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Berndtotto
Tinkerer
Username: Berndtotto
Post Number: 8
Registered: 03-2011
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, April 03, 2012 - 06:23 am: | 
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Hello everybody,
I bought a Konica EE matic recently and shot a first test film. A wonderful camera - one of the only very few selenium meter based auto exposure rangefinders ( Electric Eye technology ) and I would love to use it ... but it is leaking light and I have no idea why.
The pictures do look like that:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/30634008@N08/7041426499
The camera is obviously leaking light at the right upper side.
The leaking just occurs on the inner frame ( not on the perforation ) - so I thought, it must come from the front. But there is nothing between lens and film, what I can imagine to leak light. There is some kind of metal chamber and I also checked everything with a LED flash light ... nothing.
Also the shutter seems to work properly and it doesn't stick. Everything seems to work perfectly on that camera ( even the auto exposure function ) and there is also no damage visible.
I am used to light leaks on folders, but I never experienced, that any of my rangefinders in my collection has been leaking light.
Any idea would be much appreciated !!! |
Donnie_strickland
Tinkerer
Username: Donnie_strickland
Post Number: 146
Registered: 09-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, April 03, 2012 - 07:51 am: |
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The leak is at the lower left side of the camera. The image on the negative is "flipped" from that of a print or scan. Check your negatives.
This looks like a bad light seal on the back door. Check the seals carefully; if they are original they will no doubt need replacing. Jon Goodman has instructions for the very similar Konica Auto S2 here:
https://kyp.hauslendale.com/classics/seal/Konica_AutoS2.pdf |
Berndtotto
Tinkerer
Username: Berndtotto
Post Number: 9
Registered: 03-2011
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, April 04, 2012 - 06:05 am: |
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Thanks a lot Donnie !!! The seals are indeed rotten or not there anymore at all.
The thing is just ... I shot another test film today, taping the complete door and every slit from outside ... nothing changed. The camera is still light leaking in the same way. About 20% of the pictures haven't been affected at all, some slightly and some heavily. I also couldn't detect any system as the light leaking happened in strong and weak light, while taking horizontal pictures as well as vertical ones.
Here another two pictures from the test with the taped camera today.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/30634008@N08/7044656217/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/30634008@N08/6898560736/
If the camera is leaking from the lower left side ( you are right, I made a mistake in my mind ), where the hell does the light come from ??? I taped everything really carefully. Mysterious :-(((
Any other ideas ? |
Donnie_strickland
Tinkerer
Username: Donnie_strickland
Post Number: 147
Registered: 09-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, April 04, 2012 - 09:59 am: |
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The leak appears in various degrees because of the amount of time between shots. If you take several pictures in quick succession, they will not show as much effect from the leak. If you take a picture and let the camera sit, then the film will be more heavily fogged at the point of the leak.
Replace the light seals and try again. If you still have a leak then, it's time to look further. |
Dirbel
Tinkerer
Username: Dirbel
Post Number: 66
Registered: 04-2008
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, April 04, 2012 - 10:23 am: |
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Light leaking through the back door appears red in the prints. Your light leak seems to be somewhere in front of the film.
Dirk |
Berndtotto
Tinkerer
Username: Berndtotto
Post Number: 10
Registered: 03-2011
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, April 04, 2012 - 10:27 am: |
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But ... I taped the door and everything around pretty carefully ... and still ... so, how can it be the light seals ? |
Berndtotto
Tinkerer
Username: Berndtotto
Post Number: 11
Registered: 03-2011
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, April 04, 2012 - 10:33 am: |
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Thanks Dirk ... and I actually think so too, especially because the film perforation is not affected ( just the inner frame of each negative ). That would speak for this theory.
The question is: When it comes from the front, from where ? There are not many possibilities then. It can be the shutter, if not closing properly, but the shutter works fine. I checked it a hundred times at different light conditions. Also the exposure automatic seems to work very well. All pictures have been exposed properly ... except the light leaking. |
Dirbel
Tinkerer
Username: Dirbel
Post Number: 67
Registered: 04-2008
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, April 04, 2012 - 12:54 pm: |
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Put a light inside the camera and check on the outside if you see something. This is how you check camera bellows, should work here, too.
