[ATMoB-discuss] Cleaning

[valleli at rcn.com]

Of course I've heard of the Collodion process, Fred.
It was disovered at Jarrell-Ash in the 1940's as an effective method of cleaning diffraction gratings as a non-contact cleaning method. Bob Arail used much of my discussion of it and cleaning procedures to help amateurs deal with dirty but valuable optics. 
A variety of much better strippable laquers and vinyls have been developed which peel off much better but the idea of using cheesecloth or other clean material is a great improvement.
Be careful of the fumes, they are flammable and have a similar effect as ether, hence, collodion is no longer used in industry. 
There is a problem if the coating leaks under the retaining rings. It can make quite a mess.

We ( ATMoB) used the process three years ago to clean MIT/Wallace Obs.'s 4-inch Alvan Clark scope to remove all the detritus from a mouse's nest and 25 years in a harsh environment.
The best current solution is a vinyl alcohol but it is much more expensive than Collodion.
Google strippable coatings to locate suppliers.
Hope this helps,
Paul