Canon's Terrifying Recommended Way to Remove a Stuck Filter

Canon's Terrifying Recommended Way to Remove a Stuck Filter

Ever have a filter get stuck on the front of your lens? I personally have not, but I can imagine how irritating it can be. Travel photographer (and friend of mine) Craig Pulsifer posted the method he was instructed to use by Canon Professional Services to his blog. His warning: this is not for the faint of heart.




1. Use hacksaw to cut rim of the filter down to the glass.




2. Use Ballpein hammer to strike filter glass in progressively hard taps until filter glass breaks.




3. Pick out shattered glass of filter.




4. Blow off glass/metal bits, then using pliers, bend/peel edges of filter rim into the centre of the filter to pull pressure off of inner threads of lens.




5. Using pliers, bend/peel edges of filter rim into the centre of the filter to pull pressure off of inner threads of lens.




6. Again, blow off glass/metal bits, and replace with new filter.




7. Praise God that it worked!

 

How have you gotten a stuck filter off the front of your lens? Have you tried this method before? Let us know in the comments below!

Jaron Schneider's picture

Jaron Schneider is an Fstoppers Contributor and an internationally published writer and cinematographer from San Francisco, California. His clients include Maurice Lacroix, HD Supply, SmugMug, the USAF Thunderbirds and a host of industry professionals.

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68 Comments
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off to get a hacksaw, i want to get a lens off my filter 

So god works at Canon repair services? Talk about a bad economy!

thats terrifying D:

rub a pencil over the threads of the filter before putting it on your lens and don't over tighten it, the graphite should stop the threads from locking up, it has on mine.................so far :-)

if going to anywhere really cold turn the filter back from tight a couple of mm, then when you get back it wont be stuck

better still, just use a piece of sandpaper as grip, place the front/filter end on it and twist. works a treat! 

not in a million years for me, I work too hard for my money

Ha, my secret is out. I've been using Canon equipment since 1970 and had have numerous filters stuck on because a variety of reasons. In 1971, a  Canon factory repairmam showed this this trick and I have used it till this day.

Some well placed C4 charges will do the trick too.  Doesn't mean you SHOULD though.  Geezus....

 I followed the instructions on this video, once the glass was oof, the filter screwed off rather easily and I did not have to use plyers...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yr1njmB4dKc

I used this technique for more than thirty years.  Customers would come in to the camera store with lenses that were dropped, the filter rim bent in and jammed too much for the usual rubber pad or hose clamp method.  As long as the tools are used gently and judiciously, there is no damage to the lens.  Always tell the customer that it will take 30-45 minutes and send them across the street for a cup of coffee.

i did that before. my 550D fell filter first and had cracks on the filter and dented the rim of it and got stock.

It actually worked, and I'm glad, cause it really saved my day. Thank you!

Dropped my 70-200, filter smashed, leather filter wrench worked great.
http://www.maswaretools.com/leather-oil-filter-wrench.html

Here's another method which is less brute-force and doesn't require breaking the glass: http://www.photicious.com/removing-a-dented-filter-from-a-lens

I had a similar issue- I figured out how to remove the filter without breaking or damaging the lens- visit my blog for the full article http://www.graysonhoffman.com/uv-filter-stuck-now/

I tried everything in the book and finally had to try this method. I gritted my teeth and went for it and it worked. Thank you.

That's silly. Just pick up a rubber binocular lens cover in the diameter of your filter. Slip on, push down hard while squeezing gently and it'll lurch off. If you've cross threaded, it will "pop" into position. Best part is that you get two of them, one for your bag and one for your "studio" (when you loose the first one).

If you're insisting on breaking glass (very manly!), do what buglers do, tape over the filter glass first. That way, you have a single piece to put in the garbage or keep to remind you not to cross thread it again....

Or you can go to a repair shop, have them use their filter wrench to unscrew the inner part and remove the glass without breaking it....I know, what's the fun in that?