I thought those cheap lens spanner wrenches from eBay were junk

I bought a set for $22 last year and the first one snapped trying to get a stuck filter ring off a Canon FD 50mm. But my coworker in Dallas showed me his trick of heating the metal with a lighter first to soften the factory threadlock, and the second wrench in the set worked perfectly. Has anyone else found a weird fix that made a tool you hated actually useful?

4 comments

4 Comments

margaret8793mo ago

I used to agree but that heat trick actually saved my vintage lens.

anthony7633mo ago

Maybe the trick works because old lens glue was different.

carter.mila3mo ago

Honestly, I've had the exact opposite experience. I bought a similar set and they just bent on the first tough filter. Heating the metal seems like a good way to wreck the lens coating or melt a seal. Sometimes a tool is just poorly made, and no hack fixes bad materials. I'd rather spend a bit more on a single solid wrench than fight with junk.

abby_cooper9d ago

My dad was a mechanic and he swore by a different trick - he'd put the whole filter wrench in the freezer overnight before trying. Something about the metal contracting giving you a better grip. Worked on his old truck filters but I never tried it on camera gear so your guess is as good as mine if that'd help or just crack something.