Hi I have had this tv for about 8 months now and loved it right out of the box!! Once I got onto this forum and read all of the great info put out by Mr Bob,Jwebb,and Lee Baily ( just to name a few) and did some of the tweaks, I loved this tv even more!! But now I think its almost due for an optics cleaning, an just wanted to know if the optics on the 51f59 were sealed or if the coolant covers need to be removed for a deeper cleaning? If the coolant covers do get removed, can anyone tell me in detail how that is done. I don't want coolant leaking if I do the wrong thing (pictures would help if possible) and will the focus get messed up when they are removed and is it easy to get the focus back? I really do want to get into the deeper cleaning if it can be done. Thanks in advance for all responses.
ruffo66

F59 leses are not sealed - there is still some gap btwn coolant cup and lens barrel. Not much, though. To clean beneath, the lenses would have to come off.

The coolant covers--as in the concave (or is it convex? :?) lenses that separate the coolant from the outside world ARE NOT TO BE REMOVED.

The lens assemblies/barrels themselves (top & bottom lenses) & the top surface of the coolant cup (the lens separating coolant from world mentioned above) can be cleaned if needed.

The F59 lenses are attatched to the CRTs by 4 screws. Black Philips heads that run thru the 4 black plastic tabs that are part of each lens barrel. If you see shiny purple screws----those hold/seal the coloant cup onto each CRT. LEAVE THEM ALONE!!!!

Depending on the age of your set & it's environment, you may only really need to clean the top lenses (which requires NO lens removal) & the mirror. If your home is rather dusty/smoky/etc - deeper cleaning may be in order.

If so, do 1 lens @ a time - replacing each one before removing the next.

The essential details/recommended supplies can be found here:

http://www.keohi.com/keohihdtv/experttips/mrbob/mrbob_tips.html

Mr Bob's DIY tips over @ the Keohi site. 2 links to his optics cleaning tips on the list.

Thank you for the quick response and info/link Jwebb. I will not touch the shiny purple screws!!! Im guessing that because the 4 black philips screws that hold down the lens barrel are fixed that focus should be okay once they are put back in place? Thanks again ruffo66

Thank you for the quick response and info/link Jwebb. I will not touch the shiny purple screws!!! Im guessing that because the 4 black philips screws that hold down the lens barrel are fixed that focus should be okay once they are put back in place? Thanks again ruffo66

May want to recheck focus, but you should be OK.

Mechanical lens focus is done via the "wingnut" on each lens barrel. This wingnut locks the focus/lens adjustment rod in place. When moved, the rod rotates the proper lens assemblies in each barrel. As long as the rod is not moved during the cleaning process, you should be fine.

Thanks for all the info Jwebb. I'll be doing the cleaning within the next few months. ruffo66