Nikon MF-23 Multi Function Back - Year limitation?

greyred · Aug 3, 2018

Thinking of getting a Nikon MF-23 for my F4 - does anyone know if the year/date function has any limitation as to what date it will go up to?
(I just recall that a databack that I had on an FE many years ago only went up to somewhere around 2019, can't remember exactly)
A bit of googling has not thrown up any answers and a manual I found does not seem to mention this aspect.
Thanks
P.

Theo Sulphate · Aug 3, 2018

Sadly, I've never found a working MF-23 despite looking for years in all the obvious places - even from trusted sources.

Anyway...

I can find nothing online about the the two-digit year value, although there is a very brief mention of "00" to "99" in regards to using the SEL button. If you're lucky, you can use 18 for 2018.

The MIR site has the MF-24 instructions, but the data-related portion applies to the MF-23 as well:

http://www.mir.com.my/rb/photography/hardwares/classics/nikonf4/filmbacks/MF24/index3.htm

neilt3 · Aug 3, 2018

I can't give an answer for the MF-23 , but I have the MF-19 for the earlier F-301 and F-501 cameras ( might be called N-2020 over your way ) and the date goes from 0-99 in the year section .
Setting on it are "month" 1-12 , "day" 1-31 ( I can't remember if it knows how many days are in each month , probably , my 1980's Casio watch did !) and "year" section is 0-99 , not "19xx" or "20xx" , so is good for use in any Century , all Century !
I bought it for it's intervalometer setting rather than data imprinting .

Given that the F-501 was the first Nikon A/F camera and the F4 wasn't much later , and both backs seem about the same (IIRC) then I would have thought you would be O.K .
I can't imaging Nikon going backwards with this .

swchris · Aug 3, 2018

Only problem could be the handling of leap years. 2000 is long gone, but on Feb 28, 2100, you should check if it properly switches to Mar 1.

shutterfinger · Aug 4, 2018

I looked at my manual and there is no mention of date limitation. Only the last 2 digits of the year are displayed/imprinted so there should be no limitation.

greyred · Aug 5, 2018

Great, many thanks for all your responses. As you say, I can probably just use 2 digits for the year and so I'm probably OK on this.

narsuitus · Aug 5, 2018

Good luck in your search for a Nikon MF-23 data back (bottom) for Nikon F4.

I have found the data back useful for the following:
Astronomy (long star trail exposures)
Astronomy (sequence shots of an eclipse)
Time-lapse photos of growing plants or blooming flower
Periodic shots of bird feeder in hopes of catching photos of birds
Pole Aerial Photography (high-angle shots taken while the camera is attached to a tall pole)
Long exposures required for shooting night landscapes
Long exposures of chemiluminescent objects in the dark
Long exposures of bioluminescent objects in the dark
Long infrared exposures
Delayed exposures that are longer than the delay provided by the camera self-timer

How do you plan on using yours?

Battery Pack & Data Back by Narsuitus, on Flickr

Theo Sulphate · Aug 5, 2018

They also provide a "trap focus" feature whereby the shutter is tripped when an object comes into focus.

Useful for various sports and wildlife photography.

@narsuitus, yours is the first I've ever seen that is actually functioning. I've been looking for years and have found only junk. Sad!

narsuitus · Aug 6, 2018

Theo Sulphate said:
They also provide a "trap focus" feature whereby the shutter is tripped when an object comes into focus.

Useful for various sports and wildlife photography.

Thanks for the information on the "trap focus" feature.

I was unaware of this feature because all except one of my sports and wildlife lenses are manual focus. One of these days, I will have to try the "trap focus" feature on my one auto focus lens (Nikon 80-200 D AF-S f/2.8).

shutterfinger · Aug 10, 2018

I scanned the instruction manual in booklet form at 150dpi 24 bit RGB, converted to PDF with watermark.
Download it here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1h3X6YFD9itKCqjhjbfs5EzoR8ZJZcEB5/view?usp=sharing
The file is 103MB.

shutterfinger · Aug 10, 2018

Theo Sulphate said:
@narsuitus, yours is the first I've ever seen that is actually functioning. I've been looking for years and have found only junk. Sad!

I saw several on ebay a few days ago in working order from both reputable USA seller and from Japan.
They were listed for 10% of what I paid for mine in 1992 new.

Nikon MF-23 Multi Function Back - Year limitation?

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