Need help with FE2 / 50mm E series

[Russianskater90]

OK, so a friend of mine said she wanted to start up using her 35mm camera again but that it was broken... I just took a look at it, and the lens has somehow been mounted incorrectly. The aperture scale is on the bottom right when holding the camera up to your eye instead of on the top as it should be. I tried to remove the lens and it moves clockwise, but won't actually dismount. I tried searching google and other sites and forums for an answer but haven't had any luck. Does anybody know how I could get it to come off and what exactly is wrong here?

Also, Are the FE2 batteries available anywhere? They are toast and the camera only fires on the mechanical 250 setting and B.

 

[Erik Petersson]

About the lens - it is fairly cheap so in worst case I would sooner break it than the camera. But it did mount once...

Regarding the batteries, my FE uses ordinary 1,5v batteries that are found everywhere. Your camera too, probably. Google FE2 and check at the "mir" site, they a lot of information.

Good luck!

 

[jimgalli]

The batteries are ordinary M76 type still available anywhere. Nothing special. Start by looking under the pentaprism at the aperture indexing lever. On the FE2 it had a little chrome button that would let it flip up out of the way when using really old lenses. Push the button and flip it up so hopefully it won't get damaged. Then I guess all you can do is hold in the button and try to twist and rattle it off. The Nikon bayonet is pretty idiot proof which is a bad thing in your case. Good luck.

 

[BobNewYork]

You can get the lens off. It'll just require more force than anyone likes to use on a good camera!

Don't let it stare you down!!!

Bob H

 

[eddym]

I use the 3v lithiums in my FE2. They are the equivalent of 2- MS76's stacked, which is what the FE2 calls for.

 

[BradS]

I use the 3v lithiums in my FE2. They are the equivalent of 2- MS76's stacked, which is what the FE2 calls for.

...and both the CR 1/3N and the MS76 batteries are widely available.

 

[mudman]

The batteries are ordinary M76 type still available anywhere. Nothing special. Start by looking under the pentaprism at the aperture indexing lever. On the FE2 it had a little chrome button that would let it flip up out of the way when using really old lenses. Push the button and flip it up so hopefully it won't get damaged. Then I guess all you can do is hold in the button and try to twist and rattle it off. The Nikon bayonet is pretty idiot proof which is a bad thing in your case. Good luck.

unfortunately, there is no way to move the indexing lever on the FE2, only the FE, FM and F3 (and modified f4, f5 and f6's of course). What's the worst that could happen? It's already broken.

 

[Mick Fagan]

I've just had a look at my FE2 and an E series lens, basically it should come off.

Now this isn't the voice of experience here, as to my knowledge I have never put a lens of the wrong way up, close, but never quite all the way on.

The lens should come off by turning clockwise.

When you do turn the lens ensure that you have a finger on the black button which is surounded by a chrome ring. This button is at the 3 O'clock position as you look down on the camera with the camera on its back.

By holding this button in you are depressing a small pop up rod which sits in a groove in the lens mount when the lens is on correctly. Without this button pressed you may have some un-wished for aggravation and do more damage.

If your aperture scale is approximately bottom right, then you will have to get it to move a bit more so it is just past 6 O'clock, heading slightly towards 7 O'clock, then it should be able to come off.

I've sort of deduced this by looking at the flanges on my camera and a lens in roughly the position you mentioned. Not scientific, but a pure guestimation.

As for batteries, my experience with the single lithium battery is that they are fine, but when they die they die within a few frames.

The more conventional two battery set-up is more flexible as those batteries will die, you wait a bit and you can shoot again and so forth, you replace the batteries at this stage but usually can still shoot.

Mick.

 

[John Koehrer]

IF you can't dismount the lens using brute force which you will need to do. You are pretty much screwed.
I've seen this only once before with a Minolta SRT camera. We sent it out for repair(?) and there isn't any way to access the camera OR lens for disassembly. Even if the front part of the lens can be removed The mount will still be on the body. If you can get access to the mount it could be cut probably with a lot of metal chips falling into the camera body.
I would worry that the aperture linkage in the lens is on the wrong side of the stop down lever in the body causing the hangup.

 

[Russianskater90]

Thanks guys. I gave the lens some brute force and sure enough it did come off. I was just wary of applying so much pressure to any camera. I gave both the camera and lens a good cleaning and the setup works very well. It's not in the best of shape, but it certainly does its job. Thanks again!

 

[Mick Fagan]

Fantastic!

Mick.

 

[BobNewYork]

We all had faith in you!!! The first time you have this situation it really is daunting. It's a bit like your first baby - you don't realize how resilient they are!!

Enjoy it.

Bob H

 

[nicefor88]

First it sounded like a joke. A lens mounted upside down on a FE2... How is that possible with the Nikon mount? It must have been forced in there.
Bring it to your local repair shop, seems to me the best thing to do.

As for the batteries, yes indeed the usual 1,5V LR44 type fit all Nikon cameras made between 1959 and 1988, F4 being the first to use AA type.