Minolta Rokkor Repair

[ErickSaint]

I have a 200mm Rokkor-X that I have tried to repair myself. The barrel is loose and wobbles in the middle. I know (I think) exactly what needs to be done. I have had the complete rear side of the lens apart and reassembled, there are no screws to tighten there to fix the wobble.

I'm guessing that I have to go in through the front. Which I would have no problem with doing myself, but I cant get the front bezel off. There are no notches to use a spanner. I bought an ebay filter/ring wrench in the proper size but can't even get the ring to move. Almost like the bezel is on with some kind of sealant. I thought about possibly using a needle oiler on the ring threads, but dont want to introduce oil if I dont have to, and not sure if it would work. Heat was another thought, but I dont want to really go there either not knowing if it would work.

I have repaired/cleaned other lenses with no issues. I would feel confident doing it myself, but I have hit a roadblock with that bezel. So maybe it's time for me to enlist a professional. There are nothing but big box camera stores here, and I'm less than impressed with their customer service. Does anybody know of a reputable place I could maybe send the lens to for adjustment and cleaning.

I would think about taking another stab at fixing it, but I'm kind of out of ideas.

The following is a link to the last page of a thread I started here about the lens, the last page has a picture of the extreme angle on the bezel (what I think is most of my problem) and the links to the lens tool I actually bought.

https://www.talkemount.com/f12/ques...nses-e-mount-weight-handling-2398/index4.html

 

[Lonnie Utah]

Pop over to photoclubalpha.com and shoot David Kilpatrick a PM. I bet he knows how to do it.

Photoclubalpha • Index page

 

[xXx1]

Kyphoto is one place to ask too:
Margaret Mak | Graphic Design + Photography

 

[ErickSaint]

Thanks for the tips. It's been a busy weekend since the original post. When things calm down a bit I will definitely check out both of those links.

 

[ErickSaint]

Well I gave up on that alpha site. It flagged me as spam. Because I had to keep retrying to make a password it accepted, that I may have some chance of remembering. I have never seen a site that requires such an absurd password. Not even my bank is that strict.

"Password must be between 5 and 30 characters long, must contain letters in mixed case, must contain numbers and must contain symbols."

 

[Lonnie Utah]

Erick,

Are you on FB? If so, you can connect with David directly there.

L

 

[ErickSaint]

Yes I'm on FB, I'll try him there. Thanks.

Maybe I'll try to contact somebody at that forum and have them reset my info. But I surely will not be signing up with another username and email.

Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Lonnie Utah]

Yes I'm on FB, I'll try him there. Thanks.

Maybe I'll try to contact somebody at that forum and have them reset my info. But I surely will not be signing up with another username and email.

You've got a PM....

 

[Purushotham Racharla]

Find any cylindrical objectr such as a platic plumbing pipe or a bottle cap that just goes in the filter threads of lense and sits on front bazel. Then paste many pieces of double sided tape(thick) on the endge of this pipe taking care they are same width as bezel and do not touch lense or the filter threads when you try to remove bazel. Bazels are never glued. So all you need is to apply a little pressure and turn. Once loose, apply no more pressure but just loosen.

In any case before trying above, try this simpler way. Apply small bits of masking tape on the surface of bazel and try to turn it using your thumbs and turn. This alone worked for me many a time.

 

[ErickSaint]

I have tried many many different methods of getting the bezel off, including various different options similar to the above suggestion. Even some off the wall options that did not work either. I eventually bought a silicone filter/bezel tool in the proper size, that failed to get it off as well.

I tried going to this site given above for help. but as stated in my response, had issues with the registration there. no messages I had sent to either the admin or the sites facebook pages ever got a response, so I scrapped that idea as well.

I would think this could take good shots, but with the wobble in the lens (which I'm trying to fix) I have seen focus issues.

At this point I've basically given up on this lens, and started looking for another similar focal length, possibly a 70-200 or 300 maybe with a macro option.

 

[Purushotham Racharla]

It is quite posible that yr filter ring is deformed. In that case you may have to use brute force too. How about a divider with sharply pointed legs? Push them hard in to the platic so they bite in well and try turning it?

 

[Jaf-Photo]

Yeah, I'm thinking it shouldn't be impossible to open this lens. Mind you, when you open a lens, a lot of stuff will get in there that shouldn't be there. So it's a mixed blessing. If you want a pefect copy, look for another one. They are not too expensive.

 

[ErickSaint]

It is quite posible that yr filter ring is deformed. In that case you may have to use brute force too. How about a divider with sharply pointed legs? Push them hard in to the platic so they bite in well and try turning it?

