| Author |
Message |
    
Maineiacbob
Tinkerer
Username: Maineiacbob
Post Number: 6
Registered: 05-2009
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, May 27, 2009 - 04:29 pm: | 
|
Anyone have a source for repair tools for the QL 17?
I want to either replace or fix the fungus on the front lens. I guess I could remove it and bathe it in something to kill the fungus? Anyone done this? Any suggestions?
Bob |
Rick_oleson
Tinkerer
Username: Rick_oleson
Post Number: 887
Registered: 07-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, May 27, 2009 - 05:32 pm: |
|
Have you checked the article at https://kyp.hauslendale.com/classics/canonetblade.html ? It includes a clever tool for the rear elements. For the front, you need a thin pointed spanner for the very thin aluminum retaining ring ... I grind down the points of a long needle nose plier for this. |
Maineiacbob
Tinkerer
Username: Maineiacbob
Post Number: 7
Registered: 05-2009
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, May 27, 2009 - 05:40 pm: |
|
Yes I did see this post on the rear lens. Thanks. So you have to make your own tools then? What are your thoughts on lens cleaning of fungus or maybe just replacement of a front lens if I can find one in good condition? |
Rick_oleson
Tinkerer
Username: Rick_oleson
Post Number: 888
Registered: 07-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, May 27, 2009 - 07:49 pm: |
|
That's what I do personally, for the most part... there are some nice tools at micro-tools.com - definitely a place worth looking at - remember that you get pretty much what you pay for, they have a broad range of price levels in many areas. For a spanner, you would probably want to get one of the more expensive ones in order to be able to get that front ring with it without making some modifications, they have some pretty neat ones with interchangeable tips.
As for fungus: it's a living organism that secretes chemicals that destroy glass (or at least they destroy magnesium fluoride, as far at the lens is concerned it's kind of the same difference). If you get it cleaned out before it has time to etch into the glass, then you've prevented terminal damage and saved the lens - just be watchful for any signs of a return of the fungus growth in the future. If the glass is already damaged, this damage is not repairable. The only way you can find out is to go in and clean the stuff off of the glass and see how it looks. A very small spot of fungus damage, even if unrepairable, may not be catastrophic - but it is still important to clean it out to stop the damage from spreading. Generally, I will not pay much for a lens with any sign of fungus, on the assumption that it will not be recoverable; but if I happen to have one I will try to clean it, and sometimes it works out okay.
I don't recommend replacing one element out of a lens, if you do a replacement I would replace the entire glass set together. Of course, if you have one element really trashed, and you have an opportunity to change that element and you can't change the entire lens, it's better than nothing. |
Maineiacbob
Tinkerer
Username: Maineiacbob
Post Number: 10
Registered: 05-2009
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, May 28, 2009 - 06:31 am: |
|
Thanks for all that info. I guess my lens then is toast. The spider web like veins are in several locations on the lens and I have tried toothpaste, denatured alcohol, etc. nothing budges it. Have not tried cigarette ashes since I do not smoke. Anyway, The QL17 is a very collectible camera so I guess I could sell it for parts? Your thoughts on repair or selling it.? |
Mojave_tom
Tinkerer
Username: Mojave_tom
Post Number: 4
Registered: 11-2009
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, November 10, 2009 - 08:42 pm: |
|
I hope someone is still checking this problem. The Canonette QL17 (GIII) has six elements in four groups. The front and rear groups consist of two lens bonded together with some kind of glue. It is this glue that the fungus attacks and grows in. I don't know of any way the lens can be seperated, therefore the fungus cannot be cleaned. But don't give up. I have taken pictures with fungus infected lens and they turned out great. Remember, the camera does not focus on the lens, but on the film plane. The fungus would tend to cut down on the light passing through the lens. Enough to affect exposure? Maybe, maybe not. But then you can always compensate for exposure. Use the camera. Find out for yourself. |
