Mamiya Super 23 Rangefinder Dim and other questions

Hi all. I'm just wondering if a dim rangefinder on a Mamiya Super 23 is easily fixable. I work for a small camera shop and a customer gave us a box of camera equipment, among which was a Mamiya Super 23 with 6x7 back and 100 f/3.5. The camera is now mine. The shutter in the lens is working and seems accurate, despite there being a small amount of oil on the blades. The only real issue is that the rangefinder is dim and focusing is difficult. Any insight would be much appreciated.

Never having been inside a Super 23 I don't know how difficult access to the RF is. Most times the fading of the RF patch is just a build up of contamination on the exposed glass surfaces. A gentle cleaning is most likely all it needs.

John,

I've had the top cover of the camera off and while it seems fairly easy to access the rangefinder, the glass plates inside are glued into place and are beyond my means to remove, clean and replace. I rubbed them down with some rubbing alcohol as best I could, but there's a small black plastic "tube" for lack of a better term that I can assume with some degree of certainty projects the RF patch into the viewfinder. I could get into it slightly with a Q-tip, and it seemed to help some, but the RF patch still seems to come and go. It flares out very easily and in very low light it does not appear at all. Would you happen to know how much a cleaning and check would be from someone reputable? I got the camera for nothing, and if I can get the RF to a usable point, and the shutter CLA'd, which has now begun to stick, for around $300, I'd say I found myself a deal. If you know of anyone that will do this work on a Super 23, I'd love to check them out. Thanks!

Brian

For the shutter, either Paul Ebel or Carol Miller (Flutot).

I have an old range finder (sorry I don't remember the brand and it is down at my office) with a dim range finder. The quick fix was very easy. Cut a small piece of black electrical tape and place it over the center of the range finder on the outside. I'm talking 3x3 mm or so. For the problem I had, it worked wonders. Not a guaranteed fix, but worth a try.

the other thing you can do is increase the visual contrast through the viewfinder - stick a piece of unexposed but processed 35mm color film (or a ornage gel) ove rthe front of the viewfinder - will increase the contrast dramatically - thats how I solved the faded spot on a Graflex XLRF I had...

Never heard about the 3x3 piece of black tape - must give that a go...

I use a Mamiya Super 23 all the time. Even when clean, the rangefinder spot is nothing great. I cleaned mine by rolling a piece of lens tissue and working it into that 'tube'. First with lens cleaner and then a dry one. The improvement was noticable after cleaning all the rangefinder surfaces. I haven't had to use the method of putting a spot over the viewfinder, but I understand it helps.

The orange mask increases the contrast between the VF & RF. Leica used to sell one for their LTM cameras.