Hiyawaan
Particular Individual
Ok so I haven't joined the communist party but I rescued a FED 5B yesterday with the Industar 61 LD from a capitalist swine shop window.
After some surfing I see that it is a variant 2. The shutter speeds all seem to be in order but only a test roll will tell. I have a question for my comrades.
Will the 5B work with my 15mm VC ?
After all its screw mount. I did thread the lens on but it does not tighten so that the line on the barrel is vertical, its at say 10 o'clock and I didn't want to damage anything by forcing it or firing the shutter.
Thx in advance
Comrade Al
After some surfing I see that it is a variant 2. The shutter speeds all seem to be in order but only a test roll will tell. I have a question for my comrades.
Will the 5B work with my 15mm VC ?
After all its screw mount. I did thread the lens on but it does not tighten so that the line on the barrel is vertical, its at say 10 o'clock and I didn't want to damage anything by forcing it or firing the shutter.
Thx in advance
Comrade Al
brachal
Refrigerated User
It'll work with the 15mm Voigtlander as well as it'll work with anything else ...
Seriously though, it's not uncommon for non-FSU lenses to not line up exactly on FSU cameras. Heck, I have FSU lenses that don't line up exactly on FSU cameras. As far as I know, it's not a problem unless the lens is really out of line. Yours should be fine, especially with a 15mm DOF to cover any minor errors.
Didn't mean to disparage your new Fed5 ... that's the same camera that got me into rangefinders.
Seriously though, it's not uncommon for non-FSU lenses to not line up exactly on FSU cameras. Heck, I have FSU lenses that don't line up exactly on FSU cameras. As far as I know, it's not a problem unless the lens is really out of line. Yours should be fine, especially with a 15mm DOF to cover any minor errors.
Didn't mean to disparage your new Fed5 ... that's the same camera that got me into rangefinders.
Hiyawaan
Particular Individual
Thanks man!
Al Kaplan
Veteran
My 15mm Heliar doesn't line up "correctly" on my Bessa L, and if it's in an M adapter it doesn't line up "correctly" on an M body. Just set the focus at one meter and regardless of f/stop everything from about half a meter to infinity will be in focus. It makes me wonder why they even bothered to stick it in a focussung mount. It's a fantastic lens!
Hiyawaan
Particular Individual
Okay, so i go out in the rain and shoot a test roll and it doesn't want to rewind. I found an online manual for the fed but when I press the shutter on frame 36 the rewind crank doesn't budge. I go in to a dark room to remove the film and my friend turns the light on. Back out the light with a wasted roll off film I try to reverse the sprocketed roller with the shutter pressed (while holding down the counter tab), nothing. Damn thing wont rewind! It winds forward fine but doesn't want to rewind. Any solutions?
rbiemer
Unabashed Amateur
It is not the actual shutter that releases the rewind, there is a collar around the shutter button that you press down while rewinding. Give me a minute or two and I'll get some digi pics of exactly what I mean.
Rob
Rob
rbiemer
Unabashed Amateur
OK, here is a picture of what I was referring to:
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Hiyawaan
Particular Individual
Thanks rbiemer, that works!
Now is it supposed to supposed to make strange noises and not be smooth when rewinding? Or did i jack it up.
Now is it supposed to supposed to make strange noises and not be smooth when rewinding? Or did i jack it up.
rbiemer
Unabashed Amateur
Strange noises and not smooth sounds pretty much like mine...
The FED5 is not the most refined FSU camera out there but they work well enough, I think.
Rob
The FED5 is not the most refined FSU camera out there but they work well enough, I think.
Rob
Hiyawaan
Particular Individual
Thanks Rob! Back out into the rain for me.
brachal
Refrigerated User
I've had 3 Fed-5, all of them were more or less "grindy" on rewind or, especially, film advance. A CLA probably would have helped.
Hiyawaan
Particular Individual
brachal
Refrigerated User
Good looking pictures! Enjoy your Fed.
rbiemer
Unabashed Amateur
Those look good! I'd like to see a fairly big wet print of "white building".
My FED5 is my bad weather camera--if I know ahead of time.
Rob
My FED5 is my bad weather camera--if I know ahead of time.
