Home

Please support mflenses.com if you need any graphic related work order it from us, click on above banner to order!
SearchSearch MemberlistMemberlist RegisterRegister ProfileProfile Log in to check your private messagesLog in to check your private messages Log inLog in

Experience with rollei lenses
Post new topic   Reply to topic
Home   Manual Focus Lenses
View previous topic :: View next topic  


PostPosted: Mon Jun 01, 2020 4:56 pm    Post subject: Experience with rollei lenses Reply with quote
Yesterday, I bought my 4th rollei planar 50/1,8.

Why four? Cos the first three (include one color Ultron) have the aperture mechanism broken.

I'm waiting that the 4th cames.

Today, I bought the less common Schneider Xenon 50/1,8 BQM v.1

I hope both lenses work fine.

Any experience about mechanical quality of the Planar or Xenon lenses?

Xenon IQ?

Thanks


PostPosted: Mon Jun 01, 2020 5:43 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
I have several ones and two Planars 50/1.8 but all of them in M42 and Voigtländer branding.
So far no problems at all with the aperture. No experience with Schneider lenses, sorry.


PostPosted: Mon Jun 01, 2020 6:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Mechanism broken? Really strange.


PostPosted: Mon Jun 01, 2020 6:42 pm    Post subject: Re: Experience with rollei lenses Reply with quote
papasito wrote:
Yesterday, I bought my 4th rollei planar 50/1,8.

Why four? Cos the first three (include one color Ultron) have the aperture mechanism broken.

I'm waiting that the 4th cames.

Today, I bought the less common Schneider Xenon 50/1,8 BQM v.1

I hope both lenses work fine.

Any experience about mechanical quality of the Planar or Xenon lenses?

Xenon IQ?

Thanks

I've recently serviced a Rollei 50/1.8.
The mechanics are clearly low quality and the aperture is... let me put it this way:

It is, let's say, acceptable for 1960s.
Clearly behind the pack in 1970s.
Laughable in 1980s.
And they made it till 1995!

However, I'm not sure it is prone to actual breakage.
I'd rather expect some part of transmission mechanic to be sticking.
I've given up on trying to troubleshoot why it doesn't want to stop down past F11, but it was clearly something in the aperture stop down pin transmission tract, so I've just rerouted, excluding it altogether.

Overall Rollei 50/1.8 is one of the worst made metal lens I've had a chance to service.


PostPosted: Mon Jun 01, 2020 7:07 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
A common problem with my rollei planar.

When you focus at infinite or near, the aperture no close to f/16.

Sometimes nor to F/11.

Sometimes work, others not.

Inside that situation, if you push down the aperture pin several times, the blades stay wide open and not close anymore.

With the Ultron, when I have glued the pin, the aperture mechanism became hard to turn.

But has so good IQ that I bought another one.


PostPosted: Mon Jun 01, 2020 9:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Oh well. I've hit "Edit" instead of "Reply" and destroyed my own post.
It roughly looked like this:

papasito wrote:
A common problem with my rollei planar.

When you focus at infinite or near, the aperture no close to f/16.

Sometimes nor to F/11.

Sometimes work, others not.

Inside that situation, if you push down the aperture pin several times, the blades stay wide open and not close anymore.

With the Ultron, when I have glued the pin, the aperture mechanism became hard to turn.

But has so good IQ that I bought another one.


Yeah, that's it.

But it's not the (cheaply made) aperture's fault. Nor it is the stretched springs.
I've traced the cause to the aperture pin transmission mech.

This isn't just my copy then. Now I'm positive this is just crap design.
It's almost an insult to house such a great optics into this tin bucket of a shell.


==============Second Post=================
aidaho wrote:
Now I'm positive this is just crap design.
It's almost an insult to house such a great optics into this tin bucket of a shell.

I've almost forgot about another testament to that.
Once I've mentioned I've serviced one, someone asked if something can be done with his copy: the whole aperture ring was turning rough and occasionally jam completely.
I instantly knew what's wrong. Here is a picture I've made to help:



You see this retaining ring? It shouldn't be completely screwed in, since it sandwiches, among other things, the aperture ring itself.
So if it is too tight, unscrew it a quarter of a turn or so.
If jerked along the optical axis, aperture ring should have minuscule amount of play.

Otherwise "Ease down Ripley, you're grinding metal".


PostPosted: Tue Jun 02, 2020 11:55 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Thank you Aidaho.


PostPosted: Tue Jun 02, 2020 8:06 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
CZ Jena aperture mechanisms are no slouch either, Icarex lenses (Ultron 50 f1.8 and others, in both Icarex and M42 mount) are lovely if you re looking for a challenge Smile

What i discovered with the M42 adapters that push the "auto pin" is that sometimes they push it in little bit too much, ever noticed that with some lenses it becomes harder to screw them into the adapter the last half or quarter of the turn, any markings on the adapter ring that pushes the pin in? Try to do a test by slightly unscrewing the adapter, if the aperture has problems. Also try to push the pin on the lens with a screwdriver and observe the aperture, it seldom needs to be completely pressed in to stop down the aperture.
These mechanisms are very delicate and fine tuned, it doesn t require a lot of force to damage, deregulate them. I guess other methods of engaging the auto pin, like levers etc. can have a similar problems.


PostPosted: Wed Jun 03, 2020 1:11 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
tomasg wrote:
CZ Jena aperture mechanisms are no slouch either, Icarex lenses (Ultron 50 f1.8 and others, in both Icarex and M42 mount) are lovely if you re looking for a challenge Smile

What i discovered with the M42 adapters that push the "auto pin" is that sometimes they push it in little bit too much, ever noticed that with some lenses it becomes harder to screw them into the adapter the last half or quarter of the turn, any markings on the adapter ring that pushes the pin in? Try to do a test by slightly unscrewing the adapter, if the aperture has problems. Also try to push the pin on the lens with a screwdriver and observe the aperture, it seldom needs to be completely pressed in to stop down the aperture.
These mechanisms are very delicate and fine tuned, it doesn t require a lot of force to damage, deregulate them. I guess other methods of engaging the auto pin, like levers etc. can have a similar problems.


Thanks Tomasg.

Yes. I have bought a SL Xenon 1,8/50 to do a comparison with my new planar hft 1 8/50.

IT's very interesant the pin question and sound good.to me. I will try..


PostPosted: Wed Jun 03, 2020 5:48 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
papasito wrote:
A common problem with my rollei planar.

When you focus at infinite or near, the aperture no close to f/16.

Sometimes nor to F/11.

Sometimes work, others not.

In my case this was caused by a low quality adapter. Does the lens work when not attached to an adapter?


PostPosted: Thu Jun 04, 2020 3:30 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
y wrote:
papasito wrote:
A common problem with my rollei planar.

When you focus at infinite or near, the aperture no close to f/16.

Sometimes nor to F/11.

Sometimes work, others not.

In my case this was caused by a low quality adapter. Does the lens work when not attached to an adapter?


No. No one of them work


PostPosted: Thu Jun 04, 2020 3:39 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
I have one rollei more.
The Schneider SL Xenon 50/1,8 in good conditions.

The apertures work ok, the AM Swicht works too .

IT seems to be better build than the planar hft 50/1,8.

And a bit sharper, bit single coated not hft.

My lens in from 1973.

In orden of resolution power, the Xenon is the best of the rollei 50/1,8, after the color ultron (a bit better contrast), the Planar hft 50/1,8 with s/n 10.xxx.xxx and the Planar hft 50/1,8 s/n 12.xxx.xxx.
Post new topic   Reply to topic
Home   Manual Focus Lenses
Page 1 of 1