Bought a cheap lens spanner online and it cost me a $300 repair job

So I was working on a Canon 24-70mm f/2.8L, needed to get into the zoom barrel. My good spanner was at the shop, so I grabbed a $15 one I got off some random site. The pins were soft metal and just twisted when I put any real pressure on them. They slipped, gouged two deep scratches into the lens barrel threading. Couldn't get it apart cleanly after that, had to send it to a specialist. The fix for the messed-up threads and realignment was just over $300. Total waste, and it set the repair back a week. Learned my lesson about cheap tools on precision stuff. Anyone got a brand for spanners that actually hold up?

2 comments

2 Comments

theawest5d ago

A $15 spanner wrecking a 24-70L... that's just painful to read. Those pins must have been made of butter.

ruby_grant6d ago

Ever try the ones from iFixit? Their spanner tips are hardened steel and they sell different pin sizes, so you can match the lens slots without forcing it. I trashed a filter ring with a cheap tool once and it's just not worth the risk on expensive glass.