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50mm Summilux problem


RockyIII

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Bad luck, Tomele! Mine is back with me now restored to full working order. It took six weeks but I’m pleased the problem has been fixed.

 

Did they tell you exactly what they did to fix it? The first time I sent mine in (Allendale, New Jersey, USA) they said it was "adjusted." The second time they never said anything about how it was repaired.

 

Rocky

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Did they tell you exactly what they did to fix it? The first time I sent mine in (Allendale, New Jersey, USA) they said it was "adjusted." The second time they never said anything about how it was repaired.

 

Mine was repaired in Solms. This is what they reported:

"Adjust aperture setting ring

Adjustment of all parts"

 

Almost as vague as the report you got but they put right what was wrong, so I'm happy.

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I suggest that you be very wary regarding 'working it in' as you may actually be accelerating wear in the mechanism. Both a Leica Camera technician and the Customer Service division head in Solms looked at my lens after I had originally mis-handled it (about 2000 full travel cycles in succession) for that reason as well. He explained that any play whatsoever in the action may cause inaccuracy.
Geoff I was interested to read of your experience. Mine had a vaguely "crunchy" feel to it and I've spent several months assiduously "working it in" while watching the telly. Now it's not completely smooth but it's a heck of a lot better. So far the focusing is perfect. Mine is the E43 LHSA version.

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Oh mine was never remotely ' crunchy' that sounds bad! I think that other people who have reported problems are talking about the aperture blades rather than the focus ring though.

 

I meant that the action of the focus ring is noticeably firm to operate.Actually, mine is my only tabbed lens I have where I might move my fingers onto the ring for the most precise control. If you move the ring on these with some sensitivity you can feel what I think is a second helical engage as you turn through about 1m. It is a very subtle differnce. That is the only area where I can detect any change of feel in the complete rotation.

 

The amount of firmness is always subjective naturally. I think that the important point is that you want absolutely no play when the ring is turned to any position. When you stop it should not move in any way. No 'play'. The action of mine was noticeably lighter to turn after a couple of years. Remember that I started out in front of the TV doing what you did for about 2,000 cycles!

 

In fact it was only a couple of other forum members last year in Hessenpark who noticed that there was play in mine. I hadn't detected that nor any focus issues.

In Solms with my M8 upgrade, the Leica technician held it for about 5 seconds before he noticed. So did the head of the Customer Service Division. "We must fix that!" They actually took it (and my APO75) and checked the focus calibration in about 20 minutes on the spot.

I hadn't even mentioned them when leaving my M8, but they asked me to bring them my 50 and 75 to be checked. I guess they looked at what I had registered.

The technician sought me out and said "Your lenses are good. We can make them better" And so they stayed in Solms for a holiday when I returned home only a couple of days later.

Works fine now.

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Nice story. "Crunchy" is probably too strong a word, but now the lens is pretty smooth and great to use. I've managed to get myself down to four 50s so this lens is now getting a good bit of use. I think it just sat on a shelf with the first owner.

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Oh mine was never remotely ' crunchy' that sounds bad! I think that other people who have reported problems are talking about the aperture blades rather than the focus ring though.

 

Exactly. I described my aperture ring as feeling crunchy when I tried to turn it all the way to f/1.4. I had no problems with the focus ring.

 

Rocky

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Wilfredo,

The 50mm SUMMILUX is fabulous , especially in difficult situations where he has any value : a very luminous lens .He makes very beautiful pictures.

I bought new and I have no problem since.

 

Sorry to hear that some of you have problems.

I'm up now on the M9 !

Regards

Henry

 

complete agreement. i had a cron 50 and "upgraded" to a lux 50. no regrets. the glow and OOF rendering are much more to my liking ...

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  • 2 weeks later...

My three year old lens developed the same sticking aperture ring problem others have mentioned. The lens was usable but very tough to adjust. The blades responded correctly as the ring turned. The lens is off to Leica-US in New Jersey. It is far and away my most used lens on my M9.

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After nine months of flawless performance, my 50mm Summmilux ASPH started sticking for the first time this weekend between f/2 and f/1.4. Rotating the aperture ring to f/16, then back towards f/1.4 seemed to help most, but not all of the time. Today it seemed OK - no hesitation. No idea whether something internal is amiss or whether I should contact Leica NJ. Fous has been spot on with my M9, so I'm reluctant to fix it if it ain't broke.

Rich

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