FED 4b

[slippy71]

My father bought me a FED 4b (the one without the film wind lever). I am having a hell of a time figuring this thing out. Any one know how to operate this machine? 😕

 

[kmack]

Some quick instructions can be found at the Marriott Site.

ACP has a Quick Light Meter page (If the light meter is working).

That should get you started.

 

[RichardS]

Just what do you need to figure out? This site http://www.russianplaza.com/FED-1-2-3-4-5-C-page2.html has some information. Scroll down to you get to the 4B. Note that the rewind dial, wheel, whatever you want to call it, is on the side of the camera, not the top, unless they made a version I'm not aware of.

Dick

 

[slippy71]

im gonna break this thing...help

im gonna break this thing...help

I am terrified of changing the shutter time as I have read that it is very easy to do wrong. Now, I know you cant adjust it until the shutter is wound. But, I can only set it to a few time settings. Many other of the shutter times give pressure when trying to set them. Is this bad? I have no idea what to do? Do I set the shutter time to a specific setting before I wind the shutter. (I noticed that it spins when I release the shutter....why?) Id like to learn, but most web sites I found, and the ones that have been recommended in this forum above have limited info.

This is the Russian made (with Russian writting) Fed B (the one without the leaver on the film advance winder ..or shutter winder...whatever you call it.)

 

[RichardS]

There may be pressure if you are setting it to a slow speed. There shouldn't be any for the faster speeds, say above 1/25 of a second. Set the shutter speed only after you have wound the shutter. I really have no idea why the dial spins when you fire it, but it spins on most Russian cameras.

Dick

 

[kmack]

Don't panic, these things are bricks. Scan through some of the posts here and hit the links to any other sites you see provided. Don't worry about breaking the camera, chances are that it will break on it's own without you doing anything wrong. 🙄 It is a FSU camera after all. If it does break, the good news is that they are fairly easy to fix. 🙂

Part of the reason I buy and use the FSU's is that I get a chance to tinker as well as take pictures. I don't have a Fed 4 but my other russians are good, fun shooters. I have forgotten on many occations to wind before changing speeds. No permanent damage yet.

Spend some time winding, changing speeds and fireing, take the back off and watch how the shutter works. Take the lens off and locate the rangefinder arm, Look at the lens and try to figure out how it moves the rangefinder arm. Get to know how it works by experimenting. Read some of the repair and history of the FSU cameras on the web. Load some cheap film and take pictures. Just relax, have fun.

 

[brians]

Ah, I just got a FED4 today as well, but it's the one with the lever wind, and the Selenium cell was corroded...

I loaded some Kodak Gold 200 in there and took it out to a trail area. Not bad, but I see some splotches of white going across the pictures, especially when the sun was at a 3 o clock angle. Got any clues? I'll scan it and post it back here. Thanks.

 

[kiev4a]

Sounds like holes or cracks in the shutter curtains.

 

[brians]

Sounds like holes or cracks in the shutter curtains.

NooOo! I'll have to confirm. I'll try shining a flashlight into the curtains. Thanks Kiev4a!

EDIT: It's quite inconsistent, because it doesn't show up in certain pictures, but will show up in others. I think the Sunny f16 + 1/250s shows it the most. Could it be minor abrasions and scratches to the Indy-61's precious, precious viewing eye? There are minor cleaning marks 🙁

 

[RichardS]

I am terrified of changing the shutter time as I have read that it is very easy to do wrong. Now, I know you cant adjust it until the shutter is wound. But, I can only set it to a few time settings. Many other of the shutter times give pressure when trying to set them. Is this bad? I have no idea what to do? Do I set the shutter time to a specific setting before I wind the shutter. (I noticed that it spins when I release the shutter....why?) Id like to learn, but most web sites I found, and the ones that have been recommended in this forum above have limited info.

This is the Russian made (with Russian writting) Fed B (the one without the leaver on the film advance winder ..or shutter winder...whatever you call it.)

I think, and I repeat think, that setting the shutter speed is the same on the FED 5 C as it is on your camera. Here is how it works on the 5 C.

First, the shutter must be cocked in order to set the speed. Next, lift the shutter speed dial and set it to the speed you want. However, to set it to 1/30 of a second, you must turn the dial clockwise. DO NOT try to get to the 1/30 mark by turning the dial counter clockwise. It can't be done and you could damage the shutter.

To get to another speed from the 1/30 mark, you have to turn the dial counter clockwise. The reason for all this is that 1/30 is the speed for flash synchronization.

For other speeds, you should be able to turn the dial easily from one speed to another until you get to the speeds below 1/60 of a second. Then it will take a bit more effort to turn the dial and you hear kind of a winding noise, something like a clock makes just before it strikes, but this is normal.

I repeat, this applies to the FED 5C but I think it works the same on your camera.

Dick

 

[slippy71]

thank you for the advice. however, i got bad news. I shot a roll and NONE of the shots turned out. I dont know whats wrong. I know the shutter fires and I know the lens is giving light...so what could it be? I must be me...

 

[kmack]

No images on the negitives? Are the negitives all clear, or all dark? Out of focus?

 

[Nickfed]

thank you for the advice. however, i got bad news. I shot a roll and NONE of the shots turned out. I dont know whats wrong. I know the shutter fires and I know the lens is giving light...so what could it be? I must be me...

Could be you, but perhaps not serious. If the negatives are definitely unexposed, and the lens cap was definitely removed, there may be a problem with the shutter. Hold the camera up to a light and fire the shutter with the back off, to see if any light gets through, any light.

