D300 Sensor replacement questions

[snydersnapshots]

I took my D300 in to have the sensor cleaned and they called today and said some of the dust specks had eaten into the sensor, so the spots are going to be permanent unless I have the sensor replaced.

I've had this guy clean sensors on other cameras for me and he's always done a good job, so I don't believe he's trying to pull one over on me. I haven't seen the photos he took to check the sensor, so I don't know how bad the damage really is.

My questions:

Has anyone else had this issue before?

Any idea how much to replace the sensor?

Would it be more cost effective to replace the body (it's 3 years old with around 65,000+/- shutter actuations)?

[shnitz]

That royally sucks. I have never heard of that, where did you take it? I don't understand how dust can eat into the sensor. Maybe the shop tried to wipe away dust and ended up scratching your sensor? If it were fungus, then it could etch the sensor, but dust doesn't do that as far as I know. Get a 2nd opinion. Try Professional Camera Repair, in central Houston (on Richmond).

As far as not being cost-effective, it depends what they charge you (or what Nikon would charge you, if you sent it back to them). I am seeing D300's go for $900-$1,100. Personally, if it were less than $600 I'd replace the sensor. Otherwise, just put the body for parts-only on Craigslist or ebay, I'm sure you'll get a decent amount of money towards a replacement camera.

[adamsheehy]

Originally Posted by snydersnapshots

I took my D300 in to have the sensor cleaned and they called today and said some of the dust specks had eaten into the sensor, so the spots are going to be permanent unless I have the sensor replaced.

I've had this guy clean sensors on other cameras for me and he's always done a good job, so I don't believe he's trying to pull one over on me. I haven't seen the photos he took to check the sensor, so I don't know how bad the damage really is.

My questions:

Has anyone else had this issue before?

Any idea how much to replace the sensor?

Would it be more cost effective to replace the body (it's 3 years old with around 65,000+/- shutter actuations)?

Ok, I've never ever heard of dust eating through the sensor. The D300 and a lot of other camera have a tin oxide coating, which is what is typically the thing being cleaned. It's been said that the methanol from typical cleaning solutions can eat through or damage the coating and some company a while back came out with different versions of their cleaning solutions specifically for that.

If it were *me*, I would be inclined to think that the guy just used an incorrect solution to clean it and damaged it himself, although plenty of people have been fine with using standard cleaning solution on tin oxide coatings before. I would probably just pick up the camera, take some pictures and look at a comparison before and after being dropped off for cleaning. If I saw a big decrease in IQ from the after shots, I'd probably go back to that place and see if they'd help find a solution.

Sucks, sorry to hear and g/l.

[snydersnapshots]

This afternoon I'm going to go look at "after" cleaning pictures and compare with "before" shots to see what's up.

I talked with him directly when I was on my way to work last night--after I wrote the initial post. He talked about dust getting between the sensor and the low pass filter (I believe I have the correct name). I'm wondering if what he was talking about was dust between the filter and sensor being ground into the sensor. I'll be calling Nikon today as well.

I've had the camera nearly 3 1/2 years and never had any dust on the sensor until now. Last weekend I was at the airshow in Fort Worth and changed lenses a few times in the wind--that may be what did it. Maybe when I have to change lenses in the wind it might be a good idea to get the "camera condom" (Op tech rain cover that covers the lens and body) to keep the wind and dust out...

[snydersnapshots]

I saw what the guy was talking about--looks like several dead pixels showing red dispersed throughout the sensor. Going to get an estimate on a sensor replacement. We shall see...

[adamsheehy]

Originally Posted by snydersnapshots

I saw what the guy was talking about--looks like several dead pixels showing red dispersed throughout the sensor. Going to get an estimate on a sensor replacement. We shall see...

So were you able to get any 'after' shots with it? Ugh, what a PITA.