Cleaning the Nikon Coolscan IV ED (LS-40) Film Scanner
I've recently been given some slides to scan, pictures from when Dana was a kid. After trying out the transparency adapter on my trusty Epson Perfection 1650, I realized that for these particular images I wanted more quality than the Epson could provide. It's an excellent scanner, but the slide/film part is a weakness.
So I purchased a Nikon Coolscan IV film scanner at the ol' flea market. The description was terse, simply saying that it was in good condition. Due the brief text and poor title wording, I gather that not many people saw this particular auction, because no one else bid and I got a smokin deal on the thing.
I waited patiently for FedEx to deliver, and I was happy last night when it appeared whole and intact. Even happier when it powered up and make little whirring sounds. But then my heart sank: I made my first scans, and they were abominable. Something was definitely wrong with the scanner. Fuzzy, faded colors, and a horrible halo-ish, glowy cast to everything.
I went to bed extremely frustrated.
In the morning, by the light of day, I noticed that interior adapter slot was literally covered in a thick, fine dust. Not knowing much about this type of scanner, I guessed that it had to have a lens and possibly a mirror at the least, and that it probably was just as dirty. Sure enough, a mirror directly under the adapter slot (in line with all the dust). A quick search found some great information on dirty film scanners, and how to clean them. The images I had scanned looked just like the examples I saw, and my hope grew. The excellent walkthrough I found was for a Coolscan 5000, but it was obviously very similar to mine, and it gave me the confidence to proceed.
It's easy to see why the mirror gets dusty, it's essentially an unshielded flat surface, especially if the scanner is left to stand vertically.
So I set out to clean my Coolscan IV. What follows is a brief HOWTO illustrating the cleaning process. Please look at the above walkthrough too, it's very applicable.
It should go without saying that if you follow this guide, you do so at your own risk. The process is not hard, but does require some coordination and patience. I assume no responsibility for your poor judgement, your small tool prowess, or your scanner's future productive lifespan.
First, remove the screws around the outer edge of the rear face.
Next, carefully slide the halves of the cover off.
To get the front faceplate off, use a flat screwdriver to gently pry the tab away from the chassis:
Here's the naked scanner:
Next, remove this front plate by removing its three screws:
Looking in from the side, you can see the mirror housing. The mirror is held in by a thin metal bracket:
You can see the two tabs at the top. These are what you need to gently pull away, so that you can drop the bracket and mirror down and out of the holder.
Looking from below, you can see the back side of the mirror being supported by the bracket.
Be extremely careful as you remove the mirror. I'm sure it will scratch or even break very easily.
Once you move the mirror assembly down, you can bring it out to the side of the scanner.
[Update 12/2008] One reader, Skinnyvoice in London, suggests inverting the scanner before removing the mirror bracket, so that the mirror does not fall out when removing the bracket. Thanks!
Here's the mirror and bracket. Look at all that dust!
I cleaned mine with lens cleaner and soft lint-free cloths. Be very careful, you really don't want to scratch this baby.
Installation:
When installing the mirror, you could try to balance it on the bracket and put it back the same way it came out. I found this to be difficult with my big fingers, so I inverted the scanner itself. This allowed me to drop the mirror into the holder, and then install the bracket 'over' it. Turn the scanner back upside-right and I was in business.
Here is the inverted scanner, with the mirror installed and the bracket going on:
After putting it all back together, I was thrilled to find that my problems were cured. The scanner had no problems focusing, and the images were crystal clear.
Before - This is roughly a 1/5-frame detail of the first slide I scanned:
After - (Note the photograph itself is not in great focus, but you can see the clarity in the dust and scratches on the slide):
From now on, I will use this scanner on its side, and store it covered, to minimize the dust problem.
Welcome, thanks for stopping by my garage. Pull up a stool, grab a drink and aim your feet at the little heater in the corner!
Comments
FYI: I found out that it
FYI: I found out that it matters which way the mirror goes in even though both sides of the mirror looks identical. One side of the mirror creates a double image. I flipped the mirror and all was good again.
