Help! Is my Rolleiflex working right?

[sr1200]

It's been a while since I've used my Rolleiflex, and in the meantime I had a CLA done. Last night I was preparing for a trip to NYC and played a bit with the dials. It seema i cannot turn the dials to the limits I remembered... and yes my 3.5F has coupled aperture and shutter dials... ok maybe not? I don't have a way to uncouple them...


So, if I'm at f3.5, the fastest shutter speed I can set it to is 1/500.. then as I turn the aperture wheel to a larger aperture, the shutter automatically dials down... and I CANNOT select a faster shutter speed..

So, f3.5 is 1/500, f4 is 1/250, f5 is 1/125, f8 is 1/60, and so forth. The fastest shutter I can run at f16 is 1/15!


This isn't right is it????

 

[KoNickon]

When you uncouple the aperture and shutter dials you should be able to set those to whatever combination you wish. So, assuming you have uncoupled them, it sounds like there is a problem.

 

[sr1200]

How would I uncouple them?

 

[Steve M.]

It's been a while, but I believe that you depress the chrome buttons in the middle of the little wheels that set your aperture and shutter speeds and you can uncouple things.

 

[rbiemer]

http://www.cameramanuals.org/rolleiflex/rolleiflex_3_5.pdf

According to that manual, "set the coupling button so that it is diagonal to the marks on the control wheel."

Rob

 

[Steve M.]

I've been researching this online, and it seems that some, or all, models of the 3.5F do not have exposure coupling. It appears, from looking at the discussion below, that the camera may have an issue.

https://www.photo.net/discuss/threads/rolleiflex-3-5f-shutter-aperture-coupled-stuck.8861/

 

[sr1200]

I don't have a coupling button.. no marks to align...

 

[raid]

I would use a different camera in your trip.

 

[sr1200]

There should not be a problem selecting (for example) g8 with 1/500, right???

 

[rbiemer]

I don't have a coupling button.. no marks to align...

My mistake, I mis-read your post and looked at the wrong manual. Mr. Butkus does have a 3.5F manual and that one doesn't say anything about speed/aperture coupling.😱

http://www.cameramanuals.org/rolleiflex/rolleiflex_3-5f_2-8f.pdf


Rob

 

[sr1200]

My mistake, I mis-read your post and looked at the wrong manual. Mr. Butkus does have a 3.5F manual and that one doesn't say anything about speed/aperture coupling.😱

http://www.cameramanuals.org/rolleiflex/rolleiflex_3-5f_2-8f.pdf


Rob

Right... I actually looked at those before I posted. So, is it right or wrong? Seems to me WRONG. 🙁


Seems like BEFORE the recent CLA, the aperture automatically opened as you want into the green shutter speeds.... now it's the opposite... and I cannot use a fast shutter with a small aperture...

 

[raid]

Try pushing down and holding tight one of the two dials while turning the other dial. My 2.8D has coupled dials. My 3.5F does not (I think).

A video on the 3.5F: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-L-ugnD5ccMThis video shows that the F3.5 has separately working dials for shutter speed and aperture: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSiYDNOCxLs

 

[sr1200]

Try pushing down and holding tight one of the two dials while turning the other dial. My 2.8D has coupled dials. My 3.5F does not (I think).

A video on the 3.5F: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-L-ugnD5ccM

No go.....

 

[Ronald M]

Call the repairman and ask.

These cameras are supposedly simple, but not. You need qualified people, but anyone can make a mistake.

 

[raid]

What Ronald said above; save time by calling the repairman about it. Good luck with it all.

 

[sr1200]

Man that sucks. I have a mountain of 120 film I wanted to burn up too. Now I'll have to stop by a film shop in NYC first, so I can shoot 35mm.

Thanks for the thoughts guys. Annoyed here.

 

[EliasK]

Does your camera has a an exposure meter? If it does check this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHZDc1w7o7Y

 

[lcpr]

My 3.5F has a chrome lip under the aperture wheel that I have to press in order to uncouple the dials and set whatever combination of aperture/shutter I want.

EDIT: See the chrome lip here: https://doppietta-tokyo.jp/products/rolleiflex-3-5f-planar-75mm-f-3-5

 

[Richard G]

I’m so hoping this has a happy ending.

 

[KoNickon]

Right... I actually looked at those before I posted. So, is it right or wrong? Seems to me WRONG. 🙁


Seems like BEFORE the recent CLA, the aperture automatically opened as you want into the green shutter speeds.... now it's the opposite... and I cannot use a fast shutter with a small aperture...

OK, I may have given you a bit of a bum steer -- only the earliest 3.5Fs have the coupling (like the first few thousand after 2.2M serial number), as lcpr's post describes.

But your reference to the "green numbers" perplexes me -- those are all B speeds, and meant to give the user a reminder of how long to manually hold the shutter open.

Wish I could help more here.