Dez
Bodger Extraordinaire
Some people have the opinion that it is some kind of sacrilege for a Nikon accessory to come from anywhere other than Nikon Kogaku K.K., and even worse if it did not cost its weight in gold. Or platinum. Or myrrh. But it turns out that with a little bit of ingenuity, you can come up with some useful stuff.
The Nikon Varifocal finder is among the best of the lot of multi-FL accessory finders for RF cameras. Unfortunately, to have it cover the 28mm focal length, an accessory lens is required: this is very scarce, and typically costs three times as much as the finder itself. I figure this is crazy for something which is after all just a simple meniscus lens. It turns out to be ridiculously easy to make one of these devices for ten bucks.
Start out with a Series V filter adapter, which fits over the front of the finder. The finder diameter is exactly 30mm. For $4.00, I found a nominally 30mm push-on Series V adapter on ebay. Although it even has the 30mm dimension engraved on it, it turned out to be a tiny bit smaller, so I had to relieve the inside of the mounting flange a tad with my lathe. One that is a bit too big might be called for here- you can always glue a strip of fabric or leather on the inside of the mounting flange to make it fit snugly.
I broke off three of the little tabs of the mounting flange so it would clear the mount on the bottom of the finder. The length of the flange tabs on my adapter was short enough so that the index dots on the Varifocal finder were still visible.
The lens itself is a 32mm diameter, -140mm FL (i.e. -7 dioptre) meniscus from Edmunds Optical, which costs all of $6.00. It is their part number 74309. This diameter fits nicely into a Series V ring without the retaining ring, and is glued in place. The lens is rather thick, and protrudes slightly outside the adapter ring. I have painted the rim of the lens black.
The finished product looks good, fits well, provides about 95% of the field of a 28mm lens, and fits properly in a yellow-and-black Kodak Series V plastic case. It's a bit thicker than the genuine article, but then again I am used to accusations of being a bit thick myself from time to time, so I guess that is appropriate.
Cheers,
Dez
The Nikon Varifocal finder is among the best of the lot of multi-FL accessory finders for RF cameras. Unfortunately, to have it cover the 28mm focal length, an accessory lens is required: this is very scarce, and typically costs three times as much as the finder itself. I figure this is crazy for something which is after all just a simple meniscus lens. It turns out to be ridiculously easy to make one of these devices for ten bucks.
Start out with a Series V filter adapter, which fits over the front of the finder. The finder diameter is exactly 30mm. For $4.00, I found a nominally 30mm push-on Series V adapter on ebay. Although it even has the 30mm dimension engraved on it, it turned out to be a tiny bit smaller, so I had to relieve the inside of the mounting flange a tad with my lathe. One that is a bit too big might be called for here- you can always glue a strip of fabric or leather on the inside of the mounting flange to make it fit snugly.
I broke off three of the little tabs of the mounting flange so it would clear the mount on the bottom of the finder. The length of the flange tabs on my adapter was short enough so that the index dots on the Varifocal finder were still visible.
The lens itself is a 32mm diameter, -140mm FL (i.e. -7 dioptre) meniscus from Edmunds Optical, which costs all of $6.00. It is their part number 74309. This diameter fits nicely into a Series V ring without the retaining ring, and is glued in place. The lens is rather thick, and protrudes slightly outside the adapter ring. I have painted the rim of the lens black.
The finished product looks good, fits well, provides about 95% of the field of a 28mm lens, and fits properly in a yellow-and-black Kodak Series V plastic case. It's a bit thicker than the genuine article, but then again I am used to accusations of being a bit thick myself from time to time, so I guess that is appropriate.
Cheers,
Dez
Phil_F_NM
Camera hacker
That is a fantastic DIY!
Phil Forrest
Phil Forrest
Nice work, Dez! So how much are you charging for these? 
Those viewfinders are the best. Nice hacking!
Dez
Bodger Extraordinaire
Nice work, Dez! So how much are you charging for these?
No, no, no... the whole point of a DIY project is to do it yourself, right? Besides, we wouldn't want to upset anyone by lowering the going price of a 28mm adapter, now would we?
What I think I may do, though is to try making another one of these, but take advantage of the lathe to fancy it up somewhat. Maybe a nice knurling on the rim........
Cheers,
Dez
Dez
Bodger Extraordinaire
Another one
Another one
I recently bought a big batch of series V stuff, and ended up with a few more adapters appropriate for a project like this, so I cranked out another one. Although the diameter of the Varifocal is exactly 30mm, I find that an a 30.5mm series V adapter is the best size to use, without doing any machining. I find that the cheapie dioptre lenses from Edmunds seem to have some imperfections. Both of the ones I bought had some chips, but what the heck, they cost $6.00.
Cheers,
Dez
Another one
I recently bought a big batch of series V stuff, and ended up with a few more adapters appropriate for a project like this, so I cranked out another one. Although the diameter of the Varifocal is exactly 30mm, I find that an a 30.5mm series V adapter is the best size to use, without doing any machining. I find that the cheapie dioptre lenses from Edmunds seem to have some imperfections. Both of the ones I bought had some chips, but what the heck, they cost $6.00.
Cheers,
Dez