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I've seen the term used in used lens listings, e.g "recently CLA'd".
I have a few questions, but I think they're related enough to only warrant one post:
"Clean, Lubricate, Adjust", as Maxwell said. It is usually encountered when discussing Leica camera bodies, those things need a checkup every two decades or so. But, yes, lenses can be CLA'd too.
For lenses, it basically means dismantling the thing, cleaning dust and other deposits from the lens surfaces, replacing the goop that lubricates the focus and aperture mechanisms, and (hopefully) putting it all back together in working order.
If I had an old lens where I could see fogging on the internal glass surfaces, where the focus mechanism was uneven, too stiff or too loose, or ditto the aperture mechanism, I'd consider having it CLA'd. I have no hard data on what it'd cost for a lens though; for what it is worth I did pay a couple hundred Euro for CLA on a Leica M3 camera body recently.
C-Cleaned L-Lubed A-Adjusted
I recently had my 1969 Canonet rangefinder CLA'd for about $85 which is on the cheap end if you are requiring a similar service. Lens CLAs will vary by your region, lens model and complexity, and so on.
To decide if you need this, I would consider the age of the equipment, its previous use and physically examine the lens and use it to determine if any maintenance is required. If it was heavily used in the past, is older then a few years old, or has obvious signs of dust or internal issues, then you probably want to send it in to get repaired or CLA'd.
Depending on how adventurous you are, you can do this yourself. The trick is putting it back together!
Summary: CLA = Regular maintenance on camera equipment
I worked for a Portrait studio in the 1990s. Every year, I sent in eight daily-use and back-up SLRs to a local technician for his CLA service package as stipulated in the contract. These were all well cared for cameras; all eight were inspected and cleaned annually. One camera was dropped down the stairs requiring calibration and realignment and another had bad light seals; all covered under the blanket CLA package. To me, CLA runs the gamut of simple mirror, prism and viewfinder cleaning to tired spring replacement and fungus removal.
