Canonet QL17 Beamsplitter Mirror

[Petrolhead]

Hi All,
After much prying and digging, I managed to remove the cloudy Beam splitter mirror from the viewfinder of my Canonet QL 17:

Is there any place online to get just 1 piece of this mirror. The usual online sites for these mirrors sells in quantities which I am not will to spend for a $15 camera.

Or better still, is there any forum members with any spares of these mirrors. I am willing to pay for the mirror and postage.

Thanks

 

[Sid836]

A QL17 for sure is not a $15 camera 🙂
Have you tried Edmund optics? It sells beamsplitters for $30 or so and you'll have to cut them down to pieces of the size you need. Unfortunately you will not find anyone selling pieces of beamsplitters that small.

 

[john neal]

Let me look in my box of bits tonight - I think I have a couple of Canon ones and, maybe a couple of Yashica too. If they are still there, you are welcome to one.

 

[Crazy Fedya]

Did you try cleaning it?

 

[Mr_Flibble]

Surplusshed.com sometimes has small pieces of 50/50 transmittance beam-splitters for sale for a few dollars.

Stuff like this:
http://www.surplusshed.com/pages/item/l14550.html

Be sure to get the 50/50 ones, as they also 25/75 transmittance ones. They're fun but not very practical to use as replacement beamsplitters. Ask me how I know 😉

 

[sevo]

Beware, you need wide band (VIS 50/50) beamsplitters - the more common narrow band "interference" beamsplitters are very vividly coloured when used on visible light. Some colours are more acceptable than others, I had some pale cyan/yellow ones I found usable (indeed, contrast enhancing) in rangefinders, but I never could replicate that purchase. All I've tried since then turned out to be deep blue/orange or green/magenta (when angled 45° - from the front all of them appear to be more or less golden, so that product shots won't tell their colour), which is more than I can stand.

As far as VIS 50/50 plate beamsplitters are concerned, Edmund is the most easily accessible option. But every dealer selling the Linos catalogue of lab items can supply them. Surplusshed currently lists only prismatic and interference type ones, no visual plate.

 

[Petrolhead]

A QL17 for sure is not a $15 camera 🙂
Have you tried Edmund optics? It sells beamsplitters for $30 or so and you'll have to cut them down to pieces of the size you need. Unfortunately you will not find anyone selling pieces of beamsplitters that small.

Yes it's a $15 Canonet QL 17, not the Q3 version though but it was in pretty bad condition. Prices of Canonets are getting dearer by the day.🙁

 

[Petrolhead]

Let me look in my box of bits tonight - I think I have a couple of Canon ones and, maybe a couple of Yashica too. If they are still there, you are welcome to one.

PM'ed you, Thanks.

Did you try cleaning it?

Yes I did but it remained cloudy and that's when I decided to remove and replace it.

Surplusshed.com sometimes has small pieces of 50/50 transmittance beam-splitters for sale for a few dollars.

Stuff like this:
http://www.surplusshed.com/pages/item/l14550.html

Be sure to get the 50/50 ones, as they also 25/75 transmittance ones. They're fun but not very practical to use as replacement beamsplitters. Ask me how I know 😉

Thanks, noted.

Beware, you need wide band (VIS 50/50) beamsplitters - the more common narrow band "interference" beamsplitters are very vividly coloured when used on visible light. Some colours are more acceptable than others, I had some pale cyan/yellow ones I found usable (indeed, contrast enhancing) in rangefinders, but I never could replicate that purchase. All I've tried since then turned out to be deep blue/orange or green/magenta (when angled 45° - from the front all of them appear to be more or less golden, so that product shots won't tell their colour), which is more than I can stand.

As far as VIS 50/50 plate beamsplitters are concerned, Edmund is the most easily accessible option. But every dealer selling the Linos catalogue of lab items can supply them. Surplusshed currently lists only prismatic and interference type ones, no visual plate.

Thanks, I learned something new and that is very good information.