Contax Aria aperture issue

I went to shot a roll this morning with my 'new' Aria... noticed a very strange thing. The aperture doesn't seem to couple correctly on the 50 f1.7. When I choose say f11 in Av, the VF tells me I am at f5.6. At f1.7 it reads f1.2... kind of cool if it really were that fast ;-) Any ideas what it may be? Other lenses are fine so I assume it's the lens and not the body. Thanks.

Check the aperture coupling lever on the lens. It might be bent, damaged, loose or just off a bit. Does the centre of the depth-of-focus scale on the lens align with the red dot on the mount ring? In any case, I'm afraid your lens needs attention from a specialist.

Its what frdrx said or the coupling ring inside the mount on the body is worn. The coupling ring has a small nub that engages the aperture finger on the lens, and could be letting it slip past.

Ah, you may have the same problem I have with my RTSII. There is a stub on the back of the lens of the Contax MM/AE lenses that mates with a sliding lever that is inside the lens mount. When you mount the lens, the stub pushes the sliding lever to a set position, which tells the camera what the maximum aperture of the lens is, and hence tells the electronics what all metering readings should be relative to the max aperture. My RTS doesn't read the max aperture correctly, which throughs off all the meter readings. I suspect -- but have confirmed -- that the sliding lever motion is transferred to something akin to the famous variable resistance strip in Nikon FTn heads, which when the wear out prevent proper exposure. I had a repair shop try to fix my RTS II but no luck. Next I'll try Nippon photo service in NYC.

it usually means the camera has been taken apart and not put back together properly. Check that the mirror is absolutely square in the mirror box.

I recently bought a 159 online. When I received it I had the same problem. On closer inspection the innards were crooked. Someone had taken it apart. I sent it back.

Thanks for the speedy replies. Looks like lever is bent... also just realised that the shutter doesn't go faster than 1/30... don't suppose there is any easy fix someone could recommend? Shame because the body is in ex. condition, but obviously it's been sitting around for ages. I wish e%!# sellers would test things like this before saying "excellent condition, functions perfectly" in the listings.... aaaghhhh!

mesh said:

Thanks for the speedy replies. Looks like lever is bent... also just realised that the shutter doesn't go faster than 1/30... don't suppose there is any easy fix someone could recommend? Shame because the body is in ex. condition, but obviously it's been sitting around for ages. I wish e%!# sellers would test things like this before saying "excellent condition, functions perfectly" in the listings.... aaaghhhh!

Click to expand...

Well, if that's the case and you paid with Paypal .... file a claim, if it clearly wasn't listed in proper condition.

Not to start a lengthy eBay flame/discussion but in general if the person hasn't sold a lot of cameras (like the also sell doilies or figurines or candles or trains) it usually means they are yard-saler's or estate-saler's just looking to flip their weekend finds. Sellers who deal with mainly cameras and have good feedback will generally answer questions before you bid. I ALWAYS look at the sellers other items for sale, or go through their feedback history to look what they've sold lately.

Anyhoo ..... I'd ask to return it ... even if the auction said "as is" there is still protection against a listing that was not accurate.

Good advice 5stringdeath... it's just been so long that I've been looking for an Aria here in Australia that I jumped when I saw this kit. Seller has 100% but only 5 or so ratings. Anyway, I will obviously contact them and I am sure (well hope) he will be good to deal with. If I don;t get any joy I can do the PayPal thing. You know I would have bought from KEH but their postage is a killer! Thanks for all your help.