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Harlee
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, May 24, 2005 - 07:20 am: | 
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I hesitate in asking this again, but I would really like to know how to adjust the shutter curtain tension on a Fed 5C. With the back and bottom off, there are two 4 spur-like gears on the bottom left of the camera held by set screws. Are these the tension adjustments for the shutter curtains? If so, which one controls which curtain, and in which direction does each spur need to go to increase tension? Or, is the tension adjustment on the right side where the gears are? I would like to tighten the tension of the second curtain slightly, and temporarily, to see if I can free it up a bit. If that doesn't work, then it's surgery on the slow speed escapement or a CLA. Thanks! |
Jon Goodman
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, May 24, 2005 - 09:03 am: |
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Hi, Harlee. The two spur-like gears you mentioned are actually lock nuts. The screws going through the center of the lock nuts provide the tension adjustments for the curtains, and there should be two lock screws to keep the lock nuts from turning. As I recall, counterclockwise rotation increases curtain tension, but I'll admit I always have to stop and think about this with the camera in hand. You turn the screw the opposite direction that the wheel drawing in the shutter curtain will be turning to increase tension. Also, there should be a drop of paint or varnish to keep the shutter tension screws from turning. A suggestion: Usually the shutter tension is fine in these. Often, what causes many of the shutter problems is stickiness up top or dirt/gumminess in the lower gear--the large gear at the bottom of the curtain drum. I think I'd look upstairs first and downstairs second. As for tension, I normally give the first opening curtain 4 or 5 turns and the second curtain about 3 turns. You want the first curtain to pull across the opening sharply, but not with force. You want the second curtain to pull across the opening with a little less vigor. The shutter will be smoother and quieter if you can run it at a lesser spring tension. Good luck.
Jon
Jon |
harlee
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, May 24, 2005 - 10:39 am: |
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Thank you Jon. You have at least given me something to start out with. Harlee |
Glenn Middleton
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, May 24, 2005 - 08:19 pm: |
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Harlee,Just try a 2mm drop of WD 40 on each main gearwheel if the lub has gone off and check the two light baffles.I have not worked on a 5C but I assume that the internal baffles are removeable or adustable as in earlier FEDs.If they are not adjusted properly it is possible for the baffles to catch the second curtain and restrict its movement.
Glenn |
Tony Duell
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, May 25, 2005 - 12:32 pm: |
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Please don't put Wanton Destruction 40 anywhere near a camera (or any other precision instrument for that matter). You will find it leaves a waxy deposit behind after a few weeks that will really jam things up. If you need to lubricate something, use good-quality watch or clock oil.
Thinking back to the original problem with the FED 5, IIRC the fast speeds were OK, but on the slow speeds the second curtain was very slow. Now, on the fast speeds the 2 curtains effectively move together (forming a slit that moves across the frame), so if, for any reason, the 2 curtains are sticking together, you would not have problems with the fast speeds, but the slow speeds would be slow.
I think it's unlikely that the curtains themselves are sticking, but if this shutter is like all other FED shutters (and for that matter Leica ones), there's a shaft at the RHS of the shutter (with the speed dial on top) that has 2 disks to carry the first curtain tapes and a roller between them to carry the second curtain. The roller is supposed to move freely on the shaft, as it the latching cam-thing (you can see this under the disk with holes that the shutter speed selection cam drops into). If the lubricant on those has gone sticky, you might well get exactly the effect described.
The roller is quite hard to get to (especially as you want to keep oil away from the curtains/tapes), but the speed setting mechanism is not hard to take apart (this was my first ever camera repair, admittedly on a Zorki without slow speeds), and it should be quite easy to put 1 drop of oil between the second curtain latch cam and the spindle. |
Harlee
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, May 25, 2005 - 08:18 pm: |
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Wow, thank you all for your input. A few years ago, I purchased my first Fed 5C, which takes really great pics using the Cds internal meter. I've never had to touch that one. This 2nd new black one, I'll hang on to for a while and then probably sell it. I would sort of hate to mess with it simply because it's new and never had a roll of film run through it. But I'll think about it and perhaps one day I'll be moved to take it apart. What I should do, is to pick up a junker to practice on, but I see that the Ruskies have raised their prices and shipping to the US. Next week, I'll be in Volgograd [formally Stalingrad], and I may be able to pick one up at an open air market for a song. I'll also be looking for a good M42 50MM lens for my Zenit 12XP which really takes great pictures. I adjusted the light meter so that it is right on and it gave me some really neat pics when I was in St. Petersburg last November. Spaciba Bolshoi and Dosvadonia! Harlee |
Glenn Middleton
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, May 25, 2005 - 09:33 pm: |
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Have used WD 40 for over 10 years to resurect various FED/Zorki and lub the mirror damper flywheel on my collection of Canon A series and never had a problem.My old employer subjected this product to a stringent series of lab tests before accepting as Industry Standard, so I am happy to use it in the 1mm and 2mm drop aplication.
