R2A difficult to rewind.

[butch]

Is a very stiff rewind typical of the one you own?

 

[bmattock]

Is a very stiff rewind typical of the one you own?

Should be very, very, easy. Question - and please, no insult intended. You are pushing in the little button on the bottom of the camera before you begin to rewind, aren't you?

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks

 

[wintoid]

I've had an R3a and now an R2a. In both cases I found the rewind somewhat stiff compared to other cameras I've owned. I did ask about it before, but other people didn't feel the same way in general.

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=14068

 

[butch]

No offense taken. After a few Evan Williams and water I might actually forget to push the botton. Next time I'll try holding the button in. Maybe it's like the leica botton rewind. This thing is so stiff that I fear I'll bend the little crank that they brag about being machined. I'm used to an M3 that was butted smooth, and Canon P that cricks and creaks but is still relatively smooth. Were I the original owner, it would go back.

 

[f/stopblues]

Sometimes I need to hold the button in for a couple of turns to get it going. That usually only happens on rolls of 36, and maybe once in five or six rolls.

 

[petebown]

My R2A is fine and so was my previous camera - a Bessa R.

What's the rewind like with no film in the camera?

Could be one of three problems... The rewind crank, the wind-on spool or maybe the film itself.

It may be worth wasting an old film by rewinding it with the back open in order to isolate the problem.

On most manual rewind cameras, the rewind button on the bottom of the camera de-clutches the wind-on spool so that it disengauges from the wind-on lever and can run backwards. The rewind button should stay depressed until you wind on again. Make sure that its fully pressed in or the spool may not fully de-clutch.

 

[butch]

Thanks, Chris. I'll try that next time. I've shot only 36 exposure rolls and it's been stiff on all of them. Maybe it needs to be broken in. It was virtually new when I made the trade.

 

[butch]

Pete, Works fine with no film. Have shot provia, Tri X, and HP5+. Same difficulty on all. Was well impressed with the build of the camera. Surprised at the lack of apparent plastic. I can live with it the way it is. It's a shame that the over all function is so good, except for this. If there is any plastic in the drive mechanism, I'll find out soon. Something would be bound to strip.

 

[Fred]

Personally from rewinding a roll in my Bessa R today, yes it was a tad harder than my leica M (not by that much) but I guess it's just the character of the camera. I've not heard of broken films mid rewind from Bessas.

Hope this puts your mind at ease a tad.

 

[ZeissFan]

Here's what you should check with the camera empty after you press the rewind button:

1) Does the spindle with the sprockets spin freely in a counterclockwise direction?

2) How much effort is required to move the film takeup spindle in a counterclockwise direction?

I suspect that the takeup spindle is tight.

You might want to waste part of a roll of film by loading the camera and firing off a few blanks -- three or four frames should be plenty. Then pop open the back, mark the film with a Sharpie or permanent marker. Now remove the film canister, press the rewind button and simply pull the film from the takeup spindle and see how much resistance there is.

As a comparison, you might want to try this on another camera.

Reload the R2A with the film and fire off a few blanks until you get back to your mark on the film. Now, with the back open, press the rewind button and rewind the film using the crank and again, see how much effort is required.

Again, try this with another camera.

There should be some resistance, but certainly not so much that you fear bending the rewind crank. If nothing changes, it's possible that your camera's takeup spindle is simply too tight.

 

[Vagabond]

My R2a also has exhibited a stiff rewind since when I had purchased it. When all of the film is almost rewound it is the most noticable. I have taken an old outdated roll of film and run it through a number of times to try to loosen things up. It is quite a bit better now than what it was but nowhere near the "free spool" feeling that I get with my SLRs.

 

[butch]

Zeissfan, Vagabon, and others,
Thanks for the interest and tips. After work I sacrificed a roll of film. Ran it through at least 30 times. There may be some improvement, but all I can say for sure is that I have a stiff crank. Not many 60 years old can say that. I'll live with that.

 

[ClaremontPhoto]

The rewind is fairly small so you have to use a bit more effort to turn it compared to an average SLR, for example.

 

[galaxenspreside]

My experience with my R3a is similar. Your posts here made me feel more comfortable.

In the very begining the advance/shutter cock krank gave quite som resistance as well.

Regards
/Richard

 

[Alicouscous]

Here's what you should check with the camera empty after you press the rewind button:

1) Does the spindle with the sprockets spin freely in a counterclockwise direction?

2) How much effort is required to move the film takeup spindle in a counterclockwise direction?

I suspect that the takeup spindle is tight.

You might want to waste part of a roll of film by loading the camera and firing off a few blanks -- three or four frames should be plenty. Then pop open the back, mark the film with a Sharpie or permanent marker. Now remove the film canister, press the rewind button and simply pull the film from the takeup spindle and see how much resistance there is.

As a comparison, you might want to try this on another camera.

Reload the R2A with the film and fire off a few blanks until you get back to your mark on the film. Now, with the back open, press the rewind button and rewind the film using the crank and again, see how much effort is required.

Again, try this with another camera.

There should be some resistance, but certainly not so much that you fear bending the rewind crank. If nothing changes, it's possible that your camera's takeup spindle is simply too tight.

i have the same problem on a Bessa R , rewinding is heavy .
I've checked the take up spool and yes it looks too tight , hard to turn in counterclockwise direction but no problem in winding direction .
Do you think it's easy to fix ? if someone could give infos it would be fine ^^