Leica 20x HCX APO Objective repair inquery

[Jon Mulholland]

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Dear Leica 20x HCX APO Objective users,
We use this objective in our facility as a 'dipping lens' for both 1 and 2 photon imaging on our SP5; it is an excellent lens.  However we have been experiencing a recurring problem ( 3X in the last 1.5 yrs) of the front lens simply becoming loose in the ceramic mount.  There appears to be no damage to either the lens or ceramic mount.  We image in standard tissue culture media, nothing corrosive; cleaning involves rinsing with water, wiping with lens paper with a little Windex and occasional spraying with 70%EtOH.

Leica asserts that the front lens becoming loose is not due to factory defects and is instead due to user/application.  However on our end we can not identify any user or application that is causing the lens to become loose (and everyone is well trained in its application).  In fact the user sometimes does not know the lens is loose because images look superficially ok (assuming the lens stays parallel)  and the loose lens becomes evident when the objective is cleaned.  Repair of this lens is >$9K.

So my question to users of this lens - has this happened to you, any ideas?
Thanks for your thoughts,

Jon Mulholland, Director
Cell Sciences Imaging Facility
Stanford University School of Medicine
Stanford, CA 94305
microscopy.stanford.edu

[Jon Mulholland]

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Update message: the specific lens is:
15507701 HCX APO L 20x/1.00 W

My apologies for not being more specific.

Best

Jon Mulholland, Director
Cell Sciences Imaging Facility
Stanford University School of Medicine
Stanford, CA 94305

[mcammer]

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Three years ago we had a problem that a 40X dipping lens filled with water vapor.  Upon inspection we found that the sealant ring they applied had cracked.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mcammer/9240581316/
Leica at first would have nothing to do with repairing it and then wanted to charge almost as much as buying a new lens.
Instead, we put the lens in a sealed box with desiccant and then sealed it with 2 ton epoxy.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mcammer/14926899175/
Not pretty, but it's worked great since.
If you can come up with a bubblegum-and-tape fix that doesn't compromise image quality, or an epoxy seal better than their original one, we recommend it.
_________________________________________
Michael Cammer, Optical Microscopy Specialist
http://ocs.med.nyu.edu/microscopy
http://microscopynotes.com/
Cell: [phone]

________________________________________
From: Confocal Microscopy List [[hidden email]] on behalf of Jon Mulholland [[hidden email]]
Sent: Tuesday, September 06, 2016 4:34 PM
To: [hidden email]
Subject: Re: Leica 20x HCX APO Objective repair inquery

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Update message: the specific lens is:
15507701 HCX APO L 20x/1.00 W

My apologies for not being more specific.

Best

Jon Mulholland, Director
Cell Sciences Imaging Facility
Stanford University School of Medicine
Stanford, CA 94305

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[Werner Wittke]

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Dear Mr. Mulholland,
 
Thank you for posting this question into the forum. We would like to investigate this with your help and will get in touch directly.
 
Sincerely,
Werner Wittke
Product Manager Objectives
Leica Microsystems, Wetzlar
Germany
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[Werner Wittke]

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Dear Mr. Cammer,

Thank you for your reply to Mr Mulholland’s post – we would like to look into the case you described and will contact you directly.

Sincerely,
Werner Wittke
Product Manager Objectives
Leica Microsystems Wetzlar
Germany
[hidden email]