Iskra Problems

[leica M2 fan]

Got back Provia 400 slides today, unmounted. Scanned with Epson 4990 and found several problems. The film is not registering like it should. Some frames have just little space and other very large spaces between the frame.
Worst of all, there are loads of light leaks, I'm not sure if it's the bellows but
can't see any leaks when shining strong light from front and back of camera.It
could be from the back, I'm just not sure.Contacted Yuri for his input, am enclosing two successive shots to show the coloration at the bottom and the white " stuff" that looks like clouds !! :bang: 😕 Any help appreciated.

 

[ZeissFan]

Regarding the light leaks, is it possible that the film isn't being wound tightly on the spool? You could check the bellows very easily with a flashlight in a dark room.

Does this camera autoframe? Or do you use the red window?

I agree that it's very disappointing, for sure.

 

[leica M2 fan]

Hi Mike and thanks

Hi Mike and thanks

The camera autoframes but isn't doing that very well. I did check the bellows and it is light tight. The back doesn't seem to be very tight and it leads me to suspect that as the culprit. BTW, Mike, I had a copy on my computer of your article on lens collimation but seem to have lost it, is it still around? Are you still doing your Zeiss update? I enjoyed that especially your photos with the 50mm and the wide angle lens.

 

[jano]

The uneven spacing is pretty much "normal" -- according to some, it's caused by one of two things: the inside gears and cogs and sprockets getting worn out, or not enough pressure from the backplate. The first is not really possible to fix, but the second might be.

I noticed when I take the back off my iskra 2 once I'm done with a roll, as soon as I take off the back, the wound film unfurls itself. Once or twice it did it with such force that I had gotten a few leaks on the top edges of the film.

But it sounds more like your problem is with the back.

Good luck!
Jano

 

[P C Headland]

I'd definitely check that the film is being wound tightly enough. This would explain the light leaks on the edge of the film, plus the spacing problems.

When loading the film, wind the leader paper onto the takeup spool while resting your finger/thumb on the supply side spool to ensure a reasonable tension.

Is the spacing problem consistent across the roll, is it tighter at the start or is it all over the place? The other place that has been reported as a source of light leaks is through the spool holders (on the bottom of the camera) but these usually show up as sharper lines on the negative. Also make sure the door is square (shouldn't usually be a problem, but worth checking).

 

[wlewisiii]

I also found, when I owned an Iskra, was that the spacing problem was very film dependant. Older thicker emulsions were much more correctly and evenly spaced than thinner modern films. I found Plus-X and Reala to give me the most consistant results. YMwillV...

William

 

[iliks]

I wonder why do people care so much about distance between frames? Yeah, they are unequal but what's so scary about this? Most of the time frames do not overlap and allow cutting between them perfectly. And even if they do overlap it's not a problem at all - you just crop and get a tiny bit smaller image which is insignificant for all purposes, especially for 6x6 MF.

 

[VictorM.]

Here's an old thread that deals with Iskra problems: http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=13574&highlight=iskra+light+leaks. After removing the top plate, I sealed every hole in sight, then painted the inside of the top cover with matte black. That fixed the light leaks. The uneven frame spacing and occasional overlapping (very slight)? I live with it. The only cameras I own with perfect frame spacing are Leicas: IIIf and M4-2.

 

[JonP]

A Fellow Iskra sufferer here
Love the lens but they do have foibles. Your light leak looks too irregular to be a leak onto the spool. Also can I check the frames run from right to left, if so and it is the spool it would be on the feed side rather than the take up side. How long had you loaded the film before using it.
I have posted one of mine (well I'll try when I've finished this). This shows a light leak on the second and third fold top right of the bellows from behind. I have found them and some Tulip matt black fabric paint to remedy this for a while. new bellows are out of reach at the moment.
I'm afraid frame spacing is just something we sufferers have to put up with
Cheers
Jon

 

[JonP]

Hey, it worked, I managed to attach something😛

 

[leica M2 fan]

Many thanks to everyone. I contacted Yuri and he suggested that I send back the camera to him for refund. It just had to many issues. Maybe a little while later I'll reorder or get something else. For now the Kowa 6 MM will have to do. Thanks again to all for your kind help.

 

[Buze]

Thats too bad, the Iskra is fantastic when it works... But as you probably remember Tony, I thought putting some E6 to start with was really brave thing to do 😀

For the leaks they can also occurs from the tho "teeth" at the bottom of the back door the ones that reset the film counter and crew.

As for the problem with spooling, the /first/ thing to do on a folder is to re-bend the spring blades that press on the film spools each ways. That not only guarantee the film flatness, but that will also prevent the film unwinding by itself...

Hope you do get another one Tony, they are well worth the effort/trouble

 

[Iskra 2]

Oleg does a good job fixing old Iskras. 🙂 Depending on the cosmetic condition of your Iskra, a round trip to Russia might have been worth it. Mine is well traveled and performing nicely now.

Regards.

 

[Buze]

Does he know how to fix Iskra advance mecanisms ? From what I heard when they were shot, they were dead... :/

 

[JonP]

Oleg advised me "possibly, but best go for one with a working mechanism" so I paid the extra, and it works, even with its light leak!

 

[leica M2 fan]

The Provia slide film did do one good thing for me... it let me see in the transparency the widespread light leaks and the other issues. This was unacceptable but if I might add, if evereything could be fixed I'm sure it would be a great shooter! Again thanks to all for your time and comments. It all helps.