How To Straighten Bent Filter Rings?

[jyl]

I have a pre-AI Nikon 50mm f1.4 lens with a severely dented filter ring. I'd like to try straightening it (well, not exactly "straightening" but you get the idea), since the lens is worth so little anyway and I've got nothing to lose. Any suggestions on how to go about this?

 

[pshinkaw]

John:

Here is a an article on how to make your dent straightening tool.

http://www.kyphoto.com/classics/articles.html

I made something similar after reading this. I later bought one of those filter ring straightening tools from Porter's Camera Store. It works quickly on minor dents, but tends to leave scratches.

It's difficult to restore 100% functionality to badly dented rings. If it is real bad, I will straighten it to the point where I can put a filter on. I will then acquire an old scratched or cracked filter, remove the glass and put the recycled ring on the lens, leaving it permanently.

-Paul

 

[oftheherd]

pshinkaw - what a great site! Thanks. What a lot of reading I have to do now. Also a good tip on using an old filter. Thanks again.

Edit: For what it is worth to anyone, I have used wooden dowels and wooden peices to straighten out mildly dented top plates on a Yashica TL Electro X. Worked pretty well. The eb*y seller menioned that and the fact that the exposure counter didn't work. After I got the top plate off, straightened it out, and reglued the plastic cover for the exposure counter that was jamming the counter (he hadn't mentioned the reason it didn't work), all worked well and a parts or repair camera turned out to be a good working camera.

 

[jlw]

I've seen good results from the wood dowel method. Three things to keep in mind:

-- Make sure the semicircular support fits the lens barrel as exactly as possible. A hole saw might be a good investment.

-- Work slooooooowly. You want to move the metal through an accumulation of very tiny taps, not a few heavy taps.

-- Even if you can straighten the body of the rim, this won't clean up the damage to the threads themselves -- so be careful when attaching any threaded accessories, as they may jam or be damaged. I can't think of any way to fully restore the threads that wouldn't involve machine work.

 

[pshinkaw]

When I straighten rings, I try to reverse the denting process. That is, locate the point at which the impact occurred and start moving metal from there. Fter moving the center slightly, I go to the edges of the dent and work from there. Do only a little at a time. Not one big hit. And finally, if I am using the purchased ring straightener (it has a thread protector incorporated into it) I angle it so the threads get pulled outward (away from the camera body) as well as outward (away from the center axis of the lens). So far that has always alllowed me to get a usable thread back.

-Paul

 

[doubs43]

Micro-Tools sells a nice tool for straightening bent filter rings. It's not cheap but it's nicely made and works quite well. It has thread grooves that keep from messing up the threads too.

Walker