DwF
Well-known
Sorry if i am re-hashing old thread but does DAG service rangefinders on these? Are there alternative sources to repair these cameras? I prefer not to be at the mercy of the folks at Epson to wait for a refurb to come in.
Thanks advance,
David
Thanks advance,
David
R
RML
Guest
You can do it yourself even. 
DwF
Well-known
Oops! Sorry, I missed the sticky.....sort of like failing to read "push' or "pull" , or "not an exit".
bob cole
Well-known
does DAG repair these
David, I saw an old posting on the Leica forum that DAG has done service on the Epson R-D1 Digital RF ...Although he told me a few days ago that he was very busy, he watches his email and responds very fast...
If you need it, Don Goldberg is at dagcam@chorus.net and his phone is:
608-835-3342 [Oregon, Wisconsin] and he's very easy to deal with...
DwF said:
David, I saw an old posting on the Leica forum that DAG has done service on the Epson R-D1 Digital RF ...Although he told me a few days ago that he was very busy, he watches his email and responds very fast...
If you need it, Don Goldberg is at dagcam@chorus.net and his phone is:
608-835-3342 [Oregon, Wisconsin] and he's very easy to deal with...
DwF
Well-known
Thanks Bob,
DAG serviced Leicas for me years back and I know he gets busy so I figured rather than pull him away with a call, I'd ask here to see what the experience has been. I am seriously considering an RD1and played with one next to an M8 last week. For me the RD1 won hands down (film advance lever not withstanding
The M8 looks and feels like a brick to me. It just doesn't work but sure made me appreciate the elegance of my Ms 2 and 6 when I returned home and picked those up to shoot.
I am getting by pretty well with a Pentax Ist DS for now. i have some nice fast fixed lenses for it.....but miss the rangefinder and would like to make more use of my M lenses again. I am not shooting as much film because I find developing and scanning a bit of a pain.
DAG serviced Leicas for me years back and I know he gets busy so I figured rather than pull him away with a call, I'd ask here to see what the experience has been. I am seriously considering an RD1and played with one next to an M8 last week. For me the RD1 won hands down (film advance lever not withstanding
The M8 looks and feels like a brick to me. It just doesn't work but sure made me appreciate the elegance of my Ms 2 and 6 when I returned home and picked those up to shoot.
I am getting by pretty well with a Pentax Ist DS for now. i have some nice fast fixed lenses for it.....but miss the rangefinder and would like to make more use of my M lenses again. I am not shooting as much film because I find developing and scanning a bit of a pain.
Didier
"Deed"
DAG serviced my R-D1, and it was spot on at least for a few weeks. The problem is this camera may get disaligned even without being knocked, just by using.
Didier
Didier
DwF
Well-known
Is it common that the alignment simply goes out on these cameras?
Didier
"Deed"
Let's say, it does not need a strong knock to get disaligned... but others reported their RF stayed stable since they bought it.DwF said:
Didier
DwF
Well-known
Thanks Didier.
Sailor Ted
Well-known
"is it common that the allignment just goes out on these cameras?"
Plasmat
-
DAG did an excellent job on the rangefinder of one of my out of warranty R-D1 cameras.
It was wildly out, with the focus about a foot from the actual intended point of focus and infinity focus was just off completely. Vertical alignment was bad.
He took about 4 weeks, was very nice about it, and charged me $80 plus $30 shipping. We had several interesting phone conversations, he's a very pleasant man.
Vertical alignment was out of whack again two days later after I got it back, I had to learn to do it myself which I find very easy to do now. Infinity focus and focus point remain perfect months later.
I think it's inevitable that the rangefinder will need periodic service on these cameras. They are just not built very well and/or the mechanism is not high precision.
Epson Indianopolis has done a very good job repairing and aligning the two refurbs I bought. Both have had to go in for service. One refurb seemed to be a total lemon. First the rangefinder went out, then after I got it back the analog meter failed and the sensor developed a vertical streak. Apparently it was repaired in-house.
That's a major repair and now they seem to be capable of doing it.
It was wildly out, with the focus about a foot from the actual intended point of focus and infinity focus was just off completely. Vertical alignment was bad.
