Schneider AFD 50mm for Hy6 malfunction

[guy_e]

<p>Drat... I suppose it was too good to be true. After spending months piecing together the perfect medium format kit, one of the three lenses I got for my Hy6 just went on the fritz this morning while I was taking pictures of my kids. I ended up getting a pretty good price on a Schneider AFD 50mm lens off the auction site last month, and hadn't had much time to try it out until recently. While shooting through a roll of 220 Kodak 400VC this morning, Hy6 set to continuous autofocus, the lens abruptly stopped autofocusing. Instead, all I hear now is a very bad sounding "whir, whir" whenever the motor inside the lens engages, and very minute clicks as the focus wheel moves in very, very small increments. It seems to want to rotate clockwise, toward the closer focus increments, but rotating counterclockwise produces the behavior just described.</p>

<p>I guess at this point I'll try calling up the repair guys in (I think it's) Fairfield, NJ, which incidentally is not far from where I live. Does anybody know if they are up to the task of repairing the AFD lenses, or do they stick more to the pre-AFD era (6008AF type lenses)? I really hope I don't have to ship the lens all the way to Germany for repair, as I need it on an upcoming trip. I suppose it could function as a non-AF lens until after (the camera still picks up the focus point and shows confirmation fine).</p>

 

[bradleygibson]

<p>Sorry to hear that, Guy.<br>

I've had a few AF and manual focus lenses repaired (by Onick) in New Jersey, but never an AFD. My feeling is that if your problem is with an AF motor, you should be fine. For anything involving issues with alignment or positioning of the optical elements, I'd recommend sending it back to Germany.<br>

Best of luck with your repair,<br>

-Brad</p>

[graham_mitchell]

<p>Sorry to hear about that problem. Please keep us updated.</p>

[guy_e]

<p>I spoke with Onick today and it sounded like he'd be able to fix the lens if it is just an issue with the AF mechanism inside the lens. He confirmed what Brad said about alignment, since they can't afford the specialized equipment that they have in Germany for lens alignment. I'm hoping to stop by the repair shop later this week to drop off the lens, and also to show Onick the production version of the 6x6 back (he actually hasn't seen the release version of it, just a pre-production from a few years ago!)</p>

 

[stuart_richardson]

<p>They fixed a 180mm f/2.8 AF for me -- there was a small gear that broke and it caused the AF to mess up. Doesn't sound so dissimilar to what is happening for you. Onick should be able to do something! </p>