Almost ruined a customer's Leica M3

Been using isopropyl alcohol to clean shutters for years. Found out last week it can melt the cloth curtains on old focal planes. Caught it just before I wiped down a 1954 model. Anyone else have a cleaner they trusted that turned out to be bad?

2 comments

2 Comments

xena_williams7d ago

Lighter fluid gang for life. Switched after watching a buddy's curtain turn to goo.

eric_price8d ago

Ran into this exact problem myself a few years back. Alcohol is great for modern stuff but it eats those old cloth curtains like candy. Lucky you caught it before it hit that M3, those are too nice to ruin. I switched to using lighter fluid on the old mechanical shutters instead, works way better and doesn't melt anything. The trick is to use it sparingly though, don't soak the whole thing. You really have to know what materials you're dealing with before you start wiping.