The other possibility is that the film was improperly loaded. It never wound on. Never came out of the cassette. Hopefully, that is your problem.

 

[brians]

Yup, learn how to do exposure. If it's bright outside, try the Sunny F16 method. Set your lens to f16 and 1/(your film's iso speed) for shutter speed and shoot away. And also, make sure you take off the lens cap. There is a possibility that your shutter curtains may be damaged or malfunctioning if your exposures come out dark or white (either end of spectrum). Also,

Oh, the fear of changing shutter speeds, don't worry. I had that when I first got my Zorki 4, my first RF. I was worried that my camera's shutter speeds were stuck in the fast speeds (i.e. 1/1000, 1/500, 1/250, etc.) but it works like you're winding an old toy or an alarm clock. That's the slow-speed shutter mechanism for a lot of Soviet cameras.

About the film, make sure the film aligns to the sprocket holes, goes into the little crevice on the film uptake spool and goes inwards (from the left side of the uptake spool region). Give your film advance crank a pull, fire, and the film should be going rightward around the film spool. This sounds extremely confusing, and if it does, here is something to better clarify:

Loading and functionality is very similar to the FED5 http://www.fortunecity.com/marina/marine/569/rusrngfdrs/fed5.html

 

[slippy71]

Thank you for the help. Yes, it seems I loaded the film completely wrong...I loaded a new film, but now I am having trouble rewinding the film back into the cartridge.

2 questions:

1- Any ideas if there is a button I must depress while rewinding?

2- If I get another lens, will the view finder show the new focal range. To clarify, I currently have a 52/2.8 on it and I am assuming the viewfinder shows a 52mm picture. But if I put a 100mm lens on it, will the viewfinder show a 100mm equivalent picture?

Thanks

 

[brians]

Thank you for the help. Yes, it seems I loaded the film completely wrong...I loaded a new film, but now I am having trouble rewinding the film back into the cartridge.

2 questions:

1- Any ideas if there is a button I must depress while rewinding?

2- If I get another lens, will the view finder show the new focal range. To clarify, I currently have a 52/2.8 on it and I am assuming the viewfinder shows a 52mm picture. But if I put a 100mm lens on it, will the viewfinder show a 100mm equivalent picture?

Thanks

Slippy, the rewind mechanism is the collar around the shutter release. Turn the collar to the left I believe? (It has an arrow and a B or a C on mine, I' think the last time I rewound film I turned it towards B.)

Secondly, since RF's aren't like SLR's, your Rangefinder/Viewfinder will not compensate for the new focal length of your lenses. Your viewfinder window will always be at 50~52mm, which is why it's okay to mount 50mm and 52mm lenses, but not a 35mm lens and use the VF to focus/compose. For that, you might wanna get a viewfinder corresponding to your lens' focal length. I recommend either a Universal Viewfinder (make sure it's for Leica clones, not Contax), a Leica VIOOH Universal Viewfinder, or just a simple viewfinder that works for your focal length.

 

[RichardS]

Somewhere along the line FED changed from turning the collar around the shutter release to pressing down on it, but I don't know when it made the change. But if you cannot turn the collar, press down on it and it will lock in the down position and you can rewind.

You also should be able to lift the rewind knob so you can get a better grip on it to rewind the film. If you cannot lift the knob, then push down it and at the same time give it a little twist counter clockwise and it sould rise up. Again, FED changed the procedure but I don't know which model was the first.

Dick

 

[juggler]

My father bought me a FED 4b (the one without the film wind lever). I am having a hell of a time figuring this thing out. Any one know how to operate this machine? 😕

I just got a Fed 4B (with Jupiter-8 and Industar-61 lenses) some time back and found these 2 sites with good instructions/ information:

Fed 4 manual: http://www.butkus.org/chinon/fed_4/fed_4.htm
Karen Nakamura: http://www.photoethnography.com/ClassicCameras/Fed3.html

I have just shot a roll of film with the 4B and my thoughts are:
- I like the metering which is quite accurate compared with another meter. Great!
- It has a film advance lever and not a knob as in my Leica IIIc. Nice!
- Camera back can be open to install film. Easier than the Leica IIIc.
- The viewfinder is rather small compared with other RFs like Canonet.
- There's no camera lugs to attach a strap. 🙁
- I dislike the film rewinding - painfully slow. 🙁
- My Leitz Elmar 50/3.5 can't be used on the camera because the focusing lever is blocked by the camera body.

It seems like most folks here are using Fed 2?

 

[Jocko]

My first FSU was a FED 4B - although it was still the just the SU then. Juggler, I think people like the FED 2 because it's such a thoroughly effective and workmanlike design. There's a tendency to dismiss later FEDs as bulkier and inelegant, without any great advantages in return.

There's some truth in that from an aesthetic - and perhaps ergonomic - point of view, plus the rangefinder has a much shorter base. Yet the meter is useful, the viewfinder is better and focussing at F2.8 seems just fine. The 4's rewind is truly appalling, but on the whole I think the later FEDS are much under-rated.

Have fun, Ian

 

[clarence]

- My Leitz Elmar 50/3.5 can't be used on the camera because the focusing lever is blocked by the camera body.

It seems like most folks here are using Fed 2?

I use a Fed 2f. The body blocked the focusing lever on my Industar 22 collapsible lens as well, so I put a metal file to the metal rim on the lens mount. It took me about half an hour, but after that I could mount the lens and use it perfectly.

With My Regards,
Clarence