Leica II (Model D) - Rewind Knob not Extending?

[Miles.]

Hi all,

I've just acquired an original (not a conversion) Leica II where the rewind knob does not extend. Has anyone encounter this issue, and if so, how was it remedied? All other functions are working nicely and there are no signs of corrosion externally or internally.

Thanks for your help!

EDIT: rewind knob, not rewind lever

 

[Godfrey]

I presume you mean the rewind knob because there is only one "lever" on the Leica II, the sprocket clutch to allow rewinding.

I had the rewind knob get stuck on one of my ancient Barnaks (1948 IIc) an eon ago: it was caused by the old lubricant (grease) on the rewind shaft getting dried out and crusty. I turned the camera upside down, dripped a minuscule amount of penetrating oil on the edge of the rewind knob, and then kept rotating the camera to distribute the penetrating oil around inside the knob while applying pressure to pull the knob out. After a few minutes, the knob let go and slid to its full extension position. I then rinsed it out with a light degreaser and applied a drop or two of 3-in-1 machine oil to the shaft, and worked it in and out a hundred times or more. I stuffed a little soft tissue in the knob to soak up any excess oil.

From that point on, since I used the camera regularly, it never seized up again.

(That camera had effectively cost me $50 with an Elmar 3.5cm lens in 1968 because the guy at the camera shop in NYC said, "here kid, I give you this old junk cheap because no one wants these antiques any more. Now get out of here." I used it until 1985 when it was jerked out of my hands and into the Pacific Ocean... sigh. Wish I had it now.)

G

 

[Miles.]

I presume you mean the rewind knob because there is only one "lever" on the Leica II, the sprocket clutch to allow rewinding.

I had the rewind knob get stuck on one of my ancient Barnaks (1948 IIc) an eon ago: it was caused by the old lubricant (grease) on the rewind shaft getting dried out and crusty. I turned the camera upside down, dripped a minuscule amount of penetrating oil on the edge of the rewind knob, and then kept rotating the camera to distribute the penetrating oil around inside the knob while applying pressure to pull the knob out. After a few minutes, the knob let go and slid to its full extension position. I then rinsed it out with a light degreaser and applied a drop or two of 3-in-1 machine oil to the shaft, and worked it in and out a hundred times or more. I stuffed a little soft tissue in the knob to soak up any excess oil.

From that point on, since I used the camera regularly, it never seized up again.

(That camera had effectively cost me $50 with an Elmar 3.5cm lens in 1968 because the guy at the camera shop in NYC said, "here kid, I give you this old junk cheap because no one wants these antiques any more. Now get out of here." I used it until 1985 when it was jerked out of my hands and into the Pacific Ocean... sigh. Wish I had it now.)

G

Oops, yes, I misspoke. The rewind knob is what won't extend. I'll give your tip a try tonight and see how it goes. Thank you!

 

[Richard G]

I had this in a Leica II. I think I was less subtle, lubricant and elbow grease. It worked.

 

[Miles.]

Good news: A touch of oil and letting it sit for a few minutes did the trick!

 

[DownUnder]

A minor problem, relatively common with old Barnacks. I had it with a iif I acquired a few years ago from an estate sale.

Machine oil and TLC did the trick. As others here have posted.

A word of warning, DO NOT use WD 40 or other 'quicky' lubricant of that sort. A little too much of that stuff an do untold damage to those elderly innards...

 

[Godfrey]

@milescl : Great to hear that!

@DownUnder : You should *never* use or consider WD-40 to be a "lubricant" at all. WD-40 (Water Dispersant - formulation #40) was designed to be hydrofilic: It soaks up water. It was designed to wash down metal surfaces on Navy ships, frequently, to help displace sea water and leave a thin oily film on the surface. Unfortunately, used as a one-time, sparse lubricant on small mechanisms, the thin film continues to absorb water from the air, which promotes oxidation and corrosion. Whenever you use WD-40 as a penetrating oil to free up stuck surfaces (mostly because it's good at cutting caked up old lubricants), you always have to follow that use with a thorough cleaning of the surface (usually with naptha or other fast evaporating solvent) and then finish with a machine oil or grease to protect and lubricate the surface.

Sorry to go on, but I've seen a lot of things (watches, clocks, cameras, brake lines, etc etc) ruined by improper use of WD-40. 😱

G

 

[DownUnder]

@milescl : Great to hear that!

@DownUnder : You should *never* use or consider WD-40 to be a "lubricant" at all. WD-40 (Water Dispersant - formulation #40) was designed to be hydrofilic: It soaks up water. It was designed to wash down metal surfaces on Navy ships, frequently, to help displace sea water and leave a thin oily film on the surface. Unfortunately, used as a one-time, sparse lubricant on small mechanisms, the thin film continues to absorb water from the air, which promotes oxidation and corrosion. Whenever you use WD-40 as a penetrating oil to free up stuck surfaces (mostly because it's good at cutting caked up old lubricants), you always have to follow that use with a thorough cleaning of the surface (usually with naptha or other fast evaporating solvent) and then finish with a machine oil or grease to protect and lubricate the surface.

Sorry to go on, but I've seen a lot of things (watches, clocks, cameras, brake lines, etc etc) ruined by improper use of WD-40. 😱

G

Right you are. Good advice throughout in your post, G.

In fact I've scribbled all you wrote in my work notebook, for future reference. Useful to know. Many thanks!

We have an ancient spray can of WD-40 at home. It's so old, by now it's probably a family heirloom.

I use it every few years to loosen up a door lock. That is the sum total of its usage in our household. Machine oil, especially the Singer Sewing Machine brand, is far better, again used sparingly, by the drop.

The other bugbear in my photographic life (at least in the gear aspect) is sellers who home-tinker with cameras, especially with lenses, before they sell the gear. This has cost me serious money in the past with two Rolleiflex TLRs. In both cases the taking lenses had been removed and badly reassembled and my tech in Melbourne had to redo the entire lot. In the second case the repair work cost me almost as much as the camera did, keeping in mind that nothing in Australia can be considered as inexpensive.

To my thinking, anyone who dismantles a camera lens should be hog-tied face down on a picnic table and mercilessly flogged with a soaking wet tom cat.

 

[d_c]

I use it every few years to loosen up a door lock. That is the sum total of its usage in our household. Machine oil, especially the Singer Sewing Machine brand, is far better, again used sparingly, by the drop.

Sorry, but you shouldn't really use WD-40 for door locks either - it attracts dust creating a sticky mess that gums up the lock. Locks ideally need dry lubrication preferably graphite grease, i.e., fine graphite powder that comes in an applicator bottle with a thin nozzle that allows you to blow it into the lock innards.