Helios 44-3 stiff focus ring

[Avishai]

I'm new in this forum.

I received from a friend a helios 44-3 manufactured in 91 in a very good condition.
I saw some good reviewes on this lens and decided to give it a chance.
Results are pretty good, but the stiff focus ring makes it unusable for portraits - I can't follow with the focus ring the movement of the subject.

I was able to find 2 tutorials how to disassemble and clean the 44-2 sibbling, but it looks like the 44-3 construction is different.

Can someone please explain me how to clean my lense?

Thanks
Avishai

[martinsmith99]

Although this method will be condemed by a few, for lenses I don't feel confident at taking apart, I mix 4 parts lighter fluid with 1 part oil.

Using an eye-dropper or similar, squirt a few drops onto whatever parts of the focus assembly you can, wind it back and forth a few times, then repeat as necessary.

[Joosep]

On what body are you using it ?
44-3 has a different build, the focus ring is protruding so you cant use it correctly with most adapters and M42 cameras, it just sticks on it.

I shaved mine.

[Avishai]

Thanks for the replys.

I'm using Olympus e-520 with m42 adaptor - $5 ebay one which gives me the exact infinity focus on the spot.
The lense is from 91 and does not have the shoulder problem.
Originaly the focus ring was totaly stuck, but I was able to partialy open it by applying power and turn it back and forth some hubdreds times.

If no other ideas I'll try the magic potion...

[banpei]

Had the same problem with my 44M-2 by MMZ. I applied a few drops of the "magic potion" and waited for an hour. WIth heat and force I was able to free it up and after an evening of wiggling on the focusring was loose enough for me.

A nice note: the 44M-2 has a very different design than my 44M by KMZ and other conventional lenses: it has a double diaphragm ring. One for setting it as a hard limit and one set it somewhere inbetween. At first I thought the lens was broken because the diaphragm appeared to be moving along with the focusring. However when I looked through the finder I concluded otherwise.

[estudleon]

[banpei]

[no-X]