Love my Zorki 1c but...

[Nando]

It has the accessory shoe from hell.

I have using my Zorki 1c almost exclusively for a week and I really love this camera. I wanted to use my big and bright Voightlander 50mm viewfinder with it but its so loose in the accessory shoe, it will easily fall out. No problem, I put a little piece of cardboard underneath and it was nice and snug. Since I eventually want to get the J-12 for the camera, I thought that I'd try my Voigtlander 35mm viewfinder on it. This time it wasn't loose at all but so tight that I couldn't get it more than a 1/4 of the way in. Isn't that weird? Well I tried out my entire collection of external vf's on it. The accessory shoe was either too big or too tight in each case. None of my vf's fit just right. Is this typical?

I thought that I'd try my luck with a different accessory shoe. I've been scouring the internet looking for this part but haven't found anything. I'm thinking of looking for a broken/rough Zorki for the accessory shoe and for spare parts in case I ever need them. What do you guys think?

 

[harry01562]

I'd email someone like Oleg, and ask if they have any parts. Being in Europe, he should be able to mail a couple at fairly low cost. A very slight adjustment with a small pry bar may work wonders with one that is too tight. Again, a slight tap with a large hammer can close a gap... repeat SLIGHT TAP...

Harry

 

[Nickfed]

It has the accessory shoe from hell.

Voightlander 50mm viewfinder with it but its so loose in the accessory shoe, it will easily fall out.

Voigtlander 35mm viewfinder on it. This time it wasn't loose at all but so tight

What do you guys think?

Nothing wierd, just absurd. Clearly, if one big bright Voigtlander finder is loose and the other big bright Voigtlander is tight, there is nothing wrong with the Zorki shoe and everything wrong with the Voigtlander feet. So e-mailing Oleg is pointless.
I think you are trying to tell us something else.

 

[Nando]

Thanks for responding.

I sent email to Oleg and also to Yuri at Fedka (from whom I bought the camera) a few days ago but I haven't gotten a response from them yet.

I tried to pry it open a bit more earlier. It didn't seem to budge. I can live with looseness I can just stick something in there to make the vf's snug. I've been examining the accessory shoe closely the last few minutes. I think that the problem is that on of the top flaps on the shoe wasn't cut straight. It's about 1mm wider at the top than at the bottom. It's hard to tell... I have to get a ruler to confirm. If that's the culprit then it might be that the flap might be brushing up on the centre stack on the foot. I noticed that the centre stack on the feet of my external vf's vary slightly in width. I don't really want to file it down either as I'm afraid that I might make it look bad.

I think you are trying to tell us something else.

What am I trying to tell you? I'm not really sure what you mean. Yes, I see your point and variations in the VF's obviously have crossed my mind. Indeed some of my vf's vary in fit on my modern cameras but they all fit and they all stay in the shoe. I also have other vf's besides the Voightlanders - I tried a Leitz VIOOH (too loose), a Leitz 135 SHOOC (too tight), a TEWE 35-200 (too tight), an FSU 35mm VF (too loose).

Really this is not that big of a deal for me. I'm enjoy using the camera very much as it is. I just found it puzzling and want to see if anybody had suggestions for a fix.

 

[Nando]

Ok... I found the culprit. The one of the metal flaps on the shoe is indeed slightly wider at end and it does brush against the centre stack on the feet of some of my vf's preventing them from entering all the way. I'll try carefully filing it down on the weekend. After that is solved, I'll try to solve the looseness problem.

Thanks.

 

[ZorkiKat]

Nando,

Don't file, just pry. The accessory shoes on the Zorki are made of folded metal which can be pried up or bent down to loosen or tighten, respectively. They can get deformed from several reasons. Remove the shoe from the top plate first before working on them. Lay them on a flat table and use screw drivers to gently pry the folds up. Or use pliers to gently bend them down.

Jay

 

[Xmas]

Jay is correct, a vice or flat faced pliers with rubber gloves on the pliers will allow the shoe to be 'flowed', but only do a little bit at a time and try the foot for fit, each sqeeze.

Noel

 

[reagan]

Except, as nando stated, he needs to make adjustment wider, not up and down. This could prove difficult without filing/polishing. Anyway, nando, good luck. I couldn't help but chuckle as I read your post. Zorkis are fun, aren't they? And you never know what they'll throw you. A guy can get one that works like a charm except for *juan pesky leeeedle thang* that will make you scratch a hole in your head. 🙁 :bang: 🙂

 

[Nando]

To make it perfect, for all my vf's, its seems that I only have one option. That is to file down the left flap a bit to allow for the vf's with the wide centre stack on their feet to enter the shoe. Then I must crimp the flaps down to tighten.

