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DPChallenge Forums >> Hardware and Software >> Nikon D600 oil spots
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 03/02/2013 11:14:13 PM · #1
I have been looking into buying a D600 for about 6 months now. I keep putting it off, because I keep hearing more and more people stating that their D600 has oil spots on the sensor.

Do any D600 owners have this problem?? ...not have this problem??

Would you recommend buying or not buying the D600 due to this common issue?

Thanks in advance! Any input on this subject is greatly appreciated!
 03/02/2013 11:40:38 PM · #2
Mine looks clean so far, only taken about 2500 shots and hoping not to see any issues. If I do I will just send it in to be cleaned which would be a pain but not a huge deal. So far love the camera, upgraded from a D90 and very happy with the image quality.
 03/03/2013 01:20:22 AM · #3
*raises hand*

You do know it's super easy to clean your sensor right?

There's no reason to fear it, not only is it easy, but the blasted sensor isn't exactly easy to scratch or damage, unless you have sand stuck to your cleaning tool everything will be fine.

Don't take my word for it though, read up on the subject some - besides, it's awesome to never have a terribly dirty sensor, and I couldn't imagine doing without any one of my bodies for a week simply because the sensor was dirty (mind you, I clean my bodies about once every 5 or 10 shoots.)...
 03/03/2013 05:03:15 AM · #4
Always changed my lenses indoor and my sensor is FULL of dust spots! Now I'm away but tomorrow I'll post my last ribbon entry before cloning them - an army of spots!

It seems they're not 'oily' but they're way too many! In any case problem should improve after 3000 shots. Italian Nikon division (Nital) announced that if after a personal cleaning the problem remains people can send them the camera to check its status.

D600 is a very good camera. A better AF system than D7000 and great high ISO performances. If you start from the APS-C system you will really enjoy full frame.
 03/03/2013 01:24:13 PM · #5
Thanks for the input.

Some are saying that if you clean it yourself, you void your warranty...
 03/03/2013 02:03:10 PM · #6
May be true with the warranty, if I scratched the sensor while cleaning it I would not expect them to pay for it anyway. During warrantee period it would be best to just have them clean it if you are concerned about it. Other than that I would never offer that information.
 03/03/2013 02:16:22 PM · #7
I've had mine a few months--but it's only been outside shooting a few times. Nothing out of the ordinary on mine (a little ordinary dust, not much).
 03/04/2013 06:17:22 AM · #8
A friend of mine got a D600 in October 2012. He found oil spots soon after he got it and sent it in for a service. It was a lot better when it came back, but the oil spots have been reforming. He is pretty disappointed with it and is hoping to take it back and swap it for another model.
 03/04/2013 09:22:25 AM · #9
Originally posted by balancedfox:
A friend of mine got a D600 in October 2012. He found oil spots soon after he got it and sent it in for a service. It was a lot better when it came back, but the oil spots have been reforming. He is pretty disappointed with it and is hoping to take it back and swap it for another model.


Assuming this is just on the surface of the filter, it's nothing at all to deal with. Literally 5 minutes of work. Now, if it keeps up and doesn't show signs of abating quickly, that could certainly get frustrating, but nothing at all to get to the point of considering dumping an otherwise great body like the D600.
 05/09/2013 06:53:42 AM · #10
Sorry to bring you some bad news but I was in a similar position. I bought my wife a D600 in November. With the holidays we were not able to do too much with it but by February we noticed the issue of dust\oil\noise on many of her pictures. My wife was a professional photographer and as we get closer to retirement we are thinking of a small cottage photo business or just enjoying a passionate hobby. This should have been a great experience.

We went to the Addison Texas Nikon photo school on Feb 23 and 24th. We decided to wait until after the class to send it in as we followed Nikon's protocol. They reviewed the pictures we sent in and they said send it to them in California. On the 25th we sent it in which cost us $137 ($122 for shipping and insurance and another $15 for the box and packing materials.) We sent it in two day UPS. They did not even acknowledge receipt of the camera until the next week even thought we had proof of delivery. Once they looked at it they simply cleaned the sensor and sent it back.

Right out of the box, we barely had the camera body open for 10 seconds while we attached a lens, we experienced the same problem. We called them and went through the hassle of sending in the pictures. By the way we received different instructions each time for the proper way to send files and each time it took several tries. They really should know how to handle large files and be consistent. We implied once again that we did not want to have to pay another $137 to send it back. We received the same email saying sorry but you will need to send us the camera again. We had enough. We were never offered a prepaid UPS label.

We went to a great local distributor. We did not buy this from them but since we have shopped there before they were gracious enough to listen to our situation and send it in to the Melville operation on our behalf. Just like you our camera was put on parts hold. They eventually, after 4 weeks and me getting on the phone with them, replaced the shutter mechanism and did a complete low pass filter cleaning. They sent it back apologizing for the issues and even sent me a check to repay me for my original shipping. They explained I should have been offered a free shipping label. There were several other miscommunications that are irrelevant as they had nothing to do with the issue at hand.

The camera arrived at the distributor on Thursday and we picked it up on Friday. We shot some pics on Saturday and went to the Dallas zoo on Sunday to put it through some real shooting. We got home Sunday evening and we saw the issue reappear. We started shooting at around 11:30 AM at 1:05 PM we noticed the first issue. WE figured this oput as we reviewed the shots Sunday evening using Nikon’s software. The spots gradually got worse. Yes we do have the pics to back all of this up which we eventually got to send to Nikon on Monday.

