Rollei 35 - aperture control moves pointer needle in wrong direction?

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Dylan3293

Member
Joined
May 5, 2024
Messages
2
Location
Norway
Format
Analog
Hi all! New to analog photography and the forum here. 😊

I recently acquired a Rollei 35, on which I've performed some basic repairs (opened the camera, removed loose screw that was blocking the film advance mechanism, reinstalled a shutter release spring). Now I'm testing the camera but am in doubt about the exposure pointer needle.

The ligt meter works and the white needle moves depending on lighting conditions (to the left side of the window for darker scenes and vice versa). The red indicator needle also moves when changing shutter speed and aperture opening. But it seems to move in the wrong direction when changing aperture: selecting a higher f stop (smaller aperture opening) moves the needle to the left (darker scene) and vice versa. Shutter speed seems to work as expected: lower number on dial = slower shutter speed = needle moves left = appropriate for darker scenes).

Did somebody experience this before? Any ideas of what's going on? I enjoy tinkering so am curious if I can fix the problem myself. Input much appreciated!

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Dylan3293

Dylan3293

Member
Joined
May 5, 2024
Messages
2
Location
Norway
Format
Analog
All I can tell you is, that is definitely the wrong way round! Seems someone has been in that camera before and reconnected it wrong?

Happy to report that I managed to fix the problem! I dis- and re-assembled the aperture control dial, making sure to put all the little washers in the correct place, order and orientation (based on a service manual found online). Now the pointer moves as expected when changing aperture. I suspect that before I was unknowingly changing the ISO setting together with aperture (which is set through a little subdial on top of the aperture dial), leading to the pointer moving in the "wrong" direction.
 
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