Dirk |
Berndtotto
Tinkerer
Username: Berndtotto
Post Number: 12
Registered: 03-2011
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, April 04, 2012 - 08:15 pm: |
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Dirk, that has been the first thing, I tried. I checked everything with a very bright LED flashlight ( in a dark room ) and also using a camera flash ... nothing. |
Br1078lum
Tinkerer
Username: Br1078lum
Post Number: 277
Registered: 11-2010
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, April 04, 2012 - 09:47 pm: |
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Are all the screws in the bottom of the camera? The flare of the leak indicates it might not be very apparent where it is coming from by shining a light inside (indirect path), but it's definitely from the lower area of the camera.
PF |
Berndtotto
Tinkerer
Username: Berndtotto
Post Number: 13
Registered: 03-2011
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, April 05, 2012 - 08:42 am: |
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All screws are there ... but the bottom plate is also not connected to the film chamber anyway.
I did more experiments today, taping the camera again ... the door and all slits plus the windows of ASA and film counter. I even taped the aperture lever ... and still, it is light leaking ... even with a closed lens cap. I am running out of ideas  |
Waynemel
Tinkerer
Username: Waynemel
Post Number: 159
Registered: 08-2009
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, April 05, 2012 - 08:54 am: |
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Could there be light leaking in from the rangefinder/viewfinder windows? I know this is not the lower left of the camera, but....
Can you post a photo of the camera itself, with the back open and closed? |
Br1078lum
Tinkerer
Username: Br1078lum
Post Number: 278
Registered: 11-2010
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, April 05, 2012 - 09:10 am: |
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Then I would suspect it's somewhere around the base of the lens mount, since you say it falls only within the frame, and not on the sprocket holes. Take all the tape off the camera, go into a totally dark room, load a roll of film, and using a flashlight with a small beam, work your way around the camera with it very close to the surface. Do the bottom film door seam first, advance the frame, and do the top door seam. Repeat advancing the frame for every part you expose to the flashlight, trying to remember what frame got what exposure (You could write a script for what sequence you will do it in, and follow that, while recording the frame numbers as you go). Even shine the light through the front of the lens with the cap off, and all around it with the cap on. You are bound to find it sooner or later.
PF |
Hollenbj
Tinkerer
Username: Hollenbj
Post Number: 14
Registered: 03-2012
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, April 05, 2012 - 11:29 am: |
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I like this last suggestion.
I had a Rollei35 once that had a mysterious light leak. Turned out to be a missing baffle around the rewind lever (or shutter release,can't remember now). Anyway, I was surprised because the location of the light leak didn't correlate with the fogging on the film.
Again, I think this last suggestion will pin it down, just remember to shine light on the rewind crank, advance lever, and shutter release too.
Good luck. |
Berndtotto
Tinkerer
Username: Berndtotto
Post Number: 14
Registered: 03-2011
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, April 05, 2012 - 08:41 pm: |
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Thanks everybody !!! Br1078lum's test is a good option. Also Hollenbjs comment made me think. Having a closer look at the rewind lever from inside, I spotted two tiny holes. One seems to be open ( I attached a picture ). I don't know, what they are for, but they might need to be normaly covered by screws or revets. I actually want to take the top of and check every possible light path into the inner chamber. How can it be removed ? I can't see any srews.
Here als a picture of the camera and the back open:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/30634008@N08/6895328074/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/30634008@N08/6895745426
Berndt |
Berndtotto
Tinkerer
Username: Berndtotto
Post Number: 15
Registered: 03-2011
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, April 08, 2012 - 07:19 am: |
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Yeah ... I finally found it !!! There is some kind of metal frame between the lens and the film door. It has been loose. As I taped it to the film door ( like on the picture ), the light leaks are gone.
Thanks everybody for thinking with me and I hope, it will help other people, facing the same problem. |
Donnie_strickland
Tinkerer
Username: Donnie_strickland
Post Number: 149
Registered: 09-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, April 08, 2012 - 09:28 am: |
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Glad you found it! |
Br1078lum
Tinkerer
Username: Br1078lum
Post Number: 280
Registered: 11-2010
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, April 09, 2012 - 08:23 am: |
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Now that was a strange one. Hope you don't find any other problems with it.
PF |
