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Lens play on the SL


Chrnes

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Do you mean rotational play of 1mm when attached ..... or that it actually wobbles when the lens is flexed laterally ? 

 

The former is normal with just about every Leica lens I have attached to a Leica body ...... irrespective on whether it is an M, T, or SL. It has no effect on taking images and this degree of play appears to be a design feature. 

 

Lateral wobbling is not normal and indicates something much more serious. 

Edited by thighslapper
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Yes, rotation play of 1mm is what i mean. I think that it is annoying that the lens turns an ekstra mm when I turn my zoom ring to either 24 or 90mm. It should have been designed to be more tight. I think that it has to do with the little pin attached to the lens release button. The hole on the lens that the pin sits inside when locked is designed "to big" and the lens can rotate 1mm because there is space around the pin.

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My Fuji XE-1 and 16-55 lens does this. It is clear that it results from the design of the lens retaining pin and the slot in the lens that it fits into.

 

My M2 and Summaron have no play.

 

I know how off putting this feels when you turn the zoom to have the lens rotate and knock every time you change zoom direction.

 

In a Leica it is unacceptable. Hopefully it is a simple matter to replace the offending lens release pin in the SL.

 

All the best.

 

J

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The diameter of the locking pin is 2.48mm and it has a rounded end. It should protrude about 1.5mm ..... unless the springloaded mechanism is damaged 

 

The machined recess in the mount is 2.8mm.

 

That allows 0.3mm + leeway which is quite noticeable as you rotate the lens and feels like more than it actually is. 

 

The lens fits snugly enough so that there is no rotation on focussing/zooming.... at least not on any of my lenses. 

 

The play is identical on the 90-280 and the T-M adapter .... and all the T lenses (which I have)

 

Bear in mind that it appears there is more play in the large diameter lenses like the 24-90 and 90-280 as a result of simple geometry. 

 

The L mount lenses have much less play than M lenses on the M9/M where it can be a problem reading the 6 bit coding ...... and why self-coding lenses can be an issue with the M  ...... and the fact that the lens cutout has to mechanically activate the 3 viewfinder windows for the pairs of focal lengths .....

 

Some play is normal, and 'excessive' play is still not an issue unless the lens fit is sloppy and constantly moving ..... which again is a nuisance rather than having optical implications.  

 

I have taken superb pictures with the Leica 280/2.8 R apo with stacked 1.4x, 2x apo extenders plus the R adapter M and M adapter T .... all of which have significant rotational play ..... but as long as the lens at the end is still perpendicular to the sensor there is no issue. 

Edited by thighslapper
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