I don't yet have a 15 but I have used my 21 very similarly. And have always thought the "click stopped" focus of the first CV25 made better sense with the 21.
Rob
Hiyawaan
Particular Individual
Thank you Bill and Rob.
"I'd like to see a fairly big wet print of "white building"." Me too Rob, I'd be happy with a better scan too, lab scans are disappointing. My home dark room will one day become a reality, I got a Focomat 1c recently but can't set it up just yet.
"And have always thought the "click stopped" focus of the first CV25 made better sense with the 21." There are times i wish the 15 had click stops or a stiffer focus ring, when I carry the camera with my left hand I usually end up changing my focus. Oh well now I need an older 21!
"I'd like to see a fairly big wet print of "white building"." Me too Rob, I'd be happy with a better scan too, lab scans are disappointing. My home dark room will one day become a reality, I got a Focomat 1c recently but can't set it up just yet.
"And have always thought the "click stopped" focus of the first CV25 made better sense with the 21." There are times i wish the 15 had click stops or a stiffer focus ring, when I carry the camera with my left hand I usually end up changing my focus. Oh well now I need an older 21!
rbiemer
Unabashed Amateur
OK, I should be clearer in what I meant.
The first version of the CV25mm lens isn't RF coupled, it has click stops at three distances (1m, infinity, and something in between. I think. I don't own that lens). The CV 21mm is RF coupled. I always thought that the 21 would work just as well with the 25's focus set up. But you may well want a 21 regardless.
Rob
Hiyawaan
Particular Individual
Ronald_H
Don't call me Ron
Took me some frantic searching on internet before I figured this one out
My FED5 went back to Mother Russia yesterday for some TLC. It's an ugly beast, but build quality (especially the chrome) is quite nice. Shutter (on mine at least) is also dead on, also a the slower speeds. Reason I sent it away for repair (together with my Zorki 4K) is that the finder was too hazy/dirty/dark to be halfway useful. The Zorki is miles better, but on that cam the shutter is cr*p
rbiemer
Unabashed Amateur
I typically use my 21 like that, Hiyawaan; on the FED and set for hyperfocal distance. Works pretty well. But I am starting to feel a bit cramped with the 21, might have to get a 15.
The VF on my FED5 is very dusty, Ronald, and the framing is close but not as good as my Zorki 3 or any where near the frame lines of the Bessa! One good thing about mine is that I can set the diopter adjustment on it so that I can see the whole frame with out mashing my eyeglasses against the VF. I also took a red,fine point marker and outlined the VF window on the front of the camera. That helps me know where the edges of the frame are.
Rob
The VF on my FED5 is very dusty, Ronald, and the framing is close but not as good as my Zorki 3 or any where near the frame lines of the Bessa! One good thing about mine is that I can set the diopter adjustment on it so that I can see the whole frame with out mashing my eyeglasses against the VF. I also took a red,fine point marker and outlined the VF window on the front of the camera. That helps me know where the edges of the frame are.
Rob
Hiyawaan
Particular Individual
"I also took a red,fine point marker and outlined the VF window on the front of the camera. That helps me know where the edges of the frame are."
That sounds like a good idea, now to find a sharpie!
Did you put a piece of frosted glass on the film plane and the shutter on bulb to line it up or just draw around the edge of the rf window? Maybe I'm over thinking this. Or could be that my eye wasn't centered when looking though.
Another thing I'm noticing when using the industar is that at a distance, focus is fine but when working at close distance, say 1-1.5m, my plane of focus is behind what I know I focused on. Thats a lens issue right? Have to calibrate it I guess. I'll try the lens on another camera first before I attempt to fix it.
That sounds like a good idea, now to find a sharpie!
Did you put a piece of frosted glass on the film plane and the shutter on bulb to line it up or just draw around the edge of the rf window? Maybe I'm over thinking this. Or could be that my eye wasn't centered when looking though.
Another thing I'm noticing when using the industar is that at a distance, focus is fine but when working at close distance, say 1-1.5m, my plane of focus is behind what I know I focused on. Thats a lens issue right? Have to calibrate it I guess. I'll try the lens on another camera first before I attempt to fix it.
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