I hadn't tried the dividers at all. I thought the bezel was aluminum. Just for kicks last night I tried to use double stick tape again, the super aggressive stuff for sticking car emblems to metal. I used 4 thin strips evenly spaced and tried to stick my lens tool to it. all that happened was the tape got rolled up on the tool, bezel still didn't budge. Back to square one.

Yeah, I'm thinking it shouldn't be impossible to open this lens. Mind you, when you open a lens, a lot of stuff will get in there that shouldn't be there. So it's a mixed blessing. If you want a pefect copy, look for another one. They are not too expensive.

Yeah, it's pretty much a wash at this point. Only gave $20 for this lens, a non-Rokkor 50mm 1.7 and an old Minolta camera.

 

[Mel Snyder]

What I spotted on a 50mm Minolta lens I own probably isn't on yours:

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Note the nearly invisible notches for a lens spanner on this lens. They may not be there on yours, but I just thought I'd toss that in.

If you're really giving up on this lens, I'd suggest two ideas.

On photo.net, a poster recommended "... a rubber stopper of suitable size for gripping the lens bezel ring and turning it off" for Canon FD lenses.

And finally, an invasive idea. My father was an industrial photographer of note (Wikipedia, "Clarence Snyder) - and he left me some lens spanners.

Here's my idea. Since there may be no slots or holes to engage the bezel, I propose you get a Dremel drill with a small bit, and make two, 180 degrees apart. And then, try to unscrew the bezel with a lens spanner. The bezel may have the same threads as the filter ring.

But before I tried to apply the spanner to them, I would heat the bezel with a hair dryer. Contrary to some, I recall once hearing that the bezels of less expensive lenses WERE in fact held in place with heat-sensitive adhesive that must he heated before the bezel can be removed.

Good luck!

Mel

 

[ErickSaint]

Here are a few shots I just took real quick of my lens, and the tool I got to try to get into it. There are no spanner holes/slots, though it's funny you mention drilling holes, the thought had definitely crossed my mind. I have a rubber stopper I use for getting into 50's no problem. it does seem a ton more "grippy" than the silicone tool. There are a few problems though. The stopper I use for the 50's is the biggest I can find locally and it's not big enough. But because of the steep wall of the ring and the fact that the front glass has so much curve the flat bottom of the stopper, even if it was the proper size, would hit the glass before it contacted the ring. The bezel is not a "flat" front as most I have worked on, it's almost vertical.

On to the pics.

Top View

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DSC01107 by ericksaint, on Flickr

Side View, you can kind of tell the extreme angle the bezel is on.

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DSC01108 by ericksaint, on Flickr

The silicone tool I bought for this lens beside the rubber stopper I use for other lenses.

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DSC01110 by ericksaint, on Flickr

 

[Mel Snyder]

One last stab: Try calling an expert repairman and explain your problem:

Mark Hama Ltd.
2675 Earl Dr.
Marietta, GA 30062
phone: (770) 565-1498
markhama@comcast.net

This guy claims to fix anything camera. He seems from comments to be a nice guy who just might tell you in a phone call how to do what you want. He might also tell you if it's something he wouldn't attempt.

He also has a deal where if he has in stock a repaired version of what you want fixed, he will take your item in trade on a new one.

I'd find it hard to trash a 200mm f3.5 lens. No matter how cheaply acquired. Worth checking.

BTW - some years ago, I acquired a 135mm f3.5 "new" version of a Canon rangefinder lens. Very sharp and contrasty, even wide open.

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The challenge is hand holding it (and longer) at slow shutter speeds. The above was shot wide open at 1/160th @ ISO 400. I have no problem hand holding a 90mm f2.8 Tele-Elmarit at, say 1/25-1/60th. But Those speeds are tough on a 135, and I would bet, on a NEX, a 200mm would be much more difficult. I used to shoot my 80-200mm f2.8 dual-ring Nikkor on my D70, D300 and D7000 at those speeds for theater work, but AF, and a theater seat has arms on which I could brace. That's why I'm seriously planning to buy a 55-210 SEL for general travel shooting. AF + OSS is seductive, even if the max aperture isn't

 

[ErickSaint]

I dont really want to trash it either. Just feel that with there being so much play in that barrel, and thus between the front and back glass, I can't really achieve a sharp image from it. I'll try to get some info from the expert when things calm down a bit for me. Thanks for the contact info.

I really like the detail in that shot. I am really bad at shooting anything handheld with that long of a lens, with the exception of some bright outdoor shots where I could get a fast shutter speed. I have a cheap monopod I take hiking with me for anything like this. I really need to get a new MD adapter with a tripod mount as I just dont trust these heavy lenses.

I really like the 55-210, I just cant part with the cash for one these days. I just snatched up a 3 lens kit with 2x teleconverter from craigslist that came with a Focal 80-200mm 3.5, looks like brand new, but have no idea of the quality of a Kmart lens.