My 35/1.4 two repairs - more broken every time.

[eronald]

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I have this 35/1.4 Titanium asph. Beautiful lens, very sharp, a bit stiff.

 

Sent it in to make it less stiff to move focus, came back stiff, with grease all over the diaphragm blades.

Sent it back, it came back unsharp.

Am sending it back again with a letter.

 

Leica factory repair is going downhill fast.

 

Of course my lens is now permanently damaged by the multiple repairs, and I have not been able to use it since March 13. My investment in this lens is a total loss.

 

Edmund

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[carstenw]

Edmund, I don't know if Leica can rescue the lens; I presume so. Nonetheless, I cannot in my wildest dreams imagine that they would take a good lens, give back a bad one, and not compensate you. There have been lots of problems along this bumpy road, but they have made everything good in the end so far, unless I missed something. You just need to send it back until it is done.

[huwge]

Carsten,

 

the quality control in the service department is obviously struggling, I am in a similar boat. I know that the demands of "exotic" equipment and a need to make a profit means a small repair team and that it takes longer to get a service tunrnaround. Nevertheless, after up to 8 weeks one does not expect to have the repaired object come back worse than before it left.

 

I too have a 35 lux that has had to be resent post service / repair and then there is Wilson with his Noctilux. I can only hope that my 50 lux is also not in need of an immediate return and that has already been away 6 weeks.

 

The Forum is a valid place for us to have a grumble and I wish that there was a respectable, alternative service that could be used as at the moment I personally have a 100% failure rating with Solms. It is not what one expects of professional service standards.

 

I use equally exotic British hi-fi and can honestly say that when it has been away for service either at their local representative or in the UK it has always come back better than when it left.

 

Huw

[carstenw]

I agree that Leica really should do better than this, and that there should be no need for multiple round-trips, but I think Edmund's conclusion is premature. In the end, they will fix it again, I am sure. It is just such a pain that things have to go multiple times. I sent my camera once, and would have had to do it again, were it not for the fact that I chose to adjust the rangefinder myself. I also had to send my 50 Lux Asph twice. But in the end, all was well. I fully expect that if Edmund perseveres, things will work out.

[huwge]

Fingers and toes crossed or better still - ich drücke die Daumen ganz fest

Huw

[charlesphoto99]

Well, I sent in a 28 cron for coding and focus adjustment (which they said was included when coding) and lo and behold received the 28 back with a 24mm mount! After six weeks! It then took them another two weeks to turn it back around which is okay (though I wanted it done in a day not including shipping). But I couldn't believe the mistake in the first place.

 

I have a finicky 90 APO right now not under warranty and you'll be sure it's going for independent service. Cheaper, quicker, and more reliable.

[glenerrolrd]

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I have this 35/1.4 Titanium asph. Beautiful lens, very sharp, a bit stiff.

 

Sent it in to make it less stiff to move focus, came back stiff, with grease all over the diaphragm blades.

Sent it back, it came back unsharp.

Am sending it back again with a letter.

 

Leica factory repair is going downhill fast.

 

Of course my lens is now permanently damaged by the multiple repairs, and I have not been able to use it since March 13. My investment in this lens is a total loss.

 

Edmund

Edmund First I hope you eventually get this taken care of . When the M8 works ..its a great pleasure but when it doesn t it sure is irritating. You experience isn t the exception. I am in the process of formalizing my complaints regarding multiple problems with Leica service . Unfortunately all problems are being excused because of "unanticipated volume" . Requests IMHO are just ignored by customer service. The biggest single issue is the lack of any quality control on repairs. When a new lens is produced , one of the final steps is a full visual test of the lens sharpness. I saw this at Solms last month ..it is a very simple yet effective test . They project a full wall image of a special pattern. If there is anything wrong with the lens..it is immediately apparent. My question has and continues to be .....why aren t they testing lenses after repairs? I think most customers can understand backlogs and even unanticipated delays..but getting back lenses that are obviuosly out of adjustment after months of waiting ..well . My advice is to send a copy of your situation to the CEO.

[gman]

. I also had to send my 50 Lux Asph twice. But in the end, all was well.

 

Could you let us know if you sent back this lens for focus problems? I have a wonderful 50 Lux ASPH LHSA lens that is pretty much useless on the M8- the backfocus is just ridiculous! Can it be adjusted to work properly?

 

jeff

[marknorton]

Edmund, sorry to hear of your continuing problems with Leica service.

 

It seems to me the issue of focussing accuracy and focus shift is undermining the whole concept of the M camera. Sadly, whatever the merits of the M rangefinder system, the need to have each and every lens and each and every body precisely calibrated is an Achilles Heel.

[carstenw]

Jeff, my first 50 Lux Asph was badly back-focusing, but my store had another, and so they just traded it. Then I sent camera and lens away together for rangefinder adjustment. This was more subtle, but I didn't know if it was the camera or the lens, so I had to send both. More recently, my lens had developed a loose aperture ring, as well as some slop and oddly also some binding while focusing. Now it is just about right, maybe a little stiff, but my dealer assures me that it will loosen up a little.

 

That is really a shame about the LHSA. Gorgeous lens. I hope to swap mine for one of these one day, but since there is no performance gain, I am pushing it out in the future for now. You should definitely send it in, or take it to New Jersey. If it is out of warranty, it will cost the first time, but if Leica messes it up, it won't cost any more until it is right. It could take a couple of tries though. There are a lot of new people there, and something is not tight enough in their QA process.

