Storing a LTM

[Fadedsun]

What's the best way to store your LTM camera? I got my camera back from a CLA recently, and the viewfinder and rangefinder windows were cleaned, but it seems as if the very next day they were already full of dust and little particles! Are the windows just that sensitive to catching dust inside, or should I have stored my camera better instead of leaving it on my desk? :bang:

That said, how simple of an operation is it to clean the finders out myself? Would I risk damaging anything or knocking any mechanisms out of whack if I attempted this on my own? Maybe it's more of an OCD feeling on my part. The finders look completely fine and clear when I look through them..

 

[Godfrey]

Just get a hand-bulb blower and dust it off, then keep it in something clean and sealed enough so that dust doesn't get onto it.

Depending on where you live, anything left sitting out on a desk is going to accumulate dust one way or the other, and anything you use is going to accumulate dust and dirt from use.

... So if you're going to be OCD about it, just seal the camera into a block of impermeable clear plastic and admire it. You'll have the clean the outside of the block from time to time... ;-)

(I keep my equipment in shoulder bags so I can just grab and go without having to hunt for what I want. The equipment accumulates a minimum of dust that way, but I do still have to clean it occasionally.)

G

 

[David Hughes]

Hi,

Freezer bags do the trick but get good quality ones as they can sometimes fail. And, if you remember to take the bag with you it can save the camera from rain...

Regards, David

 

[presspass]

Just be careful if you use freezer bags. If you seal them, and there is any moisture inside, your dust problems will seem minor.

 

[rfaspen]

I would second the caution regarding the use of freezer bags. Folks who use those successfully also place an adequate amount of dessicant in the bag. I typically see the bag approach used for "long-term" or "extended period" storage. For a camera that can see use almost any day of the week, I would recommend a different strategy.

My cameras live on a shelf in a display cabinet (some dust, but not like an exposed shelf) or in one of my camera drawers (again, some dust, but not bad). I keep dessicant in the drawers, and sometimes in the display cabinet too. Never had problems with fungus, and its typically not a problem where I live and the type of home I live in.....but I'm not taking chances.

One last thing. I don't recommend storing a camera (or more importantly, a lens) in a leather case or bag. Especially if you live in a humid location, or your house tends to be humid. Folks will argue the details, but long-term storage in leather is an invitation for fungus, even in dry climates. I've also seen a correlation between haze in lenses and long-term storage in leather. What constitutes long-term varies with each person (days?, months?, years?)...but I personally don't keep my camera in a leather case (as in a never-ready case) or leather bag for more than a day. At the end of the day, it goes back into the display case or drawer. Besides, I only have one leather bag and I'm not fond of it. If I'm travelling, my cameras and lenses live in a bag. Usually a nylon or canvas based affair similar to a Domke 5B, or one of my incognito, no-name, discrete, bags that don't convey "camera inside".

 

[David Hughes]

Hi,

I buy freezer bags packed flat and then put the camera in them. So where does the moisture come from?

That's not to say cameras should not be protected from moisture but I don't think freezer bag and cameras alone cause it. And cameras are - or should be - usually dry when stored.

As for haze; one way lubricants disperse is by evaporation and that can then cause haze as it condenses on the cold glass.

The best thing is to use the camera and look after it.

BTW, desiccants dry things out, not everything benefits from being dried out; leather and paper especially.

Regards, David

PS (EDIT) One day you'll be caught out in a shower and then you'll be glad you had the freezer bag with you to protect the camera until you get out of the rain and can dry and check it... Especially if it's a digital camera.

 

[colyn]

Don't worry about it.. When you take it out to use it'll get dust. If you don't want dust have it sealed up in an air tight container and forget about it.. Someone will find it one day and start using it..

 

[Rob-F]

I keep my Leicas in a Craftsman metal tool cabinet, the floor-standing kind with drawers. This keeps the dust off, yet allows some air circulation. Shutting gear up in a tightly enclosed space is thought to promote fungus. I've had no problems, so apparently there is enough air exchange between the cabinet drawers and the room. I can also lock the cabinet when needed.

 

[Luddite Frank]

Has anyone found that storing the camera in an air-tight container / bag contributes to VF / RF / Lens hazing from off-gassing of lubricants ?