Nice catch
Thanks Somara, your note is bound to help someone!
thank you
Hey Sebastian, thank you for this tutorial. After getting a $275 quote from Nikon to clean my LS-40, I'm going to give this a try. I can't see spending $275 to clean my Coolscan IV when I can get a brand new Coolscan V with USB 2.0 for about $575. Here I go......................
Thanks, John.
Thanks
Thanks for the post John. I'm interested to hear how it goes for you!
Many thanks for this
Many thanks for this walkthrough...was a piece of cake with some decent precision screwdrivers. The suggestion to flip over the machine when re-installing the mirror is an EXCELLENT one.
Mine wasn't nearly as dirty as yours was (still dirty, mind you) and that was AFTER being in a room where drywall repairs/sanding were being made. I shudder to thing what your unit must have been put through!
Thanks
Been looking at my Coolscan for a couple of years, thinking I'm not paying over £100 to have that cleaned. I do mostly digital camera work now. Someone sent me a slide from Austria so I had to get it working. Found your walkthrough, previously got stuck with that 5000 one. Did yours in 30 minutes flat, easy. Images are nice now, even though it always reports a hardware error to the application. So now it's like I've got a new scanner for nothing!
Problem
After i clean, then... you can see in this link :(
http://img160.imageshack.us/img160/9393/imageqq7.jpg
I use Nikon Coolscan IV ED LS40 :(
Is the mirror in backwards?
Just a guess, but is it possible that the mirror was replaced backwards?
suggestion on the mirror removal
Hi
I found that putting the scanner on its side and then using a chopstick with a blob of blue-tac on it was the best way to remove the mirror. This is then touching the non-silver side (the silver side must be facing the lens to obtain maximum optical results and avoid double images from the then two surface reflections).
thanks for the post it helped me clean and get best results from my LS-IV. For what its worth, I've just posted my comparison between this scanner and my Epson 4870. http://cjeastwd.blogspot.com/2009/03/nikon-iv-ed-vs-epson-flatbed.html
I was surprised.
Thanks again for the page
Thanks for the comment
Your removal idea is great. Also the comparison is quite interesting!
Thanks
I hadn't used my scanner for sometime. I wanted to scan some old slides only to find the scans having a lot of colour bleeding. I called the folks at Nikon(Pune, India) and though the service fee they quoted Rs. 2400 (less than US$50) wasnt exorbitant, it would have taken a few weeks...so I decided to do some googling, which lead me to this post.
Thanks to the confidence I got from this post, I did it myself- it was simple and quick(40 min)...and I was up and running without a problem.
The dust on the mirror was really thick, it had almost solidified on the surface....I was surprised I was getting any scan at all!. I had to use a lens tissue with lot of lens cleaning fluid. I think I even left a very very faint scratch from the edge of the paper...but the scan has no evidence of that.
Thanks once again!
thanks!
I agree with Nitin- the confidence that your clear, well-illustrated post gave me was a great help. I think I have the best time on record, but that's perhaps because my mirror turned out not to be very dirty (despite my not having used the scanner in years). Many, many thanks!
Cool Valerie
Thanks for your comment. It's great to know this article helps people!
Which face should face the
Which face should face the lens when replacing the mirror?
I thought it was NOT the one producing a double image.
I replaced the mirror and get a double image when scanning...
like the example given above....
Could it be stated and shown once for all, which side it is?
Thanks
I switched the mirror and
I switched the mirror and now all I am getting is a blank scan...
any clue?
Hi
Sorry you're running into trouble. I don't know how to advise you for sure, but based on previous comments it sounds like it does indeed matter which way the mirror goes in. If you got a double-image one way, but a totally blank scan after flipping the mirror, I might try flipping it again but turning it 180 degrees compared to your first try.
Good luck, and let us know how you make out. It will be good info for the next person.
