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Clivec
Tinkerer
Username: Clivec
Post Number: 1
Registered: 02-2013
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, February 27, 2013 - 11:54 pm: | 
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As the title indicates, I am a complete novice to camera repair. I purchased a Kodak Signet 35 because I heard it had a great lens, but mostly because I loved the design.
The camera came to me with a few problems. Hazy viewfinder, a rangefinder misalignment (described below), and the film counter didn't seem to work.
Using http://pheugo.com/cameras/index.php?page=signet35 as a reference, I took the top off and cleaned off the glass surfaces with some rubbing alcohol and now it's no longer hazy (I did not touch the mirrored surface behind the rangefinder hole).
The rangefinder patch, curiously, instead of one triangle (as is normal for the Signet), shows two, mostly superimposed but slightly shifted horizontally on each other. This makes it rather dim to use.
By tracing the light path, I could not discern what would cause one triangle to split into two, though I suspect it's a misalignment.
I tried to calibrate the rangefinder and had some success with the hex nut under the aperture scale. They now seem to correspond with the triangle on the left, but I would need to verify infinity focus during the day.
What could be causing the misaligned triangle patch? What area should I be inspecting?
Onto the film counter issue, it looks like a rather simple mechanism. The reference site above talks about holding down a lever when re-attaching the cover, however, although I can manually pull back what I assume to be the pawl, it seems impossible to slip the cover back on without it snapping back in place. Maybe I'm holding the wrong thing down?
Any help would be greatly appreciated. Getting the viewfinder clear was a pretty big accomplishment for me, but fixing these two other issues would really make my week. |
Upnorthw
Tinkerer
Username: Upnorthw
Post Number: 25
Registered: 01-2007
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, February 28, 2013 - 12:04 pm: |
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Get a looped piece of thread through the hole under the aperture scale. Hook the loop on the short end of the pawl and pull it towards the front of the camera. Then put the top back on and pull out the thread. |
Clivec
Tinkerer
Username: Clivec
Post Number: 2
Registered: 02-2013
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, February 28, 2013 - 08:01 pm: |
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Thanks Upnorthw, that makes total sense. I'll do that once I find a solution to my rangefinder doubling issue. |
Rick_oleson
Tinkerer
Username: Rick_oleson
Post Number: 1282
Registered: 07-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, March 01, 2013 - 04:35 am: |
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The double rangefinder image sounds like either the RH mirror has been swapped for a rear-surface mirror and you're seeing reflections off of the silver and glass surfaces, or else the beamsplitter silvering is weak and allowing the reflection from the unsilvered side of that mirror to become visible against the main image. A rear-silvered mirror can cause a pretty prominent double image when it's aimed at a bright subject. |
Clivec
Tinkerer
Username: Clivec
Post Number: 3
Registered: 02-2013
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, March 01, 2013 - 11:07 am: |
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Hi Rick, thanks for taking the time to answer.
Does this pretty much mean I cannot fix this problem without replacing the mirror or beamsplitter? |
Donnie_strickland
Tinkerer
Username: Donnie_strickland
Post Number: 161
Registered: 09-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, March 01, 2013 - 11:36 am: |
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Rick's description perfectly matches that of my Signet 35. The beamsplitter had faded to the point of uselessness and displayed the symptom you describe. I replaced it with one from a junk camera I had in my box -- I think it was a Konica Auto S2 or a Yashica Electro 35; I can't remember for sure. In any event I do remember that it was a straight drop-in replacement. The glass was exactly the same size, and I didn't even have to adjust the rangefinder afterwards, a painless repair if there ever was one. |
Rick_oleson
Tinkerer
Username: Rick_oleson
Post Number: 1283
Registered: 07-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, March 02, 2013 - 03:50 pm: |
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You can buy beamsplitter stock here:
http://www.scientificsonline.com/mirror-type-beamsplitter.html |
Mr_flibble
Tinkerer
Username: Mr_flibble
Post Number: 95
Registered: 10-2011
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, March 04, 2013 - 01:36 am: |
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50/50 Beam splitters sometimes pop up at www.surplusshed.com as well.
Good luck |
