Rolleiflex 3.5F Planar Viewing Lens Problem

[matteo_prezioso1]

<p>Hi everyone,<br>

I have recently moved for work (as a professional photographer) in South America; Bogotá, Colombia to be more precise.<br />One day, strolling around in search of an interesting exterior location for an upcoming photoshoot, I came across a small photolab that had on a window a not-too-goodlooking Rolleiflex 3.5F Planar. The guy at the store hadn't got a clue on how, when it got there. I ended up buying for approx 60USD.<br>

It did need feexing though; a few things, yet necessary. It also came with no light meter, but I was not too concerned about it as I always, only use my hand held one. The one major problem was that the viewing lens (pardon my lack of technical vocabolary) would not 'match' with the taking one. Hence, other than when at infinite, focusing was pretty much never accurate. The thing is, at close inspection I can see that, whe aiming at an object, the viewing lens is slightly 'tilted' to the right of the camera. Its just not 'straight'. It might have got some major blow and left for dead.<br>

Therefore, after investigating I brought it to a place called C.V. Tronica, allegedly the best camera repair in the whole of Colombia. They did a good job with everything, but the viewing lens was not touched. I shot & developed a few rolls, and clearly the problem is still there. Which makes it all rather frustrating, as the picture quality is stunning.<br>

Because at C.V. Tronica they are not Rolleiflex experts (I have a feeling they did not received one in years) I am wondering if I should push the issue and try to have that fixed by them, or shall I just wait till I get back to Europe and go to someone who really knows how to handle this?<br>

I am wondering how 'serious,' hence complicated, the problem with the viwing lens is. Once again, the overall quality of the camera and in particular of the taking lens is fantastic. I don't want to give up on a camera like this one. At the same time, I don't want to be fixing the unfixable, hoping that won't be the case.<br>

Best regards,<br>

Matteo Prezioso<br />f o t o g r a f í a<br />www.lumafotografia.com</p><div></div>

[jennifer_spencer]

<p>There are repairmen in the US and Europe that are Rolleiflex experts there and could at least tell you if this issue can be fixed. Maybe a phone call to one of them would be a good idea, to see if this is a reparable problem? If it is, then you have more options.</p>

<p>Would you consider shipping your camera to another country for repair? I don't know how reliable the post is in Columbia. No insult intended - I have simply never been there so I don't know. Perhaps you could send it to someone in your home country where a relative could interact directly with your repairman as needed, or to a shop in the US (where I know we have people who fix Rolleis)?</p>

<p>I wondered if you were clear with the repairmen that you expected Tronica to fix this for you. Maybe they just felt they would do more harm than good by opening up this part of the camera? Or maybe they were hoping the problem would just go away if they fixed the taking lens. I am not sure you want them "learning" on your camera, which would happen if you pressed them about it, I think.</p>

<p>And finally, have you decided how much you're willing to spend having this fixed?</p>

[yann1]

<p>I suspect the lenses were removed and not put back in order. It shouldn't be a problem for a good repairman. I had a similar experience before, I don't know the price where you live, but in Taiwan I had it done for about 15$. Congratulations, it's a great camera, and good luck.</p>

[Robert_Lai]

<p>This camera has probably been dropped, and the alignment of the viewing lens is now different than that of the taking lens. It is a common problem, according to Harry Fleenor, who is working on my own 3.5F now (although mine was not dropped, just got old and needed an overhaul). The panel holding the two lenses needs to be straightened, and both lenses need to be collimated so that the upper lens focuses exactly the same as the lower lens.</p>

<p>This will not be cheap. Harry charges over $500 for an overhaul.</p>

[karl_bryan1]

<p>For Rollieflex repair contact Mark Hansen, <a href="http://zeissikonrolleirepair.com/">http://zeissikonrolleirepair.com/</a>. Unlike Harry Fleenor, Mark will repair the camera for a reasonable price and the camera will be repaired completely. My experience with Harry Fleenor is he will repair the part that you the customer complain about but he will not recommend or repair other obvious issues with the camera. Mark Hansen either advises you on what additional repairs are needed along with an estimate for the additional work, or he repairs the camera completely if the additional cost is minor. Nothing worse than paying to get a camera repaired only to send it back to have a different aspect repaired. </p>

[matteo_prezioso1]

<p>Hi,<br>

Thanks for your help - I have contacted Mark Hansen and will take it from there. Alternatively, next time I'm back to London I'll drop the camera to a camera repair (I can't remember the came) that did wonders on my other Rolleiflex (an Automat MX).<br>

Shipping the camera via mail (private courier) is a doable option, so we'll see :)<br>

Thaks again,<br>

Matteo</p>