Cleaning the Nikon Coolscan IV ED
I cannot thank you enough for your beautifully detailed and accurate description for cleaning the Nikon Coolscan IV ED scanner. I didn't know what caused the glowy effect on my scans and was ready to toss my scanner. Thank You sooooooooo much!
Bad Mistake while cleaning
Please see 'naked scanner' at the top of this thread.
I did not realize that removing the covers and some screws allowed the whole assembly to split ~ unexpectedly. It happened to me {I have a Gamekeepers Thumb injury that makes my right hand very unreliable} and I ripped the ribbon cable. Despite repeated attempts to repair it with silver epoxy, the scanner is inoperable.
Nikon will not send the instructions to disassemble and reassemble the unit; even with a replacement cable, so I will no doubt have to send it in for repair. My mirror was horribly dirty, but trying to save money to clean it was subject to a risk that I want to share with this group.
Have fun.
mikey
Cleaning Nikon Coolscan IV mirror
Thanks very much for your useful instructions. Have managed to successfully clean the mirror in a second hand dusty scanner, with very good results - got rid of some huge halos.
Hundreds of slides saved!
Every year or two, I dig out a slide and try to get my scanner working again - leading to an afternoon of frustration, and the temptation to just toss all my old slides.
This time around, I found your web page, and happiness prevails. It was particularly handy to have the comment about the double images too, as I managed to get my mirror in back to front on the first attempt.
Now, maybe, I'll find those old negatives and see what I did on my holidays in 1994 :-).
Duncan that's wonderful
Thanks so much for the comment. Happy scanning!
Big Thanks
Had problem scanning with my second hand ls-40, had almost same experience as you.
So followed the above tutorial, and surprise! Sharpness is back, no halo like effects etc. Very happy!
So Big Thanks!
Problem putting scanner back together
After I removed the mirror and cleaned it, I put the Coolscan IV ED back together and now the software doesn't recognize anything. The mirror and its holder are the only things I removed from the scanner. Anybody else experience this?
Thanks.
Got same problem... Have You
Got same problem... Have You fixed it?
Thanks so much for your help
Thanks so much for your help here. We followed your instructions and went from blue, blury pictures that looked like people were in halos to clear one.
A few extra points though - we found if we also cleaned the light that is behind the mirror the pictures became even clearer. This is tricky but do-able with the help of a lens cloth and plastic cotton bud that we could bend to fit (the lens cloth going over the cotton bud - you don't want lint on the light or the mirror)
Additionally using machine oil to the bars that carry the scanning light/mirror to make the scan movement smoother removed a number of faint lines that were appearing. All able to be done at home, very very carefully.
I saved my machine and a lot of money
Thank you for your tutorial. The operation, at first glance tricky, is manageable provided that we take our time and follow scrupuloulsy your instructions. And especially a special mention to your valuable advice on the last step about how placing the miror in its holder prior to the bracket. My scans were previously with a halo and had washed colours, and even sometimes with a dominant colour (yellow or magenta). After that cleaning, my scanner is working like in his early days (9 years ago): sharpe images and bright colours. Once again thank you.
Drivers
Guys, I have not used my the LS40 since 2003. I moved house and it ended in a box. I would like to use it again but I do not have drivers or any software that came with it. Can you remind me what is needed? Where can I find the drivers? Cheers Carlo
Re: Drivers
For Windows Versions up to Vista you only nedd to download the Software "Nikon Scan" from the Nikon Website
For Windows 7 there is no support from Nikon available, however I was able (with help from a forum post) to get it going under Windows 7, 64-bit:
1. Download the Version of Nikon Scan 4.0.3 for Windows Vista
http://support.nikonusa.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/14463/related/1
Make sure to start the setup program with administrator rights! (right click, choose "execute as administrator")
At install time, choose "user-defined setup" and install WITHOUT drivers.
(The Software "Nikon Scan" itself works under Win7, it's the drivers that come with it that don't work anymore with Windows 7 - so we need to find working drivers for Win 7.)
