D600 Sensor clean

Well I have decided to take Nikon up on their offer for free sensor cleaning, my local Camerhouse will do it for me (the store owner does the cleaning) so I should get it back that same day. Then I will go out and take a timelapse and most likely take it back in the next day etc etc. I want to see how much build up it gets after a few hundred shots.

Mine's pretty clean post-Nikon free service, but indeed will have to see if anything comes back once I get a chance to put 1k clicks on it.

A time lapse would make for a very interesting study. However, I believe if you send it to Nikon proper, they will replace the shutter as well as clean it, no?

Dave_W said:

A time lapse would make for a very interesting study. However, I believe if you send it to Nikon proper, they will replace the shutter as well as clean it, no?

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The Australian one is not so clear cut.

26-02-2014
[h=3]SERVICE ADVISORY FOR NIKON D600 DIGITAL SLR CAMERA[/h]To users of the Nikon D600 Digital SLR Camera Regarding Dust and/or Foreign Matter of the Low-pass Filter

Thank you for choosing Nikon for your photographic needs.

Some users have indicated the appearance of multiple granular dust spots in images captured with the Nikon D600 digital SLR camera. These granular dust spots are reflections of internal dust generated with camera operation, or external dust particles that have found their way into the camera, either, or both of which, have adhered to the camera's low-pass filter.

While the structure and concept of digital SLR cameras makes the complete elimination of these dust spots very difficult, it has come to our attention that, in some rare cases, they may be reflected noticeably in images. Therefore, Nikon is informing users of a service to reduce this issue.

At this time, we are announcing that we will continue to provide this service free of charge, even after the product warranty has expired.


The solution
As a first step, please follow the guidance from the User’s Manual (The Low-Pass Filter section) related to the “Clean Image Sensor” function and manual cleaning using a blower. If these measures do not remove all dust particles and you are still experiencing problems, then please consult your nearest Nikon service center. They will service your camera, including the inspection, cleaning, and replacement of the shutter and related parts. You will not be charged for this service, and Nikon will pay all shipping costs, both to and from the Nikon service center.


Requesting service
For further inquiries pertaining to requests for servicing of the camera, please contact your nearest Nikon service center for further assistance.

We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this issue may have caused. Nikon remains committed to providing only the highest quality cameras and components, and we hope that you will continue to choose Nikon for your photography needs.

Question is whether whatever they do under this advisory really solves the problem or not. Some people reported that sending it right before via std warranty, did not cure the spots, but sending it specifically under the advisory (seemed?) to solve it. Really one way to find out.

The Australian announcement seems pretty soft and squishy - not so clear cut.

Moab Man said:

The Australian announcement seems pretty soft and squishy - not so clear cut.

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I have printed out both the AUS advisory and the USA one to take to the store

Best of luck. The only bummer is sitting without (a main cam) for a couple of weeks.

SkvLTD said:

Best of luck. The only bummer is sitting without (a main cam) for a couple of weeks.

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I still have my D800e

I can't even imagine what those are like given how 600 is a light year leap away from DX.

Well I thought I would do a few test shots before taking it into the Camera store, and guess what only a couple of dots that I could see so probably not worth sending into the store.

You should remove the cotton from your lens so it doesn't block the sky for your test shot.^^

Chris3000 said:

You should remove the cotton from your lens so it doesn't block the sky for your test shot.^^

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Bugger I forgot all about the 'cotton' lol

With all the commotion and rant about this problem, one has to remember that NOT ALL UNITS were afflicted with this problem. I don't know why, but some seem worse than others. Mine has been OK even if I ended up with a lot of dust while traveling in Vietnam two years ago. But I was changing lenses quite a bit and the environment was quite dusty at times.

And since the company has publicly agreed to prolong the warranty for this particular problem, I haven't sent mine in and don't think I will.

SkvLTD said:

I can't even imagine what those are like given how 600 is a light year leap away from DX.

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The D800 is a great camera, but I wouldn't put it leaps above the D600. Maybe a step, but only in certain areas. It's definitely more solid and has a ton of resolution, and there are lots of pro-line features and menus. But it suffers in the FPS column when compared to the D600 and D610, lagging by 1.5 fps behind the 600 and 2 fps with the 610. I also find that I prefer the tonality of the RAW images straight out of the 600 to the 800. Dynamic range is close (I'd give the 800 about 1/2 stop advantage). So it's definitely not the magnitude jump you seem to be anticipating - I suspect you'd need to go to the D4/D4s for that. Both are great cameras.

Marcel said:

With all the commotion and rant about this problem, one has to remember that NOT ALL UNITS were afflicted with this problem. I don't know why, but some seem worse than others. Mine has been OK even if I ended up with a lot of dust while traveling in Vietnam two years ago. But I was changing lenses quite a bit and the environment was quite dusty at times.

And since the company has publicly agreed to prolong the warranty for this particular problem, I haven't sent mine in and don't think I will.

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You really should consider sending your camera in and have them replace your shutter mechanism and mirror box (assuming they're doing both), if only to extend the life of your camera. Given that it's free and they cover the cost of postage, I think you would be doing yourself a disservice by not taking advantage of it.

Dave_W said:

You really should consider sending your camera in and have them replace your shutter mechanism and mirror box (assuming they're doing both), if only to extend the life of your camera. Given that it's free and they cover the cost of postage, I think you would be doing yourself a disservice by not taking advantage of it.

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I'm almost with Dave - I'm about 90% of the way there. A new shutter will extend the life of the camera, and would be a great snag given that it's free, provided that it doesn't introduce any new problems. The inconsistency I hear from the various stories (which are often hard to sort out - which ones were warranty issues/recall/simple dust complaint poorly submitted and equally poorly executed?) is what makes me pull back a bit and say, "If you've got one with zero issues, why take the chance?" That said, if you can sort things out, and the replacements under the recall all seem to be hitting the mark, then I say, "Go for it". If I were eligible I would have mine in there now.

If I'd be 100% that it would come back problem free, then I think I'd do it. I might go down to my store and see what they have to say and what the comments are about people that sent their's in.

Plus, they never wrote that they'd do shutter replacement for all cases... Then wrote they'd take care of the problem depending on how they see it... I don't find this so reassuring and am a little skeptic about the end result.

There is an old saying that states: "If it ain't broke, don't try to fix it". And I still have about 9 months of legal warranty. I'll see.

Thanks for your recommendations.

Then I wouldn't. They could simply do nothing but a standard overall cleaning, but you still might be out of the camera for 2 weeks for that.