Update: I stopped dunking stuck focus rings in lighter fluid 3 weeks ago, and I was an idiot for doing it for so long

Derek Thomas · 2026-09-22T08:30:02.590473+00:00

Had a customer's 50mm f/1.4 come in with a focus ring that wouldn't budge, so instead of the usual fluid bath I just warmed the barrel with a hairdryer for 90 seconds and it spun free. Turns out the old grease had hardened, not glued itself in place, and I probably wrecked a dozen helicoids over the years for nothing. Anyone else here got a lazy fix they kept doing way past when it stopped making sense?

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Update: I stopped dunking stuck focus rings in lighter fluid 3 weeks ago, and I was an idiot for doing it for so long | Camera Repairers - HW Forums