fraley
Beware of Claws
You just received a new old lens or camera. It's beautiful. Just one thing, there's a vintage inspection sticker on it that's seen better days. It's slipping off, peeling up, torn or somehow blemished. What to do?
cosmonot
uʍop ǝpısdn sı ǝʞ
Of course I take them off even if they don't look ratty. I've seen what old adhesive can do to painted surfaces, and I'd rather get it off ASAP rather than leave it on. But then I don't collect. I accumulate users 
pvdhaar
Peter
In days long gone, we thought that these stickers meant the cameras 'passed' customs. Yeah, I know, it's daft, but that's what the story was..
Kim Coxon
Moderator
If the sticker is old and tatty, I always remove it. If it were pristine, I might try to save it. A collector may pay a little more for a pristine item with good sticker but I doubt he would pay much more for one with a tatty sticker as opposed to one without.
Kim
Kim
Roger Hicks
Veteran
Trichloroethylene, at least on chrome. I've seen enough 'orrible goo that I would normally leave the damn' thing otherwise, because even a ratty one looks better than irremovable goo.
Cheers,
R.
Cheers,
R.
bsdunek
Old Guy with a Corgi
I have one Nikon lens with a really nice JCII sticker - so I left it on. If the sticker is ratty, it comes off. Wipe with a LITTLE Goo-Gone to remove the adhesive.
For those that don't know, JCII stood for Japan Camera Inspection Institute. It was to convince people that the photo equipment met certain quality standards, as some cheaper Japanese cameras were pretty bad. It might be sort of compared to our UL (Underwriters Laborities) or ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) which are industry self-policing groups to maintain quality.
I think JCII did a good job, but ourgrew it's need and got merged into other quality organizations.
For those that don't know, JCII stood for Japan Camera Inspection Institute. It was to convince people that the photo equipment met certain quality standards, as some cheaper Japanese cameras were pretty bad. It might be sort of compared to our UL (Underwriters Laborities) or ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) which are industry self-policing groups to maintain quality.
I think JCII did a good job, but ourgrew it's need and got merged into other quality organizations.
Dogman
Veteran
I'd rip the bloody thing off and use the damn camera/lens. I used to do that immediately upon buying new equipment back when JCII stickers came on everything. They look tacky even when new. Get rid of it!
I find the stickers handsome, more so than the red dot on my M6.
jlw
Rangefinder camera pedant
I'm surprised these stickers aren't available as reproductions.
Classic-car suppliers reproduce almost every conceivable variety of sticker for popular (and not-so-popular) models, so the painstaking restorer can apply new stickers when refinishing parts.
Classic-car suppliers reproduce almost every conceivable variety of sticker for popular (and not-so-popular) models, so the painstaking restorer can apply new stickers when refinishing parts.
kuzano
Veteran
Regarding both parts of your post
Regarding both parts of your post
If they are ratty and slipping, I take them off and clean up the spot with GooGone.
If they are clean and not slipping off the original spot, I leave them.
I have not used Conundrums for years, and I did not like them when I had to.
Regarding both parts of your post
If they are ratty and slipping, I take them off and clean up the spot with GooGone.
If they are clean and not slipping off the original spot, I leave them.
I have not used Conundrums for years, and I did not like them when I had to.