Super Ikonta - dim rangefinder - remedies?

[Bluesman]

Hi guys. Got into the 120 folder dept today, got myself a so-so decent Ikonta. Only one pinhole in a bellows corner, Compur-Rapid shutter with sticky slow speeds, a 105/3,5 Tessar (looks uncoated, but...there might just be the faintest blue glow inside the outer element). All in all, not bad.

This camera has the usually dim viewfinder, but also a rangefinder that is really dim. What material are the rangefinder lenses on the camera body made of? It looks like some early plastic - maybe celluloid? It´s certainly not glass, and if it is glass, it´s matte.

What can I do to brighten up the rangefinder? It works, and calibrates well.
Can I get the top assembly off, without disturbing any prisms etc inside? What can be "serviced" (by a moron like me) inside?

The viewfinder is a different story. I guess I will have to make do with it or get myself a Moskva as a donor.

Tips for this problem are welcome, as always.

Cheers /Richard

 

[Gradskater]

this might work temporarily

http://rick_oleson.tripod.com/index-165.html

 

[literiter]

There are a few models of Super Ikonta. Somehow I'm assuming you may have the Super Ikonta C or 531/2 (6x9). These are truly marvelous cameras. The quality of the images it can produce is extraordinary. But...... please take a picture of the camera so the rest of us can see what you've got. Then myself and lots of others can advise you.

Vincent

 

[FallisPhoto]

Hi guys. Got into the 120 folder dept today, got myself a so-so decent Ikonta. Only one pinhole in a bellows corner, Compur-Rapid shutter with sticky slow speeds, a 105/3,5 Tessar (looks uncoated, but...there might just be the faintest blue glow inside the outer element). All in all, not bad.

This camera has the usually dim viewfinder, but also a rangefinder that is really dim. What material are the rangefinder lenses on the camera body made of? It looks like some early plastic - maybe celluloid? It´s certainly not glass, and if it is glass, it´s matte.

What can I do to brighten up the rangefinder? It works, and calibrates well.
Can I get the top assembly off, without disturbing any prisms etc inside? What can be "serviced" (by a moron like me) inside?

The viewfinder is a different story. I guess I will have to make do with it or get myself a Moskva as a donor.

Tips for this problem are welcome, as always.

Cheers /Richard

Which model? There are several different ones and some are very different from others. Also, I don't believe plain old Ikontas have rangefinders. As far as I am aware, only Mess Ikontas and Super Ikontas do.

If the problem is the viewfinder glass, or the small circular glass panes on the top of the camera body, try rubbing it/them between folds of soft cotton cloth with a little toothpaste -- yeah toothpaste (an old watchmaker's trick for brightening watch crystals). Works great for plain glass and plastic, just don't do this with any kind of lens, mirror or prism. Also, I'm not sure what you mean by rangefinder lenses. Rangefinders don't usually have lenses; they have plain flat panes of glass and a couple of mirrors or prisms. I don't have every model of rangefinder, or even every Super Ikonta though, so I'm not going to state flatly that they all do.

 

[Bluesman]

Thanks - that one worked! It´s a Super Ikonta 530/2, 6x9, BTW. The viewfinder is too dim to rescue, so I will have to find a Moskva finder/finder housing, but in the meantime the rangefinder glasses are at least useable! Took the housing off, and polished the lenses in situ vith cotton pads. A lot clearer.

Cheers /Richard (happily taking the Ikonta out for a spin today)

 

[FallisPhoto]

Thanks - that one worked! It´s a Super Ikonta 530/2, 6x9, BTW. The viewfinder is too dim to rescue, so I will have to find a Moskva finder/finder housing, but in the meantime the rangefinder glasses are at least useable! Took the housing off, and polished the lenses in situ vith cotton pads. A lot clearer.

Cheers /Richard (happily taking the Ikonta out for a spin today)

Polishing the viewfinder glass with toothpaste didn't work? Okay, this is a little more agressive: try Brasso on it. This should brighten it a lot, but it will take a while. That's another old trick, by the way, used by owners of antique and vintage cars for brightening yellowed vintage glass. You have little to lose by trying it, if you are considering replacement. The toothpaste would have gotten you to the same place eventually, but if it's bad, it can take hours.