Cleaning a rangefinder -- do I dare?

<p>By which I mean the coincident-image rangefinder itself. The rangefinder in my Olympus XA (OK, not 100% mechanical, but a classic in its own rights) was never super-clean to start with when I bought it used, and it's gotten even dirtier over the past year or two of being a carry-everywhere camera. Given what I paid for the camera, I'm somewhat shy about taking it into a shop for a full CLA.</p>

<p>How hard is it to simply <i>clean</i> rangefinder optics without changing any adjustments? I've never attempted to take a camera apart and clean/repair it before, but I'm reasonably confident of my ability to be cautious and careful, if I take my time and don't rush myself. On the other hand, if this is one of those "one tiny false move and you've thrown it off, probably forever" things, I'd just as soon let sleeping dogs lie.</p>

<p>I don't know about the Olympus but, I have done it on many Yashica G series, Konica C35 and Auto S2, Various Canonets, and all were relatively easy. Once you get the top cover off there is usually a cover over the RF assy, some are glued on, most have a screw or two, once you get the cover off just take some windex (or alchohol and water mixture) and cotton swabs to it and gently clean all the surfaces. You will be amazed at the difference. If the RF cover was glued on, you can usually just gently pry it off and then reglue it afterwards.</p>

<p>hi david,<br>

i have seen a friend attempt cleaning a bessa r rangefinder but his aim was more the alignment. it is fiddly and you need to make sure that you don't lose any bits. as long as you are good with small things, it should be fine with a bit of care. check online for a manual for this particular model that you need.</p>

<p>You should be able to find a manual here: <a href="http://www.kyphoto.com/classics/repairmanuals.html">http://www.kyphoto.com/classics/repairmanuals.html</a></p>

<p>With a pre WW2 Retina II once I use a tad of lens cleaner on a semi coated semi silvered? mirror and it removed the entire reflective coating; or whatever was left. Sometimes what has been used on others doesnt work; or you run into a coating that is unstable or just a bunch of stuff that was a poor rework.</p>

<p>David, there are many talented people here that gleefully work on cameras with good results. I am, sadly, not one of them. Besides being ham-fisted, I find I have no longer have the patience for small, fussy work. I have made attempts, however, and have left many dead soldiers, and a full cuss jar, in my wake . If your fingers are nimble, you have the right tools, have lots of patience, technical diagrams, books and/or advice then by all means have a go. I imagine there is a great sense of pride in working on your own gear. I would try to find a beater one to work on first, not a beloved shooter.<br>

My camera tech gives me a very reasonable price, $20-25, for service on single item work, such as cleaning hazy/dirty rangefinders, as opposed to the price of a full CLA. Additionally, he will always align the rangefinder <em>precisely</em> for me. While it's on his bench he will always look it over and advise me if it needs anything else. Well worth it for me since I rather spend my time making pictures and prints.</p>

<p>Now that I have looked it up and see what an Olympus XA is, ignore everything I said earlier. This is nothing like the Rangefinders I have had apart so, I don't want to give any misleading advice. I'm not saying you shouldn't try it but, I would definitely study the repair manual first.</p>

<p>The most important bit of advice has already been given: DON'T TOUCH THE FRONT FACE of the semi-silvered mirror. In many not to say most cases of poorly visible rangefinders, what really matters is to clean the INTERNAL surface of the rangefinder's window as well as of course of the wiewfinder itself. This is normally more than enough to make all the difference.<br>

If upon opening the camera you notice that the semi-silvered mirror is actually the main culprit (typically due to corrosion or desilvering), there is nothing you can do but replacing it. This, however, is a rather complex procedure certainly not worth the cost of an XA (tough it is a lovely little fella).<br>

nwindow</p>

<p>I have a dead XA in a basket, so I grabbed the rangefinder and took a swab to it. No damage to the mirror coating. It should be fine to clean. If it's dusty, you can just blow it out. The manual linked to above describes disassembly pretty well, I think. There is a focusing pin that links the lens to the rangefinder, which you must keep track of, and put back in when reassembling.<br>

NEVER EVER do this to an old Leica. The beam splitter coating is soft, and wipes right off. Guess how I know that?</p>

<p>As they all say.</p>

<p>It's really easy to get into the works and do the cleaning, so long as you don't overdo the solvents.</p>

<p>What's NOT easy is getting it back together and making it work after you do. :(</p>

<p>Photograph every single, tiny step of dissassembly so you can see where everything was before you got into it.</p>

<p>The thing to watch out for is when you remove the sliding cover. There is a very small cylindrical piece of metal that sits in a groove. It creates the whole "click" when you open and close the front cover. It is not attached to anything, and is impossibly easy to loose. If you do loose it, you can replace it with a bit of copper house wiring... 14 or 12 gauge should work... that's what I had to use on mine because I didn't even know I had lost it. While you are inside the top, you might want to disassemble and clean the shutter release. As the camera is not dust-proof, dust can migrate between the contacts of the shutter button and cause the button to erratically not fire and become difficult to press. Since doing this repair, I've stopped carrying my XA in my dusty dirty pockets.</p>

<p>Clean the optics but leave the mirrors alone.<br>

THese beam splitters are very delicate, while doing a few, I have actually wiped off the silvering. They are very fragile.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>paul RON, while this is true of many such mirrors, it is, fortunately, not the case with the XA. I would still do an absolute minimum of cleaning, but the silvering will not just wipe off as it does on some older cameras.</p>