DSLR CCD brushes, rip off or not?

[Nick_C]

Hey all,

Im deciding whether or not to get some form of brush to clean my 5D sensor, ive noticed a few dust bunnys that just get moved around after using the rocket blower.

Ive been looking at these visibledust brushes & things like that, however I am VERY sceptical when I see how much they are charging for what looks like a decent artists brush.

I have read all the sales blerb but for £10 I can get a REAL high quality & very very soft artists brush in about the right size for my 5D's sensor.

Anyone have any thoughts on this? am I the only one that thinks these are just good quality brushes being labelled up as sensor brushes which wacks the price right up, I know they rattle on about coatings to increase static attraction on the brush, bla bla bla but has anyone tried a decent artists soft brush?

Nick :-)

[Jon]

Artists brushes frequently have been sized, or treated with glue, which can come off on your sensor - decidedly not the result you want.

[gjl711]

I have used an artist brush successfully for a long time. It's part of my kit. I did rinse off the brush first just in case there was something on there before use but it seems every bit as soft as a sensor brush. As I am not jamming it on the sensor but very lightly dislodging the dust that the blower can not. If the brush/blower combination fails thats when the eclipse comes out. I am hard pressed to see what long term damage i am doing. I have been cleaning both my 5D and my 400 this way for a while now and it sure seems as if it works. At least I can not notice any scratches or marks even when pushed to f/32.

[Jon]

There've been threads on here about preparing artists brushes for use in sensor cleaning. The recommended test has been to make several hundred passes with the brush over a filter to see if there's any buildup of size. If there is cleaning (or more cleaning) is in order. Personally, I'd rather not risk brushing the side of the mirror box and picking up some lubricant/crud for later transfer to the sensor. If you're having trouble getting dust off, try a humid environment to reduce static attraction. Steaming up a bathroom by running a hot shower for a few minutes helps with that.

[cosworth]

Another synthetic artist brush user here. I store it in a kimwipe sheath and washed it about 20 times in distilled water after washing it thoroughly with soap.

I rocket blow it, wipe, rocket blow it, wipe. Rocket blow the sensor. It sometimes takes a number of tries to get stubborn boogers.

[Nick_C]

Interesting...

I know the proper brushes are coated with something to make the brush hold a static charge more effectively but I cant help thinking that its just a brush! how much research & investment can go into a brush :confused:

Nick :-)

[cosworth]

The air rushing through the bristles creates the static charge "cling" effect.

[Nick_C]

The air rushing through the bristles creates the static charge "cling" effect.

Yeah I havent tried it with an ordinary brush, im wondering if an artists soft brush would hold a static charge as well.

Nick :-)

[Nick_C]

Just been looking at a website that sells artists gear, £6 for a quality brush, or over £40 for a "proper" sensor brush.. hmmm.

I wonder what type would be better suited to cleaning a sensor, they do synthetic nylon which could hold a static charge I guess, or they do pure sable which I know is very soft indeed, no risk of scratching anything for sure.

[SuperBet]

No brushes. A bit of air with a blower, a SensorKlean and that's all!

[cosworth]

You'll spend the remaining £34 in time cleaning the brush...

[Nick_C]

Just been reading some interesting articles on this over at dpreview, one guy has the visibledust brushes & some artists brushes, he says he doesnt notice any difference & feels a wally for spending so much on the visibledust ones..

I guess if i get a good quality one & there are some superb brushes from what ive seen in my local art shop, £10 for 1 brush gets you something that is very soft & a quality item, infact thats quite expensive for a brush but still cheaper than the visibledust ones, providing I dont see any problems when running it over a filter I should be ok, I dont think a sable brush would be coated with anything.

For the time being I will have another go on the rocket blower, funny thing is my 350D never had any problems with dust, the 5D really seems to show the little buggers up.

Nick :-)

[Mike K]

For all those that are cautious to use an art brush, read this sound and practical advice:

http://www.prime-junta.net/pont/How_to/a_Brush_Your_Sensor/a_Brush_Your_Sensor.html

Inlcuded is some good tips on testing to see if your brush is clean.
Mike K

[Nick_C]

thx!

Nick :-)