Lens zooms on its own

[hirohhhh]

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I was shooting something today with camera pointed downwards and I had 24-90 lens on my SL. I set it to 35mm but in less than a minute it goes all the way to 90. It was impossible to shoot because the focal length was changed all the time, so I switched to my 50mm prime.

Is this normal when shooting downwards, or my lens is ready for the service?

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[MarkP]

Not normal.

My 24-90 would slowly extend itself to 90mm when carrying it for any length of time (but nothing like yours).  
Had it adjusted by Leica - perfect.

[Ingo]

vor einer Stunde schrieb hirohhhh:

Is this normal when shooting downwards, or my lens is ready for the service?

I own this lens since end of 2015 and this was fixed two times in Wetzlar. Currently I have the issue again and I will send it to the service as soon it is reopened. 

[Jared]

It may not be “normal”, but it’s hardly unusual.  Lots of lenses have zoom creep. It’s a fine line between too tight (hard to zoom with a single finger) and to “creepy” (like yours appears to be).  The heavier the lens, the harder to walk this line. One solution is for the designers to gear the lens differently, but that can result in a longer throw to cover the zoom range. Some lenses actually resort to installing a zoom lock that will prevent the lens from zooming, but that is more aimed at keeping the lens small when it’s in your bag. Plus, Leica doesn’t seem to like these types of controls from an industrial design perspective, so it’s not a feature they use.

If it bothers you or if the zoom ring feels sloppy, send it to Leica for adjustment.  If you really need to lock it in place for a shoot involving a vertical position, gaffer’s tape on the zoom ring and lens barrel will work. It’s not elegant at all, but it’s simple, effective, and inexpensive. If you rarely shoot vertically, that’s what I would do.  Even on an expensive lens that arguably shouldn’t have this issue. 

[MarkP]

I forgot to say that before I had the lens fixed, I kept a rubber band on the barrel of the lens which was wide enough to comfortably overlap the zoom and focus ring to stop it from extending when walking.