Electro Focusing Ring Problem

[dany_nyc]

Hi, I'm a new forum member and a first time owner of a Yashica Electro GS. The camera looks nice and the lights seem to be working. I don't know yet about the pad of death.

Right now the problem I'm having is with the focusing ring. At first, it was smooth and moved easily. But about half way into my first test roll, after focusing on something close, it jammed up. A little while later it started working normally again. Then, for no apparent reason, it jammed again. Sometimes it moves freely, sometimes it's stiff. I can't tell why it suddenly freezes up.

Has anyone else had this problem? I'd appreciate any advice.

Thanks,
Dany

[DougK]

This sounds like a job for greyhoundman.

[dany_nyc]

I had a close look at the three screws on the focus ring and it seems that some previous owner had been at them. They're pretty stripped and look rusty too. After dabbing WD40 on them and letting it sit for awhile, I was not able to turn any of the screws. Fortunately, when I emailed the seller and asked her a few questions, she generously offered to take it back. (It only cost $16 to begin with.) I will keep my eyes on this forum in case one comes up for sale.

[whereshaldo]

I wonder if I wound up buying the same camera -- was it from a shop in Mass? I have an Electro 35 GSN with the same exact problem. I was able to get the little set screws in the focusing ring loose, but that just resulted in the focusing ring detaching from the lens and now spinning and rattling around freely. I am trying to re-tighten the focusing ring into the correct spot, but I've yet to accomplish this.

Its a troubling "feature" as there doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to why it gets sticky.

Yashica gurus ... any thoughts?

Hal

[Frank Granovski]

Probably someone oiled it and the oil hardened.

[whereshaldo]

Is this something that is within the capabilities of mere mortals? I guess the camera can't get any more broken than it is. I do have a copy of the service manual -- it seems involved to remove the entire lens assembly, as it also seems to involve removal of much of the other mechanicals of the camera.

Any advice on how/where to start?

I've gotten the focus ring re-positioned, but its all but siezed at this point and refuses to turn at all.

Hal

[whereshaldo]

Thanks, I'll dive in and let you all know what happens. Can it be more complicated than a 1966 Citroen? Probably.

Hal

[dany_nyc]

I wonder if I wound up buying the same camera -- was it from a shop in Mass? I have an Electro 35 GSN with the same exact problem. <snip>
Hal

No, mine was from New York and it wasn't a GSN. Maybe this is a common problem. Sounds pretty complicated to fix. Good luck with it.

[whereshaldo]

Well I'm 50% of the way disassembled. One thing I've noticed is that the POD is in good shape. Its a translucent material, which is different than what I'd expect based upon what I've read. Unfortunately I am not sure which screws need to be undone. In the image there are 3 sets of screws.

There are 2 brass colored brackets screwed to the plate that attach to the lens. These are indicated by the reddish circles

There are 3 screws going through the plate and into the lens. These are the green circles. One screw is hidden under the bundle of wires on the right.

There is a bracket that mates with the parallax adjustment marks. This is in blue.

I'm not sure which of these screws need to be removed to get at the back of the lens. More importantly, I cannot get any of these screws to turn and my smallest screwdriver tip has become twisted and wont engage the screw anymore.

Also there is a brown (ground) wire that detached itself from somewhere in this mix (it comes across the top of the front of the camera and then down to the plate to ???.

Where to from here?

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost/data/500/lensplate.jpg


Hal

[Frank Granovski]

It looks like the inside of a cheap 50's TV. ;)

Do you know about this link to disassemble your GSN? Link: http://homepage.mac.com/mattdenton/photo/cameras/electro_inside/index.html

[whereshaldo]

Ok, I'm going to drag it down to Cameratechs and see if they can help me get the screws out. I just cannot get them to budge!

Other than pushing the wires out of the way, is there a trick to getting to the screw under the wires that is under the green dot?

H