Fixed a stuck aperture ring on a Canon FD 50mm with a $4 pencil eraser and I still can't believe it worked
Had a Canon FD 50mm f1.8 come in from a guy in Toledo who said the aperture ring was so stiff it wouldn't move past f4. I soaked the ring in isopropyl alcohol, blew it out, tried a little graphite powder, nothing helped for two days. On a hunch I cut a pencil eraser into a thin wedge and worked it around the gap between the ring and the barrel, and it pulled out a bunch of gummy old grease I couldn't see. After about 10 minutes of that the ring moved free through the whole range. Total cost was basically nothing and the lens is back out the door. Curious if anyone else has used an eraser for cleaning out tight gaps like this, or if there's a better trick I'm missing.