Upset with my Nokton 50/1.5

[BrianPhotog]

I have a Jupiter-8. I have a 52/2.8 Industrar, too. Both were bought off the 'bay for less then 20 bucks. I also have a CV Nokton 50/1.5. I won't say what I paid for it, but will say that I could've probably purchased every single Jupiter-8 BIN on eBay at the time for the same price.

Can you guys guess which one is falling apart? 😡

Yeah, the CV Nokton. The barrel in front of (the one that holds the frontmost element) and behind the aperture ring are loose to the point of almost falling out. The aperture ring itself works fine and is still held in place.

Anyone know where the screw is hidden to tighten these? It's not on the focusing ring as with the 35/1.7 ultron.

TIA

 

[taffer]

Awk, sorry to hear that ! 🙁 😡

The first question crossing my mind, is there any option for you to contact the seller and tell him/her about this ? I'm sure I have read similar things about some Ultrons but can't recall of the Nokton. Have you tried asking this on the CVUG list as well ?

Regards,

Oscar

 

[Nearsighted]

I hope your lens is the exception and not the rule Brian. I just recieved mine this weekend. So far it hasn't shown any of the symptoms of loosining up. But I'll be watching. I would attempt the the fix myself before shelling out $150.00 or $175.00 to anyone for a 15 min. fix. Thanks for the link Roland. Good luck with the repair Brian. Please keep us posted on what you do and the outcome. Jim

 

[BrianPhotog]

Just an update...I didn't have a proper tool to unscrew the nameplate ring and didn't want to try and "make" the proper tool out of another tool, so I headed down to a small repair shop I know to see if I could buy one. I explained the issue with the lens to the shop owner who said that he'd fix it for me for NT$600 (~US$17).

I'll get it back tomorrow 🙂

 

[rich815]

Sorry to hear of this problem. Possible solution: Jupiter-3!

 

[kmack]

Other than the obvious fit and finish problems, are you satisfied with the kind of images you get from the lens?

 

[Bertram2]

Just an update...I didn't have a proper tool to unscrew the nameplate ring and didn't want to try and "make" the proper tool out of another tool, so I headed down to a small repair shop I know to see if I could buy one. I explained the issue with the lens to the shop owner who said that he'd fix it for me for NT$600 (~US$17).

I'll get it back tomorrow 🙂

This prob is well known for some (younger) Leica lenses too, no reason to lose the confidence in the product tho.
Could have something to do with a certain mix of material inside, makes some lenses more sensitive at this point than others.

bertram

 

[BrianPhotog]

Sorry to hear of this problem. Possible solution: Jupiter-3!

LOL I have a Jupiter 8 and Industrar 61 already. No need 😛

 

[BrianPhotog]

More then satisfied. It puts the Nikkor I had to shame. And this isn't the first lens I've had to get fixed, just the first lens I've had to have repaired so quickly after purchase. It was a small thing though, so no big deal.

Since getting it back on Tuesday it's been stuck to my R2...I missed it 🙂

 

[BrianPhotog]

Could have something to do with a certain mix of material inside, makes some lenses more sensitive at this point than others.

bertram

One thing I like about mechanical lenses...old guys in small shops with a magnifying glass and little screwdriver can fix them. No need to "send them back" to wherever 🙂

 

[x-ray]

In the mid 80's I owned a Rollei 3003 kit. My 35mm Zeiss Distagon f1.4 came apart and the front element almost fell out. I bought the lens new and had it about six months when this happened. I've also had two Canon 24-79 f2.8 L lenses come apart. One came apart the second day I had it and the replacement came apart about a month out of warranty. Even out of warranty Canon repaired it free in 24 hours and paid shipping.

It's a bummer when that happens but it's life.


http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost/showgallery.php?cat=5045

 

[Bertram2]

One thing I like about mechanical lenses...old guys in small shops with a magnifying glass and little screwdriver can fix them. No need to "send them back" to wherever 🙂

Yes, and a this point your Nokton prob is less dramatic than the probs some had with their new Leica lenses, falling apart soon after arrival. This wasn't that easy to fix because somebody at Leica had the idea to replace screws by glue.

Bertram

 

[fgianni]

This wasn't that easy to fix because somebody at Leica had the idea to replace screws by glue.

Bertram

Bertram

I really hope you are joking here!
I can't believe the legendary Leica quality includes.. erm... glue

 

[Bertram2]

Bertram

I really hope you are joking here!
I can't believe the legendary Leica quality includes.. erm... glue

I haven't seen it myself, but at least this was reported to me by a Leica owner and concerned some modern Summilux lenses, bought durin' the last two years , with optical elements getting loose or falling apart soon.
"Glue" must mean using cement instead of a screw mounted socket, for the elements, the traditionally decisive point where effort and price differ in lens design.

It would not surprise me if it would turn out to be true, because if a company is under such an enormous economical pressure like Leica it can happen that engineers look for niches in the design which leave room for cost reduction.
The brick-like feeling of the product and the undestroyable quality image will cover such shortsighted decisions for a very limited time tho.


Regards,
Bertram

 

[BrianPhotog]

well, I've had no problems with my nokton 40 purchased from Stephen Gandy at cameraquest. ... I'm a happy camper and the nokton is a powerful lens ---- a heck of a lot cheaper than a noctilux... I could buy 10 noktons for the price of a noctilux...

The issue I had seems to be common with the 35 Ultron & 50 Nokton, so you're probably safe. But like I said, besides this "quibble", I'm very happy with it 🙂

 

[hth]

I have not seen it either, but from what I understand it can happen if you attach/detach by applying force to the front of the lens rather than the back of it (next to the body), where you are supposed to.

I would not be surprised if this change is to prevent people from doing DIY repairs and covering it up easily. Somehow I would feel a bit more happy to buy a second hand lens that I know Joe Average cannot take apart and put together again on the kitchen table...

/Håkan

I haven't seen it myself, but at least this was reported to me by a Leica owner and concerned some modern Summilux lenses, bought durin' the last two years , with optical elements getting loose or falling apart soon.
"Glue" must mean using cement instead of a screw mounted socket, for the elements, the traditionally decisive point where effort and price differ in lens design.

It would not surprise me if it would turn out to be true, because if a company is under such an enormous economical pressure like Leica it can happen that engineers look for niches in the design which leave room for cost reduction.
The brick-like feeling of the product and the undestroyable quality image will cover such shortsighted decisions for a very limited time tho.


Regards,
Bertram

 

[jcline]

Why sacrafice quality for anything? If it only takes a couple months of removing the lens by the front for things to loosen up, how long is it going to last?

I have not seen it either, but from what I understand it can happen if you attach/detach by applying force to the front of the lens rather than the back of it (next to the body), where you are supposed to.

I would not be surprised if this change is to prevent people from doing DIY repairs and covering it up easily. Somehow I would feel a bit more happy to buy a second hand lens that I know Joe Average cannot take apart and put together again on the kitchen table...

/Håkan