Zeiss Ikon Focus Problems

[the_jim]

Hi, this is my first post. I've enjoyed reading this forum for a while, but have been discouraged from signing up due to the ridiculous email policy (no yahoo? no hotmail?). Anyway, glad to be here now.

I have a question: I recently purchased a slightly used Zeiss Ikon and Planar 50/2. At first, things seemed to be going swimmingly, but a couple of days ago, on a whim, I decided to check the infinity focus. I was surprised to find that the superimposed image was off both vertically and horizontally. I have a couple of other cheap-o fixed lens rangefinders and their infinity focus matches perfectly (or nearly so). Then, I went back and looked at my pictures and it seems that the area where I focused was soft, but just slightly infront of that point was sharp.

Ok, so the question(s):
1. Is this something I should attempt to fix myself? Is that an easy thing to do? Or, since, I bought it used, it's not under warranty from the retailer, but I do live in Japan, so it should be easy enough to send it back to Cosina (and just pay for repairs out of pocket).

2. Is this a bad sign? I mean, my other rangefinders - an Olypus 35 SP and Yashica GSN are old and worn, and the infinity focus is fine. My Ikon, is used but looks mint, and couldnt be much more than a year old. Perhaps the original owner got rid of it, because it was a lemon?

Anyway, your feedback would be much appreciated here. I really like this camera and lens.

 

[ZeissFan]

I would have it repaired by a qualified repairman, rather than tackle the job yourself. Or better yet, as you suggest, I probably would send it to Cosina and have them adjust it. After all, they are the contract manufacturer of this camera.

If you bought a used camera, then anything is possible. Perhaps the previous owner dropped the camera while it was in a camera bag or the box and it was knocked out of alignment. Perhaps it was out from the beginning. In any case, it's worth fixing.

A misaligned rangefinder doesn't make the camera a lemon. It's just a camera with a misaligned rangefinder. If the shutter were faulty or it leaked light, that would be another issue.

 

[the_jim]

Thanks for the reply! I'll go to the store where I bought it and see what they suggest. It's just depressing, because I shelled out a chunk of change for it, and its just not up to snuff, yet.

More than anything, I am struggling with the transition from primarily shooting with an SLR. I have purchased used Nikons that look like they may have been run-over, exploded, smashed or in some other way damaged and they worked great.

I guess that would be my only gripe with the camera so far - It's fairly well built, but lacks a feeling of real ruggedness.

 

[ZeissFan]

The rangefinder system in this camera is much more complex than an SLR, which in most cases includes a mirror, eyepiece, focusing screen and pentaprism.

The Zeiss Ikon rangefinder has 10 optical elements, which include four lenses and six prisms, as well as three pieces of optically flat glass, a small frame restrictor (or that's what it looks like) and another piece that holds the frame lines.

All of these need to be in precise alignment.

Most of the Japanese fixed-lens rangefinders will have two mirrors, two pieces of flat glass and an eyepiece. Occasionally, you'll find a lens element between the mirrors.

The Zeiss Ikon is a well made camera. It's not one that I think you could throw around like a Nikon, but it's durable and should stand up to hard use.

But I agree that the Nikon F cameras are about as tough as they come. No doubt about it.

I hope you have a lot of fun with the Zeiss Ikon.