[colorflow]

Could you let us know if you sent back this lens for focus problems? I have a wonderful 50 Lux ASPH LHSA lens that is pretty much useless on the M8- the backfocus is just ridiculous! Can it be adjusted to work properly?

 

jeff

 

I also have a 50Lux lhsa asph that was backfocusing terribly. Sent it back to Leica USA and it just came back with the problem mostly corrected. I have not made a series of test shots after it came back, but it seems to be focusing ok in real situations. So there may be hope.

 

Alan

[ho_co]

Of course my lens is now permanently damaged by the multiple repairs, and I have not been able to use it since March 13. My investment in this lens is a total loss.

Edmund--

Stiff focusing mounts are fixed simply by mounting the lens on a machine that rotates the focus ring first one way, then the other--or at least that's the procedure used when I worked for the company. The lens isn't disassembled; it takes time for the grease to work in.

 

Since your lens was sent for one problem, there's no reason to expect Leica to check for an unrelated one, though they should have caught it. Have you checked the report showing the condition in which it was received? The grease may have been in the diaphragm blades before you sent the lens in, but you failed to notice it till its return. I've seen that kind of thing happen but will spare you the details.

 

Grease in the diaphragm blades is not right but is seldom a problem with rangefinder lenses. It does create problems with cameras with auto diaphragms.

 

In what way does having a lens with completely repairable symptoms make "[your] investment ... a total loss"?

 

--HC

[gman]

That is really a shame about the LHSA. Gorgeous lens. You should definitely send it in, or take it to New Jersey.

 

Thanks for the ray of hope Carsten- I plan on sending the lens to NJ. I've been in contact with Robert Fisk at Leica who told me to send it in for adjustment and it is definitely under warranty!

 

jeff

[wlaidlaw]

[quote=ho_co;306531

Grease in the diaphragm blades is not right but is seldom a problem with rangefinder lenses. It does create problems with cameras with auto diaphragms.

 

--HC

 

Howard,

 

I am afraid I disagree with you on this point. Grease is a mixture of compounds, some more volatile some less. The very thin greases used for photographic applications have a high volatile component, not least so that lubricity is maintained at low temperatures and the grease does not become so viscous that you cannot turn the focusing or aperture rings. When a camera is left in sunlight and from time to time, they all will be, the more volatile components of the grease will evaporate from the diaphragm and then condense on the optical surfaces either side, with consequent deterioration in performance. Now I know that modern thermo-stable silicone/micronised Teflon based greases, which I hope Leica are using, have improved this phenomenon but not eliminated it.

 

Wilson

[total_recall]

I also have a 50Lux lhsa asph that was backfocusing terribly. Sent it back to Leica USA and it just came back with the problem mostly corrected. I have not made a series of test shots after it came back, but it seems to be focusing ok in real situations. So there may be hope.

 

Alan

 

if the backfocus of a lens is adjusted for M8 usage - will it still work as it was on a film M or do you have to adjust it back?

[marknorton]

Wilson, I'm surprised to hear that the blades are greased on a Leica M lens at all. It's not like an auto-diaphragm lens where a spring is used to actuate or reset it on every shot, on a Leica M lens, the blade positions are set by a cam on the aperture ring and there's no requirement for the instant action as there is with an SLR lens.

 

Greased or not, there's no excuse for a lens to come back from repair with grease on the aperture blades.

[carstenw]

I also have a 50Lux lhsa asph that was backfocusing terribly. Sent it back to Leica USA and it just came back with the problem mostly corrected. I have not made a series of test shots after it came back, but it seems to be focusing ok in real situations. So there may be hope.

 

Alan

 

Alan, you say "mostly fixed" and "in real situations". What isn't fixed?

[carstenw]

if the backfocus of a lens is adjusted for M8 usage - will it still work as it was on a film M or do you have to adjust it back?

They are independently adjusted to the same standard, so they are compatible. The M8 is just a lot more touchy about how closely it is adjusted to that standard.

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Hallo,

Look here: Interesting Leica gear

[rosuna]

1) Electronic sensors ask for tighter tolerances:

 

Testreports

 

Rangefinder accuracy is the result of several factors: the mechanical accuracy of the camera/lens coupling in combination with the rangefinder unit alignment on the camera, the focus shift of the lens in question when stopping down, the accuracy of the location of the focal plane (film gate or sensor surface) related to the bayonet location and not to forget the quality of the eye of the photographer.

 

...

 

When you encounter unsharpness where you expect a sharp image plane you may have to think about operator problems first (eye fatigue, hand movement), then focus shift (when stopping down) and then about possible mechanical tolerance issues.

 

Erwin Puts's article is very interesting.

 

 

2) Moreover, the A4 print size (10x12 inches) isn't a valid reference any more. A3 print size is very common actually.

 

 

3) Computer applications make easy to get a 100%, 200% or even greater magnification of the photograph.

 

.

[david yang]

The 50 Lux LHSA asph batch seems all suffer the focusing issue ,i boutht a brand new two months ago wh back focuse badly make the lens unuseable sent it with 35lux asph(brand new too with same problem) to solm for repair. it may back next week.....will see what happen then.

i also sent my M8 + Noct+ 90/2 aa apo asph + 135/3.4 apo to solm for adjustment(all with same behavior- back focus on mid range ) one month ago dont know when they will back....i'm so disappoint the QC or whatever reason that Leica perform . all my 8 lens out of 5 + body (all brand new except noctilux )went to solm this is no good for a legend brand like LEICA.....i am always thinking buy another m8 for back up but have no confidence at all ...