Undeterred, Urs proceeded to completely disassemble the camera, and he sent me the set of pictures.
Urs said he encountered no great difficulty in taking apart the Samoca, or in getting it all back together again. Unfortunately he did not find the key to adjusting the misaligned rangefinder. Here is what he reported back about his findings:
I took my camera completely apart, under the topcover one can clean all the glasses and mirrors, but the length adjustment is done by the cogwheel on the frontplate, the beam splitter and the deflector mirror are glued to the rangefinder housing without any possibility of adjustment. The distance measurement is done by a moving lens. That's why I thought of the rangefinder window cover has a adjustment optic and because it is knurled, and because mine is missing.So, still another chapter to go in the Samoca restoration, but the information Urs contributed is a big step forward for those of us with an interest in the unique little Samoca-35 Super.
So anyway, perhaps time will tell,
meanwhile I wait to see the first pictures,thanks and regardsurs fischer
UPDATE (June 3, 2022)
The mystery of rangefinder adjustment appears to have been solved! I received an email from Christian Treiber with the following explanation:
There is a screw hidden in the axis of the upper Knob that will show the distance. When you take up the leather, you will see the Nut, and deep in the nut is a screw where you can adjust the Split sreen or picture . There you can synchronize the infinity of the lens and the split window.
* * *
Since it has been a long time since I last made any pictures with the Samoca, I loaded a roll of Kodak ColorPlus 200 and shot all 36 exposures over the weekend in the Plaza Vieja.
I had to make some substantial contrast adjustment to the pictures from the Samoca. I suspect that was no fault of the camera, but rather a function of my C-41 processing. I'll try some Fuji next time around to see if I can sort out the processing issues.
14 comments:
Where do you come up with these machines? I have learned about so many cameras I knew nothing about from reading your blog! Love it!!
I think I bought the Samoca on ebay. I don't recall exactly what got me interested in the camera. The first roll of film I put through the camera looked awful and I put it aside for a couple years. I finally tried another roll which looked fine, and I decided the first roll disaster was likely a processing issue by the lab. Among the unique features of the Samoca is a hinged panel rather than a sprung pressure plate which keeps the film flat; the result of that is a film advance that is as smooth as the Leica.
I've been doing a lot of work on my own lil Samoca-35 but without a manual I am a little unsure what one button does - on the back of the camera is a little slider that is either L or F - do you what does those stand for?
I am loving seeing this journey through cameras!!
My 35 Super does not have such a slider. Maybe you have a different model? I looked on line for manuals, but did not find a Samoca with the feature you describe.
Hi Angela, did you figure out what the button with the L or F is? I haven’t the same Samoca 35 Super and cannot figure out what that does.
A picture of the feature you are referring to would be useful.
Hi Mike, I have the same L and F option that Angela mentioned in the comments above but cannot find any info on what function it provides. I wasn't able to post pics here but did send some pics of the feature to your email.
So, I got the pictures and looked around on the net to find an illustration on Flickr indicating that the button on the back of some Samocas is a shutter release lock. The illustration shows a Samoca Super with a light meter rather than the model I have, but it does appear to answer the question.
I am in the process of dismantling my Samoca Super. Reason is the rangefinder VERY unclear. I can sense movement left and right as I focus but it's like a ghost image. So focusing, especially in poor light impossible. So, will check the mirrors and not sure what else. It was relatively easy to take off the top cover. Just bear in mind that to remove the film rewind knob, turn it clockwise. This had me puzzled for a long time because you don't want to damage anything. Thanks for posting the photos which helped to figure things out. No manual available as far as I have searched.
Thanks for sharing that experience with the Samoca. It seems we are gradually accumulating the details needed to tune up this interesting little camera. It might be worth posting a query on the revived Claassic Cameras Repair site.
Hi there I recently bought a Samoca Super w/ a 2.8 lens and a light meter - the lens is in good shape, but the camera and light meter don't work.
I would like to buy another Samoca Super - like yours - with a 3.5 lens and without a light meter - and then install the 2.8 lens from the broken camera. Is this as easy as it seems?
Thanks!
Mine has always worked well. My only complaint is a rather low contrast rangefinder spot. So, I've never tried to do any repair to the camera. The instructions provided by my readers do make it seem pretty easy to open up the camera. Perhaps you will be able to determine the cause of the problem and fix the one you have. I can't really add any wisdom of value to what was reported in the post.
Old post, I know, but did your or Urs ever figure out where the vertical alignment for the rangefinder is? Sounds like the horizontal adjustment is behind the upper knob based o the update.
Josh,
I have heard nothing more about the adjustment of the Samoca rangefinder other than what was posted previously. The last comment on the subject cited in the blog post was by Christian Treiber. I see there is a former professional photographer by that name on Facebook. You might try contacting him with your question.
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