Alignment of Rangefinders

ColColt · Aug 20, 2015

Does anyone know how they align a typical Leica rangefinder? Are special tools or collimators used to verify horizontal and vertical alignment?

Reason for the questions, I have an M2 that it was obvious the vertical alignment was off-not much but enough to make it obvious. Youxin Ye was good enough to walk me through what tool to use(a 2mm Wiha screwdriver) after uncovering the chrome screw between the finders and tweaking the small one inside. I just looked at some simple objects including some text and tweaked to the left-wrong way. I needed to go the other way and after a couple of very slight right turns the text sharpened up unlike before.

I'm just curious if the eyeballing things and tweaking the screw is sufficient or is it more complicated than that. How do I know, in short, if it's spot on or still a tad off?

Luis-F-S · Aug 20, 2015

I never knew Leitz to "eyeball" anything. I'd send it in for service. L

John Koehrer · Aug 20, 2015

Please, he's not aligning the lens just the RF. Using a target is just peachy.
FWIW do you think someone who services these things would talk someone through
it if he suspected the user couldn't do it? I would think that might affect his credibility as
a technician, don't you?

ColColt · Aug 20, 2015

I used several targets to be sure. I think I saved myself some time and money. I do have a lens, a 90 f2.8 Tele-Elmarit, in the possession as of today of Youxin Ye due to being stiff focus. I knew better than to mess with that.

nanthor · Aug 20, 2015

If you're just adjusting the vertical all you need is for the image to look good to you in the VF. You do need to check using film for overall RF alignment, horizontal, to make sure you have not disturbed the focus. Do this before taking any important pictures. I think you're pretty much done, good work. Bob.

McFortner · Aug 20, 2015

The bottom half of this page tells you how to get your infinity setting indoors and it's easy. I've done this for several cameras and it works.

Bringing infinity indoors

ColColt · Aug 20, 2015

I checked the infinity setting prior to and after the vertical adjustment by putting the lens at infinity and looking at clouds-looked pretty good to me.

BTW-those are some good tips and illustrations in that link.

Nodda Duma · Aug 20, 2015

McFortner said:
The bottom half of this page tells you how to get your infinity setting indoors and it's easy. I've done this for several cameras and it works.

Bringing infinity indoors

As an optical engineer I agree that this will work. The caveat is that you absolutely must be sure the other camera is good and set to infinity.

Xmas · Aug 21, 2015

There are three easy adjustments short of stripping the M or contemporary Canon body.

First try the camera at infinity on the moon or greater than half a mile cellular tower.

If the vertical is out and you use a fast lens vide open it is a service centre job or ex Leitz engineer.

First you set up the vertical.

Then you try the horizontal at 1 meter 10 meter and infinity and write down each error.

Then you look at the two adjustments.

The swinging arm has an eccentric screw at each end both eccentrics alter the effective length of the arm and the effective position of the roller on the lens and the pivot point of the arm.

There is only one position of the two screws which gives exact performance at 1, 10 meters and infinity and minimum error between these points. Small displacements from the exact only introduce small errors.

I'd not try bodging it if you have a /0.95 lens or are clumsy.

It is an example of Ge design elegant and beautiful to a mechanical engineer.

cuthbert · Aug 21, 2015

I know how to align the rangefinder of a Leica II/III clone but I never tried with a M.

RobC · Aug 21, 2015

if it aligns on something at infinty and something at closest focus of lens then its a fair bet to say it's spot on. You verify that by making an image of something at infinity and something at closest focus.

However, be sure you use a lens which doesn't have focus shift when the aperture is wide open to test it. So I would avoid the Zeiss 50 1.5 biogon for this test. There may be others to avoid for this test but I don't know which they are.

ColColt · Aug 21, 2015

The only current 50 lens I have is the Zeiss 50 f2 Planar *T. My 90 lens is with Youxin Ye for CLA.

Alignment of Rangefinders

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