Monday afternoon they issues an overnight UPS label. I boxed the camera up and sent it back to them. They had a manager intercept put on the label to review. My wife will be travelling internationally next week and we needed the camera (we requested a replacement) before she left. I heard nothing on Tuesday morning but followed up and found out that they had it. I was told I would hear back later that day or early today. Nothing again. I call up and am told they will speak with the service manager and put in a request for a replacement camera. I would hear within 24 hours. In less than 6 hours they called me and said that the service manager said there is only one spot and they are simply going to clean it and send it back.

Now the pictures clearly show more than one spot and additional noise or again more spots. I asked them to review that as I do not believe they reviewed the pictures although why would they agree to overnight something for pickup after they saw the pictures if there was only one spot?

So in less than a week I received a refurbished camera with a new shutter mechanism and a cleaned low pass filter. In less than 4 days they requested the camera back. This is the third time it is in for the same issue. They did not offer to replace the camera. They are simply going to send it back after a sensor clean.

Here is the dilemma: The original place I purchased the camera from has graciously agreed to take it back and put me into another camera. They said we could either get another D600, a different camera or a store credit. That is customer service. That is a great customer experience. Nikon should learn a lesson from this. Right now I am leaning towards getting rid of our Nikon Gear. You see we also bought a D3200 and a Nikon 105MM micro lens as well as some other smaller items. That may sound drastic but that is how they have made us feel. We would rather have a nice working model of the D600 but how do I in good conscience reward them with more business after how we were treated and how the other people with poorly working D600 were treated. While I have no idea how prevalent the issue is, the manner in which they have handled it is disgusting. I am happy for all the people who I know and hear about that have working D600. However, a $2000 plus investment for a consumer or a pro is a significant amount of money. With Nikon currently reporting more than a $159M profit this quarter (down almost 50% on a 5% increase in sales), why should their customers take this kid of treatment?

For everyone with a good working D600 enjoy. For everyone who has been treated poorly by Nikon customer service I empathize with you. Luckily there are still some great companies that treat their customers with exceptional respect. Nikon could learn a thing or two. They have brought fumeiyo upon themselves.
05/09/2013 08:55:28 AM · #11
I just got a D600, It had spots on the sensor out of the box... I messed up the shutter when I tried to swab and dropped the shutter (yes I know...). This was bad... and good.

Bad because I was without my camera for a whole 5 days. Nikon received and fixed it, and mailed it back before their website caught up with much of the tracking.

Good because Nikon replaced the Shutter mechanism, and some other stuff, and did cleanings and testing.

I have it back now and after a couple thousand shots I still do sensor check shots to make sure I don't have spots or dust, all is well - no spots - really love the D600.

It's a fantastic camera, coming from DX only Full frame is awesome, the IQ is amazing, high ISO amazing, but I am sorry to hear some folks are having big issues with it.

Also +1 to Cory's comment, cleaning the sensor is easy. Just don't break stuff like I did this one time :)

Message edited by author 2013-05-09 08:55:57.
 05/09/2013 12:20:31 PM · #12
My understanding is that, like ShutterRev's experience, Nikon has recently been replacing shutters under warranty when they come in with the problem. So it sounds like they've figured out what the problem is now and are fixing it. I would assume that new cameras coming off the assembly line have whatever the fix is also.

Personally, if I were looking at the D600, I wouldn't worry about it. Even if there is no fix, it isn't that hard to clean a sensor. Before cameras had the ultrasonic shake thingies, we all cleaned our sensors all the time. It wasn't exactly a big deal.
 05/12/2013 10:51:39 PM · #13
Ok, now my camera has done it. Most of my shots from Bryce/Zion and the Grand Canyon, starting after the first day I was there, have spots in the upper left of the frame (and a few on the right).

I was going to buy a cleaning kit, but I've just been reading that the service involves more than a cleaning--in addition, it involves cleaning the source of the lubricant spray. I'll upload an example of my spots if anyone wants to see it.
 05/13/2013 01:52:41 AM · #14
Neil, best to send it in. I hated being without my beloved for a week but you will get it back fixed, with the possibility of them also replacing the shutter altogether. No spots for me any more, and I'v been a shooting fool. Best of luck.

Originally posted by Neil:
Ok, now my camera has done it. Most of my shots from Bryce/Zion and the Grand Canyon, starting after the first day I was there, have spots in the upper left of the frame (and a few on the right).

I was going to buy a cleaning kit, but I've just been reading that the service involves more than a cleaning--in addition, it involves cleaning the source of the lubricant spray. I'll upload an example of my spots if anyone wants to see it.
05/23/2013 04:27:19 AM · #15
Mine doesn't have a problem so far but I have a friend which experienced the "oil leaking". However it did not spill on the sensor and it was easy to clean. A few thousand photos later it seems not to have affected the camera in any way, so I would say not to worry about it too much.
 05/23/2013 06:44:11 AM · #16
Oil spots are a real problem with D600, my sensor becomes dirty VERY soon. But the concentration of oil spots in the upper left is not only of D600 - also D7000 have the same issue. The same for me and a friend of mine who has another D7000.
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