Pro tip: isopropyl alcohol vs lighter fluid for cleaning shutter blades

I used to clean sticky shutter blades with 91% isopropyl like everyone says. But after wrecking a Copal shutter from a 1970s Mamiya where the alcohol left residue, I tried Ronsonol lighter fluid instead. The lighter fluid evaporates faster and doesn't leave any oily film at all. I did a side by side test on two jammed shutters from the same estate sale batch. The lighter fluid shutter freed up in 2 minutes while the alcohol one still had sticky spots after 5 minutes of scrubbing. Anyone else switch to naphtha based cleaners for delicate blades?

3 comments

3 Comments

sage2861mo ago

Man that Copal shutter story stings, I've been there too with a sticky Seiko shutter where the alcohol just made things worse. Solid call on the Ronsonol, naphtha based stuff really does dry cleaner and I've never had it leave that weird cloudy film.

michael89517d ago

Ronsonol really is the forgotten hero of shutter repair. I've got a beat up old Compur that sat in a drawer for years because I was too scared to touch it with anything stronger than lighter fluid. Applied a few drops to the blade pivot points, worked it gently with a toothpick, and it was firing like new within ten minutes. The best part is you don't have to worry about it eating through the old lubricant residue the way alcohol does. It just wicks all the gunk out without dissolving everything into a mess. Plus a can costs like three bucks and lasts forever unless you're cleaning shutters every weekend.

the_felix1mo ago

The naphtha based stuff really is the way to go for delicate mechanisms. Ronsonol dries so fast you can test the blades almost immediately after applying. Best part is it won't damage any plastic parts or lens coatings like the alcohol can.