, put the screen back in. No not try to wipe the screen with a cloth or lense tissue. It has a very fine texture that can be damaged.

11-22-2009, 06:07 AM	#5
bymy141 Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,563	Most of the dust problems I have is with dust on the mirror or the focus screen. Try blowing them with the camera opening downwards.

11-22-2009, 06:21 AM	#6
PePe Pentaxian Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Helsinki, Finland Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 597	Originally posted by Canada_Rockies Every single time I have attempted to remove dirt from the viewfinder, I have made it worse. I am delighted to hear I am not the only one ... Last time I ended up changing the focus screen

11-22-2009, 08:08 AM	#7
Normie1 Inactive Account Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Mesa Arizona Photos: Gallery Posts: 12 Original Poster	You people are the best, how big of a job is it to clean it?? and do I need any special tools to do this. Again thanks for the replys as they have been very helpful

11-22-2009, 10:04 AM	#9
Marc Sabatella Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Denver, CO Photos: Gallery Posts: 10,685	As the posters above point out, you don't need any special tools - you can ruin the focus screen by attempting to clean with or without special tools. By all means, give it a shot if you don't mind the risk, but it's a very real risk. Viewfinder dust happens, get used to it.

11-22-2009, 10:24 AM	#10
reeftool Pentaxian Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Upstate New York Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 9,554	I had a real mess on my screen and also the mirror. I had changed lenses during a hike in the mountains last summer and the black flies were still swarming and several got into my camera. It took several tries with my blower and some gentle brushing with the fine brush that came with my blower to get it somewhat cleaned out. The darn things were walking around on the sensor and messed up some shots also. There are some spots still on the viewfinder but I did get the sensor clean. My Spotmatic has a petrified bug of some sort in the viewfinder for decades. Looks like a tick.

11-22-2009, 10:28 AM	#11
KungPOW Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Vancouver, Canada Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,699	Originally posted by reeftool I had a real mess on my screen and also the mirror. I had changed lenses during a hike in the mountains last summer and the black flies were still swarming and several got into my camera. It took several tries with my blower and some gentle brushing with the fine brush that came with my blower to get it somewhat cleaned out. The darn things were walking around on the sensor and messed up some shots also. There are some spots still on the viewfinder but I did get the sensor clean. My Spotmatic has a petrified bug of some sort in the viewfinder for decades. Looks like a tick. Now that is hard core.

11-22-2009, 04:21 PM	#14
Normie1 Inactive Account Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Mesa Arizona Photos: Gallery Posts: 12 Original Poster	I want to thank everyone for there help and say thank you very much