Lens contacts need cleaning but... What?

[FroColin]

So, very simply situation. I have a lenses and a camera. It's a T2i, though this is probably not important. The lens I am using is an old kit lens that my dad let me borrow while he borrowed my nicer L series. I have been using it for a while and suddenly I get this error. Err1 Lens contacts need cleaning. So I pull out my eraser and clean them a bit, stick the lens back on the camera and it takes a picture. Good I think, then I take another one. This one doesn't work... I repeat. Same thing. So I whip them down with rubbing alcohol and a que tip. This time I can take a couple pictures so I figure I'm good, put it in my bag and head out. When I take it out 20 minutes later, I get the same error. Does anyone know why? This doesn't make any sense to me
Thanks

 

[ChrisA]

So, very simply situation. I have a lenses and a camera. It's a T2i, though this is probably not important. The lens I am using is an old kit lens that my dad let me borrow while he borrowed my nicer L series. I have been using it for a while and suddenly I get this error. Err1 Lens contacts need cleaning. So I pull out my eraser and clean them a bit, stick the lens back on the camera and it takes a picture. Good I think, then I take another one. This one doesn't work... I repeat. Same thing. So I whip them down with rubbing alcohol and a que tip. This time I can take a couple pictures so I figure I'm good, put it in my bag and head out. When I take it out 20 minutes later, I get the same error. Does anyone know why? This doesn't make any sense to me
Thanks

I would have suggested exactly what you did, pencil eraser followed by 100% alcohol. But, did you clean the contacts in the camera body? Those are as likely to be dirty as the contacts on the lens.

If that fails I'd suspect there is something wrong with the lens. The error you got is likely because the body can't "talk" to the lens and it is just guessing the reason is the contacts. The old kit lens is likely worth less then the cost of repair

 

[jabbott]

Perhaps something funky rubbed off the lens' contacts onto the camera's contacts? Just an idea.