Yes, I can see that I can pry or crimp the flaps but that would only solve one of the problems. Crimping flaps down would make the loose vf's snug but wouldn't allow for my other vf's to fit. Prying the flaps up may make my vf's fit (I think I would have to pry up a lot) but keep the looseness problem.

My CV 50mm vf and my FSU 35mm vf are both loose fitting so I can crimp down the flaps and just use those two vf's. But then again, my CV 35mm vf is SO much better than the FSU.... I really wish that I could use my CV 35 vf.

I'm still looking for similar Zorki as a parts camera. If I get one, I'll try the accessory shoe on the parts camera first before proceeding with the surgery. It would be nice to also have a second shoe in case I foul up.

A J12 is now on its way to me 😀. So I now must fix the problem.... somehow.

 

[ZorkiKat]

Nando
If you must file, try not to overdo it. Filing can thin the shoe and cause it to weaken or even break. You have the option of having having a shoe made a machinist. Its a better option in the sense that you don't need to strip another Zorki for parts. The shoe starts off as a straight strip of aluminium (?) which is bent and formed.

BTW, I have found in a few instances when shoes between cameras (even between similar models) won't easily interchange. The screw holes on the shoe of one camera do not exactly correspond to the screw holes of another camera, making the shoe sit a bit askew.

Another option, to widen the channels in the shoe, is to reform it. With the shoe removed, insert a metal piece whose width is the same as the size of the foot of the device you wish to use with the shoe. Beat the substitute "foot" so that it forces itself into the shoe and thereby reform it to the desired size.

Jay

 

[Xmas]

Nando

I'm with Jay on file, i.e. dont use a file, but I dont have his skills with a hammer. I cold form the shoe with simple hand tools which is difficult but possible. This does not mar the finish detectably, if you wrap the tool in rubber fabric.
To be fair this is only critical if your camera is a shelf queen, but some are in really nice condition. if it is really bad already filing off the chrome for a fit is a lot easier.
If you have to close up a bend you will need to be very careful it is possible to collapse a shoe.
I'd not recommend cold forming aluminium, it is more practical with cartridge brass, but you still may need to heat treat between steps.

Noel

 

[Nando]

Thanks for the advise guys.

I haven't ruled out going to a machinist to fabricate a new accessory shoe but it seems that it would be more trouble than its worth.

If I file, I just need to file a bit over 0.5mm off the edge of the left flap on accessory shoe. I attached a quick diagram demonstrating the problem. If I file, I would file down to the red line on the diagram. So, as you can see, there is obviously going to be a bright mark along the edge of that flap. Not a big deal. My Zorki is quite a nice looking camera but its far from being in perfect condition with some bright marks and scuffs here and there. It's not going to be a shelf queen. 😀 That said, a few marks and bright spots on the accessory shoe is not going to be a big deal. There are already some marks there and it looks like a previous owner may had done some adjustments to the shoe before. I'm more concerned with accidentally breaking the shoe somehow when crimping or prying. If I crimp or pry, I will be heating it up slightly to help prevent that.

 

[Screwy]

If all else fails Nando make a quick drawing with widths and hole spacing and I'll knock you an accessory shoe up at work 😉


Paul

 

[Nando]

Thanks for the offer Paul. Gotta love RFF. I'll see what I can do and if I really screw up then its nice to know that I have something to fall back on. 🙂

 

[dee]

Hmmm ... I guess with a Zorki , nothing is certain I have several ''bitsa '' Leica - badged Zorkis / Feds , so the chances of each of 'em actually working beyond the 60 day trial period are not good !
That , I am told , is the'' joy '' of using the little beasts !

 

[Nando]

Yes, I can see that quirky or unreliable nature of these cameras is part of their appeal. I've seen similar phenomenon with automobile enthusiasts. I know a few people who actually look forward to their classic cars breaking down. Indeed, one of the reasons why I wanted a Fed or Zorki was because I wouldn't be too afraid to tinker with it.

I just bought another Zorki 1c for parts. It wasn't that much money though shipping costs of $20 is almost as much as the camera. I'll have the spare accessory shoe I wanted. I also wanted to get a spare take-up pool just in case. Cosmetically, it looks nice. Mechanically, the shutter speeds 'Z', 1/20th and 1/30th do not work, according to the seller. I plan on taking the this camera apart to familiarize myself with how it works. Perhaps I can even fix it myself. It will be a good learning experience.

I'll try my luck with the replacement accessory shoe.