How common is the Zeiss wobble

lxmike

lxmike

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I am possibly about to pull the trigger on Zeiss ZM 35mm f2 for my M2, it has no wobble but my only real concern is th wobble issue, is it common in occurrence and if so is it an expensive fix. Thanks in advance for any replies.
 
My Zeiss 2.8/28 developed a wobble after a 10-year period of extensive use. I had it fixed in Sept 2020, by an old-school repair man in Saigon at a cost of $21. He commented that there was ''a lot of plastic'' in the lens. Since then, it is working flawlessly. I've not had problems with my Zeiss 4/18; 2/35, and 1.5/50.

The 2.8/28 after repairs:



Cheers, OtL
 
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The problem with the modern Zeiss (Cosina made) lenses is the Teflon material used for guide pins and roller bearings, and some other parts. Skyllaney offers a repair service. They replace the original parts with metal ones they had made.
 
Out to Lunch said:
My Zeiss 2.8/28 developed a wobble after a 10-year period of extensive use. I had it fixed in Sept 2020, by an old-school repair man in Saigon at a cost of $21. He commented that there was ''a lot of plastic'' in the lens. Since then, it is working flawlessly. I've not had problems with my Zeiss 4/18; 2/35, and 1.5/50. Cheers,
Click to expand...

davidde1000 said:
It's funny. Many lenses out there eventually internally unscrew themselves. Not just Cosina/Zeiss.
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True, over the decades I have come across a few issues with other lenses but the issue regarding the Zeiss wobble is something I am mulling over at present , hence my initial question.
 
Sonnar Brian said:
The problem with the modern Zeiss (Cosina made) lenses is the Teflon material used for guide pins and roller bearings, and some other parts. Skyllaney offers a repair service. They replace the original parts with metal ones they had made.
Click to expand...
Hi, thanks for the reply, I will make a note of Skyllaney in case I need them in the future.
 
Sonnar Brian said:
The problem with the modern Zeiss (Cosina made) lenses is the Teflon material used for guide pins and roller bearings, and some other parts. Skyllaney offers a repair service. They replace the original parts with metal ones they had made.
Click to expand...
This begs the question: why didn't a high-end manufacturer like Zeiss specify metal to begin with? Was there a reason beyond cost savings or perceived smoothness?
 
Retro-Grouch said:
This begs the question: why didn't a high-end manufacturer like Zeiss specify metal to begin with? Was there a reason beyond cost savings or perceived smoothness?
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Good question- I suspect they believed it would make the focus smoother. I don't think they were thinking multi-generational use on the lens.
 
Sonnar Brian said:
Good question- I suspect they believed it would make the focus smoother. I don't think they were thinking multi-generational use on the lens.
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If that's indeed true, then shame on them! Particularly in light of the long German tradition of building the best at any cost, and building it to last.
 
No one should be concerned that this is a major problem with modern Zeiss lenses manufactured by Cosina. It happens rarely and is repairable. I used a number of Zeiss lenses, one of which needed the grease replaced, which a done quickly and cheaply by my local repair tech.
 
Bob Michaels said:
No one should be concerned that this is a major problem with modern Zeiss lenses manufactured by Cosina. It happens rarely and is repairable. I used a number of Zeiss lenses, one of which needed the grease replaced, which a done quickly and cheaply by my local repair tech.
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You are no doubt correct, and I have three ZM lenses that have never had a problem. Nevertheless, I love to fret, and am convinced that the sky is ever ready to fall! And I don't think I'm the only one on this forum who's a bit obsessive about my equipment. 😉
 
My research results - rangefinder.ru one person used ZM lens exclusively. It went for re-tight three times.
Old thread on Photo.com with comment from one known in the past (might be still around) repair person in USA, his conclusion was - wrong materials choice for focus helicoid pair.
Zeiss USA used to have few hundred dollars repair service for wobble in confirmation of above.

Is it going to be a problem these days on M2? I highly doubt. Film prices are making film photography just as it used to be. One and half roll per year.

Now. 35/2 ZM is 700 USD. New. While much compact, better optically and superior mechanically Ultron 35/2 is as low as 580 USD. New.
ZM makes no sense at all, IMO.
 
The one ZM that seems to make sense to me (and, yes, tempt me beyond reason) is the 50/1.5 Sonnar C simply because I can get lenses eaual to the 50/2 Planar easily; good Sonnars are not so common. That ZM lens can be found for a price even a cheapskate like me will consider with careful shopping so that one still seems reasonable to me.
 
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