EF 35mm f/1.4 L focusing ring changed to gray color

I took out my EF 35mm f/1.4 L lens out for the first time in over a few years the other day and noticed that the focusing ring was gray instead of black. None of the other lenses in the same Pelican case had the same issue though. Has anybody else experienced a similar issue with the focusing ring changing color?

PacAce wrote in post #19139867
I took out my EF 35mm f/1.4 L lens out for the first time in over a few years the other day and noticed that the focusing ring was gray instead of black. None of the other lenses in the same Pelican case had the same issue though. Has anybody else experienced a similar issue with the focusing ring changing color?

I've had it happen with one lens, forget which.

Basically, you haven't used it a lot. It appears that grease from hands and handling keeps the ring black .

You could rub it with the tiniest bit of silicon grease (transparent variety, also used for diving equipement en rubber rings in taps). That should solve the issue. The rubber has gone dry, so to speak.

Really the tiniest pinpoint of grease should suffice. Just use a toothpick to apply the tiniest drops here and there, and rub it out evenly. Only apply to the rubber, however.

Alternatively, use it a lot over the next few weeks/months.

HTH, kind regards, Wim

Various corrective methods are discussed at https://www.fredmirand​a.com/forum/topic/1242​710. Scroll down a bit as I see that someone named "ebrandon" has stated the tooth brush trick mentioned elsewhere in the thread worked wonders.

What I find interesting is I have some Canon lenses that date to the early 1990's so I took them out and everything is perfectly black. Perhaps at some time Canon has changed the formulation of black rubber. I'm aware that automotive wiring is now formulated with a soy bean by-product instead of petroleum based chemicals, hence the reason people have issues with mice/squirrels making a meal out of wiring harnesses, especially lawn tractors stored in a garden shed.