APO Cleaning Fluid and Cloth

[issdaol]

Hi All,

Can someone recommend some top notch cleaning fluid and cloth for cleaning APO's like the Tak TOA150 etc??

I was originally going to get the Baader Optical Wonder Cloth and Fluid but found out that due to new laws it can no longer be shipped internationally !?!?!

Same thing applies to the Astrophysics APO cleaning kit !!!

So unless someone can let me know a way to get either of those then I would really appreciate suggestions for local option.

Thanks !!!

[beren]

It was a while back but I ordered the Purosol {as per the astro-physics cleaning kit} directly from their website, arrived fast. The Badder fluid I was able to source from the Tan14 site .... http://www.tan14.com/gears.htm ....might have to send the bloke a email I cant see the product on his site now.

[issdaol]

Hi Beren,

Thanks for the suggestions :-)

How long ago did you order yours??

It seems that at the moment it is not permitted to ship this stuff internationally!

[LewisM]

Make your own :)

Technical Acetone, 95% ethanol (isopropyl alcohol) and a touch of Windex (the REAL windex!). My proportions are 40/40/20.

I also use Kimtech science lab wipes - lint free. After doing the wet clean, leave dry an hour, then do a LIGHT dry wipe with a new set of Kimwipes. Voila, perfectly clean objective!

I did it to my FCT-100 the other day, and it is just about as good as new (for a 28 year old lens!)

[beren]

Still got a full bottle with the original packing and the delivery date was april 2009 for the Baader material, the Purosol would have been around the same time.

[beren]

Lewis any particular type of Kimtech wipe you used, looks like there is a few types {and source....online?}.

Phil if you want to try the Baader fluid I do have a half bottle that you could have .

[multiweb]

Where do you source the Acetone and Ethanol from?

[Larryp]

It is not possible to buy ethanol unless you have a VERY good reason to buy it.
I used to get some occasionally for my work, for sterilisation purposes, but eventually they would not even sell it to me.

[pmrid]

I'm not sure if this is the only reason, but I believe that ethanol was one of the main chemicals used in the process of making methamphetamine. In my former guise as a Crown Prosecutor, I once prosecuted a guy who imported the stuff from China in 200 Liter drums disguised as something innocuous - false labels etc. He had bought a whole 4-story building down New Farm way in Brisbane and was making the stuff on an industrial scale.

Ethanol was then one of those chemicals that dealers had to maintain strict records for and be able to account for every drop.

Peter

[multiweb]

Bummer... sounds like I'm gonna have to dig out and dust the ole' still then. :drink:Would a chemist sell reasonably pure ethanol? Lab supplies maybe?

[dannat]

i grab mine from the school chem store :), i find it a relatively sterile drop, dehydrayes the palate with a hint of burning the throat

[Peter.M]

That is incorrect, ethanol is alcohol. They don't want people buying reagent grade ethanol because it is cheaper than a bottle of jack and twice the strength.

[PeterEde]

What's wrong with isopropyl alcohol and water mix?

[Larryp]

Yes, mix it 50:50 with water and add your favourite flavouring and you have drinking alcohol-that's why you can't buy it!

[The Mekon]

Forget all the fancy cleaning products and do it this way.

Take scope outside on a nice warm day. Place on mount and point scope down towards the ground. Clean with warm water, a drop or two of detergent and cotton wool. Rinse with distilled water. Cleaned my AP 130 lens this way after 20 years of grime accumulation. Sparkled!!

[LewisM]

In QLD 95-100% ethanol is available from any good paint store for cutting shellac (you should not use any metho etc in shellac, as it has water). I have been asked ONCE what I use it for. $7 for 1litre. It is sold as 100%ethanol. No colourant, but has bittering added.

Technical acetone from chemist shop. Hardware acetone ALWAYS leaves a greasy film, so NEVER use it.

[Larryp]

I guess the bittering agent makes it undrinkable, Lewis:)

[LewisM]

Yes, the paint shop stuff I am sure tastes a touch like ouzo ;)

I use pure stuff from the labs at work (order it in myself). Usually use it in combination with bleach to kill pseudomonas and klebsellia spp.

[issdaol]

Guys you will all need a chemistry lesson or someone will do themselves some harm ! LoL

Isopropyl alcohol is NOT ethanol they are 2 completely different substances and it will kill you or make you very sick if ingested.

Isopropyl Alcohol is:

(CH3)2-CHOH

Ethanol is:

CH3CH2OH


Pure 100% anhydrous Isopropyl Alcohol does not need any licence to buy.

Pure 100% anhydrous Ethanol needs a licence from the Government Chemist (issued in Canberra) and you have to account for every ml of fluid regardless of if it is used, lost, disposed of or stored.

[issdaol]

Hi Beren,

Thanks for the offer. I wouldn't mind taking you up on that. I am meant to be going home to Perth for XMAS so I may be able to pick it up if that were ok??

Please feel free to PM me to discuss

Cheers

[beren]

No worries Phil, I should be home during the xmas period....be good to catch up we share some similar equipment :thumbsup:

[LewisM]

Almost forgot - the Kimwipes are the "Delicate Task Wipers" - it's what most labs use to clean light microscopes and the stage etc of TEM and SEM.

I get mine through work again, but I have even seen these on eBay for like $16 for 2 boxes, posted.

[Hans Tucker]

Have you e-mailed telescopes-astronomy

http://www.telescopes-astronomy.com.au/baader-planetarium-astro-accessories-pricelist.htm

They still list Baader Wonder Fluid (Section 19 Collimation Tool, Optical Cleaning) for $24. Hopefully the website is still current.