That $80 lens cleaning kit from eBay was a complete scam

I needed to clean some haze off a vintage 50mm f/1.4 I was repairing. Saw this kit online with swabs, fluid, and a blower for $80. Figured it was pricey but maybe the fluid was special. Got it in the mail and it was just repackaged stuff I could have bought at a drugstore for $15. The swabs left lint on the glass and the fluid smeared worse than before. I had to spend another hour cleaning off the residue with proper gear from a real supply house. Total waste of cash and time. Has anyone else fallen for those overpriced repair kits from third parties?

2 comments

2 Comments

joseph_murray81mo agoMost Upvoted

Disagree. Bought the same kit and it worked fine for me.

dylan_thompson1mo ago

Huh, that's interesting. I actually went back and forth on this for a while and was pretty skeptical at first. But honestly, @joseph_murray8, you make a solid point. I tried a similar setup from a different brand and had a bad experience, so I was quick to judge this one. Then a buddy of mine let me test his identical kit and it worked like a charm, no issues at all. It made me realize I was probably just unlucky before or maybe the first one was user error on my part. Have you had yours for long without any hiccups?