Gear Talk > Lens Talk

Manual lenses, how stiff is stiff?

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Zang:
Hello all,

I used to use C/Y Zeiss lenses a while ago and I found they were mechanically perfect. The focus rings were smooth and had exactly same turning resistance. That experience became my reference when it comes to manual lenses.

Recently, I started buying Nikon manual lenses and ended up with 5 items, 55mm f2.8, 35mm f2.8, 28mm f3.5, 80-200 f4.5 and 24mm f2.8 AI. They all have different focusing experience :) 55mm is looser than Zeiss, but it is totally fine. 35mm is looser than 55mm. Zoom is very loose. I can hear its barrel banging by shaking the lens. 28mm has inconsistent resistance. It changes between being tighter and looser through out the full turn (the pattern is consistent, though). 24mm is surprisingly stiff :)

24mm is much stiffer than what I consider to be normal but remains pretty smooth end to end. At some point I was thinking about taking it apart for re-greasing. The question goes to those who have gone through that hassle (of fun) if it is worth it to open the lens up? What would be the decision point for doing so or in another word, what level of stiffness is considered to be an issue? I know this is very much down to personal experience but I want to hear your opinions and stories :)

Cheers,
Zang

rosko:
These lenses were probably never maintained/re-greased.

I have some among mine like that.

The grease is sure dried or very old, hence the stiffness of focusing ring.

There are not many ways to solve this issue, but just one : disassembling the lens until you put the helicoids apart. Then use acetone to clean and put new grease. you can take this opportunity to blow any dust/specs from glasses.

I would advice to mark the helicoids before unscrew each other apart, otherwise is a nightmare to engage the threads when you reassemble the lens. Have a look at this link
https://richardhaw.com/2018/02/04/repair-nikkor-28mm-f-2-8-ai-s/.

Richard is a member and post here many repairs with pictures and explanations. Section : ''what the nerd do''


I also have a contax/yashica Zeiss 85mm F/2.8 converted to Nikon mount. I love its ''buttery'' focussing !

Good luck !

ianwatson:
As Rosko says, your lenses have seen a varied service history. It might also be that there are differences in feel between AI and AIS, in case you have a mixture.

My modest collection is entirely AI and they all feel similar. They either arrived in good condition or I had them serviced. If you need a good technician in Toronto then I can recommend one.

Birna Rørslett:
The perceived sloppiness of the focusing/zooming collar of the 80-200/4.5 is quite typical for that lens. The others should ideally focus smoothly. In particular your 24 appears to need relubrication -- it should focus very smooth during its long focusing travel.

Be aware of the tendency for the 55/2.8 Micro to get lubrication seepage onto the aperture blades making them sticky. If this occurs a major strip-down and cleaning would be required.

Zang:
Although they were paid $40 - $150, all the samples are rather in perfect shape with pristine glass and body with virtually no signs of use. I paid attention to screws, inside and I do not think they were ever opened for services. They all take fine pictures as I expected. My only concern is the tight focus ring of 24 mm. I like fixing things but I am a bit concerned about ability (or rather inability) to align the optic correctly. @Ian, If I decide to delegate the job to an expert, I'll take your recommendation for sure, thank you!

Cheers,
Zang

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