2. Download a Test-Version of VueScan and install it. There is no need to use Vuescan for scanning or to pay the registration fee, but if you use the scanner a lot a registration of VueScan would only be fair!
http://www.hamrick.com/
This installs drivers that enable "NikonScan" to use the Scanner again under Windows 7. Make sure to download the 64bit or 32bit version of Vuescan according to your version of Windows 7!
Voilá, working Nikon Scan under Windows 7!
It might be necessary to run Nikon scan the first time with admin rights, so it can write its settings properly to the registry (see point 1 above).
Hope this helps other people a bit and saves them from buying a new scanner! ;-)
Thanks!
This is very useful indeed--thanks for posting it. And inverting it before removing the mirror certainly made it a lot easier. A pair of line-free archive gloves also helped.
Found this very useful
Found this very useful Thanks. I bought one of these scanners at a car boot sale for £2.00! at first the scans were showing a green cast but after following your instructions it is working perfectly.
Thank you!!!
Man, I took your advice, and the scanner is running perfectly! Kudos for you taking the leap and breaking yours down, so a bunch of us can save a few hundred bucks. Seriously, we were very close to putting it up on ebay. We now can do what we have been unable to do for years, scan our images from our honeymoon in India! If it craps out after that, we have still saved a bunch of money, from either renting one or buying a new one. Forget sending it to Nikon for $350 just to clean that teeeeeeny little mirror.
Nikon customer service makes me want to go Canon next time...
Thanks again!
Success!
Thank you so much for this tutorial. I used it along with http://www.pearsonimaging.com/articles/howto/ls5000cleaning.html and managed to clean my Coolscan V ED. It wasn't really dirty but at least I know the whole process now and will be able to do it in the future.
The mirror is really tiny and delicate. Took me some time (and in some moments I was really scared I'm going to damage it) to take it out and then place it back but all in all wasn't that hard.
Thank you again!
PS. Turning the scanner when the mirror carriage is in the front is quite useful because you have a bit easier access to it.
PS.2. Turning scanner upside down so that the mirror does not fall out is also very helpful. I turned it upside down when removing the clip but then places it on a side and slid the mirror out of the carriage.
"PS. Turning the scanner when
"PS. Turning the scanner when the mirror carriage is in the front is quite useful because you have a bit easier access to it."
I meant turning scanner off while the carriage is in the front.
Oh and when I opened the
Oh and when I opened the scanner and took out the mirror, I used compressed air to blow the dust out of it.
I cleaned the mirror with pure alcohol (like 97% one), some cotton ear cleaning sticks and a very soft (and clean) lens cloth. When placing the mirror back I was holding it through the lens cloth (I have big fingers so every time I was holding it by the edges using my fingers I would leave some fingerprints)
You guys seems all been very
You guys seems all been very lucky... I've cleaned the mirror and lens, put the scanner back together and now my compiuter/ software doesn't see the scanner.... should I bin it?.. sell it as parts on ebay? ( but don't know really what's wrong with it)... call nikon service?... and pay houndreds of pounds...
buy digital camera and get rid of all my film equipment?.... haha....
seriously guys.. what You think?
right...my mistake :) scanner
right...my mistake :)
scanner has been disable in system preferences...haha
Mirror dimentions
Sebastian and all, did anybody EVER measured that Coolscan mirror with any more or less precision instrument? We all know how fragile is the mirror and one day it needs replacement. To order that front Double Front Surface Mirror from any decent company it would be better to know exact size to avoid further cutting/grinding.
Anybody?
Sorry, no
Hey, sorry but I'm not aware of the precision measurements. I would certainly be willing to help if you ever find yourself in that position :)
Thanks a lot
hi,
a big thank you from austria. i've read your instructions even before i got my Coolscan IV on ebay and i was a little afraid to open the box. i didn't have any issues, thanks to the information provided by you.
i've skipped the front plate removal, because the screws were too tight for my cheap screwdrivers. didn't have any problems, though! i've also used lens cleaner and removed a couple of dust and grease spots.
i'm curious what the scans look like. the one test i've made prior to the procedure had a couple of white spots...
kr, robert.
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