Now I have a FED 2nd curtain roller assembly in my hand as I write.Because of the way the tape discs are constructed you will never get a drop of oil to penetrate down into the curtain drum by going about it as you sujjest,it is physically impossible.The only way is to use a very thin needle oiler and go between the curtain and the top and bottom tapes.The clearances are so large that the curtain drum will run quite happily without any lub,but the only certain way to lub the drum/shaft is to remove the bottom tape roller and remove the curtain drum.I regularly use a Zorki 1D which I dunk cleaned and only put lub on the gears and speed selector mech.The curtain rollers run dry and the speeds are near enough and have been constant over the 18 months it has been in use.
I still think that as this camera is 'new'it wants everything loosening off and setting up properly.The 5C was just thrown together,a common fault is that the tapes do not wind evenly onto the rollers and catch the baffles. |
Glenn Middleton
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, May 26, 2005 - 09:58 am: |
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By coincidence 5hrs after I posted above the post delivered item 7514173006 from ebay.A FED 3 and Zorki 4 purchased to get the undamaged screws for another project.Nikolai is dead straight and his indication of mint screw-heads was spot on and £14.00 all in was cheap.Examination proved that the
FED 3 had the declared jammed shutter.The excess 2nd curtain all crinkled up indicated that the limit gear was missing or not engaged properly.Removing limit gear allowed shutter to cock,replaced gear.Shutter now fired but stopped halfway.Examination of speed dial indicated that knob was not in correct position.This is easily corrected,just count the indents.Shutter now fired on all settings,stopped half way on all speeds and no slow speeds.Cocked shutter,set 1/1000 and then slapped the camera hard on the tripod bush.Noise of slow speed escapement running down.Shutter then worked properly on all fast speeds.Setting slow speeds reproduced failure again.Answer to problem is the beehive spring on slow speed escapement is weak or corroded and once set the escapement will not run down.This causes the peg on the escapement annulus gear to stop the main shaft fully rotating. Camera now has top off and spring is rusty and thinned.I think people pick the unit up by the spring shaft and moist fingers start the rot.A couple of hours work will see me convert the escapement to work off a watch spring and now I have a problem.The FED is in a good state except for worn vinyl and paint,so I suppose I will resurrect it.The Zorki also had unjammed high speeds after a slap but it also has no pressure plate and so will end in the parts bin and provide some of those screws.
Harlee,get yourself a junker and learn on that.However make sure that it is complete and get the best looking one you can afford.These cameras are so easy to fix and it is so annoying to do a successful repair job and not be able to use it.That is what started me off on my 2nd! repair job many years ago. |
Harold
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, May 26, 2005 - 06:31 pm: |
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Hey Glenn, it sounds as though you've had a lot of experience with these Ruskie Zorkies and Feds. In your estimation, which model would you consider the best of the lot? I don't see much in here on the Kievs [Contax] - how do you think they compare with the Zs and Fs? Thanks for all your input. Harlee |
Mark Pearce
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, May 26, 2005 - 06:59 pm: |
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I don't see much in here on the Kievs [Contax] - how do you think they compare with the Zs and Fs? Thanks for all your input. Harlee
IMO the Kievs, especially those made before 1960, are head and shoulders above any Fed or Zorki.
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Glenn Middleton
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, May 26, 2005 - 09:24 pm: |
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Quite agree about the pre 1960 Kievs as I have a couple.The early one appears to have many original Contax parts but I do not know if it was assembled from war booty or if it has just been rebuilt a few times.Also I find them a pig to work on.
I basically build specials out of early Zorki 1D models.Apart from the early soft alloy body I find the Zorki 1 body casting is better than the FED 1.The early Zorki 1D are easier to recover because they do not have the raised metal around the lens only around top and bottom.Much easier to cut the leatherette.I have just parted out a FED 1 from the last batch made and frankly the standard of engineering was crap.The earlier ones were much better made and set up.I make adapters so that I can attach M42 wide angle lenses and yes I do modify so the range finder works or I set up to mount my M39 Leica lenses.I always have at least one in my pocket and always use BW.The restricted shutter range is no problem.The cameras only stand me the time it took to construct and the very cheap but good M42 optics or the genuine Russian items (Jupiter 8 and 12) that I use.The cameras are just dropped in the Barbour Jacket pockets and go any where.I have had one completely saturated before now and my Spaniel bitch retrieved one body that she thought I had left on a bench!I have an early FED 2 which is quite nice and the FED 2 and Zorki 4 mentioned in earlir post seem well constructed.The Zorki is from 1966, the FED is serial 8262100.However I do not like removable backs so really only work on the type 1 cameras not that there is much difference anyway
FED and Zorki cameras are not precision instruments.The clearances on most are so large that they will work without lub but they are simple,can be set up accurately and repaired easily.The type 1 is a small camera that goes unnoticed.I also use my Leicas but as most are in vg/mint condition ,I would like them to go to my son in a similar state and quite frankly are now too valuable to have stuffed in a pocket-mores the pity. |
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