Rant: Guy at the repair meetup tore apart my shutter cleaning method

So I was at a local camera repair meetup in Portland last month and this older guy watched me clean a shutter on a Canon AE-1. He straight up told me I was using too much solvent and that I'd wreck the blades over time... I argued back at first but then he showed me his method with barely a drop on a Q-tip. Now I've switched to that dry technique and honestly my shutters are testing better. Has anyone else had someone call them out on a habit they thought was fine?

2 comments

2 Comments

morgan.charlie1mo ago

Whoa, easy tiger. So a guy watched you for five minutes and now you think your whole world is upside down? Look, shutter cleaning isn't rocket science. Drop of solvent, rub it dry, done. His way works, your way worked. You're overthinking this whole thing.

the_blair1mo agoMost Upvoted

You're missing the point, @morgan.charlie. Its not about the damn solvent or the technique. The guy literally stopped mid-stride to stare at a grown man wiping a lens. Thats weird behavior, not a lesson in efficiency. Five minutes of watching someone clean a shutter isnt normal unless youre planning to copy their routine or judge their existence. Youre brushing it off like its nothing, but theres a difference between helping a stranger and silently observing them like a nature documentary. Nobody needs a critic for window washing.