Mamiya 7 alignement question

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yarinkel

yarinkel
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Aug 3, 2005
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Hi all,

I just come back from a second hand shop that sells a Mamiya 7 + 80mm for a very decent price.
I made various checks and everyting was Ok except that when focusing on the moon, it was possible to focus a tiny bit *past* the moon.

Is this a mis-alignment? I ask because I remember having read a few times that Mamiya lenses can focus past infinity.
 
Mine is perfectly aligned at infinity, but I don't know if that is the way it is supposed to be. I like it that way. I had the alignment adjusted at a local repai shop when I bought it.
 
The rangefinder needs adjusting (which if you search the web will find out how) fairly easy (but needs a light touch or you could wreak it) and saves you £$s. I have tweaked mine so it is spot on (object 1-2 miles away- moon should be fine). If you do it properly even the 150mm focuses OK.
 
I mentioned to the shop owner that I was interested in the setup but not with an out of alignment finder.

He then proposed to send the body to Mamiya and have it adjusted for no increased cost, so I commited.

I will go back to the shop and check it again tomorrow.
 
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Hopefully Mamiya will check the camera over to see if there's anything else to be done, and you'll have a very fine camera to enjoy!
 
So after going back to the shop and testing the freshly adjusted Mamiya again, it appears that you can't focus past infinity.

So it was an alignment problem indeed.

As it the alignment has been fixed and the set was otherwise in very reasonable condition for the price, I am now the owner of it :)
 
This is all very strange. Isn't the Mamiya designed to focus past infinity? They let you go past infinity because in extreme cold, the camera shrinks a tiny bit, and makes it otherwise impossible to focus at infinity.

If I ever found a Mamiya that didn't focus past infinity, I would assume it was incorrectly adjusted...
 
I just double-checked now and no, I definitely can't focus past infinity. I could before the adjustement (a bit too much IMHO).

I also just checked close focus with a measure tape from the tip of the lens:
An object at 1m reads 1.2m on the lens, an object at 2m reads 2.5m on the lens. Probably not a good sign.

BTW, where are you supposed to start from when using a measure tape: the tip of the lens or the rangefinder window?
 
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yarinkel said:
BTW, where are you supposed to start from when using a measure tape: the tip of the lens or the rangefinder window?
Click to expand...
Measure from the film plane, often marked on the camera top plate, but easy enough to estimate...
 
bensyverson,
You argument about thermic effects seems valid.
It is also used by manufacturers of AF lenses when those lenses are used in MF.

Wim
 
Focus past infinity - the only lens I had that did that were telephotos (400 &500mm) can't remember if my 300mm did. I don't know of any shorter focal lengths that would require focus past infinity. Has any one got a fixed focal length lens, of say 100mm or less that does (and has done it from new)?
 
kram said:
The rangefinder needs adjusting (which if you search the web will find out how) fairly easy (but needs a light touch or you could wreak it) and saves you £$s. I have tweaked mine so it is spot on (object 1-2 miles away- moon should be fine). If you do it properly even the 150mm focuses OK.
Click to expand...

Or you could follow my instructions on this very site!

It's pretty simple. Take the disk out of the back of the camera and fiddle with the right screw there are two inside that cover- move one a teeny bit and look through the viewfinder- it's obvious what you just a adjusted)

Don't turn the screws more than 1/4 a turn (something must be WRONG if you are doing that much adjustment!)

Standard disclaimer.
 
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