He took about 4 weeks, was very nice about it, and charged me $80 plus $30 shipping. We had several interesting phone conversations, he's a very pleasant man.
Vertical alignment was out of whack again two days later after I got it back, I had to learn to do it myself which I find very easy to do now. Infinity focus and focus point remain perfect months later.
I think it's inevitable that the rangefinder will need periodic service on these cameras. They are just not built very well and/or the mechanism is not high precision.
Epson Indianopolis has done a very good job repairing and aligning the two refurbs I bought. Both have had to go in for service. One refurb seemed to be a total lemon. First the rangefinder went out, then after I got it back the analog meter failed and the sensor developed a vertical streak. Apparently it was repaired in-house.
That's a major repair and now they seem to be capable of doing it.
tmessenger
Established
I carry mine in a backpack on my mountain bike on gravel roads, it has not gone out. A few have had problems but once in alignment most stay in.
Tim
Tim
Sailor Ted said:"is it common that the allignment just goes out on these cameras?"
DwF
Well-known
You are all generous in sharing these anecdotes/tribulatins with the RD 1. I will have to decide whether I am feeling particularly lucky when/if I "pull the trigger"
DwF
DwF
rvaubel
Well-known
tmessenger said:
Mine stayed in perfect alignment until i dropped it onto an asphalt parking lot! I"ve been zone focusing for 6 months now. I'm betting reaaaallly good at estimating distance. And boy that VC 25mm/f4 has got a real workout !
Rex
Sailor Ted
Well-known
Hey Rexe boy,
NO VC, NO VC !
T
NO VC, NO VC !
T
R
RML
Guest
Didier said:
Indeed. My rf has been acute since I bought the camera in June 2005. It may have drifted, or not, but I know that position of my eye makes more difference to my focusing correctly than anyhting else.
B&W Norway
Established
RML said:
What is the best (correct) position for the eye?
Is it different with glasses?
Thanks!
R
RML
Guest
B&W Norway said:
I wear glasses and it sure does matter how I position my eye. There are oodles of positions where I can't or can hardly see the vf patch, the framelines or the shutter speed indicator. Focusing because a bit of a problem then because the vf patch blanks out. I have no idea how things are when you don't wear glasses.
RichC
Well-known
I don't think the R-D1's especially flakey - it's components are the same quality as, or better than, the Voigtlander Bessa R3/R4 cameras, and in many instances the parts are probably identical (or near enough), yet the Bessas haven't gained a rep for especially poor rangefinders are jamming shutters. Like others, I've had to adjust my rangefinder twice (once after I dropped the camera), but after adjustment it stays calibrated, and my camera's otherwise been totally reliable. Anyway, sooner or later any rangefinder will need its focusing checked and recalibrated.
I think one reason for the R-D1's poor rep is the fact that it's digital, and being able to see huge images highlights any problems - I suspect that if photos from a random selection of film rangefinders (all makes) were enlarged similarly, their owners of many of them would be horrified at how badly their cameras need servicing!
Anyway, turning to the viewfinder. The angle at which the focus patch is viewed does seem to be critical - I try an keep my eye perpendicular to it. Also, I find all cameras (not just the R-D1) extremely frustrating to use with glasses, and wear contacts if I know I'm going to be taking photos. With glasses, I often can't see everything in a viewfinder at once: if I can see the focus patch, then I can't see the shutter speed; if I can see the framelines, then I can't see the focus patch... Drives me bonkers!
I think one reason for the R-D1's poor rep is the fact that it's digital, and being able to see huge images highlights any problems - I suspect that if photos from a random selection of film rangefinders (all makes) were enlarged similarly, their owners of many of them would be horrified at how badly their cameras need servicing!
Anyway, turning to the viewfinder. The angle at which the focus patch is viewed does seem to be critical - I try an keep my eye perpendicular to it. Also, I find all cameras (not just the R-D1) extremely frustrating to use with glasses, and wear contacts if I know I'm going to be taking photos. With glasses, I often can't see everything in a viewfinder at once: if I can see the focus patch, then I can't see the shutter speed; if I can see the framelines, then I can't see the focus patch... Drives me bonkers!