Moderated by: chrisbet,
Replacement lens focus ring grips  Rate Topic 
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Posted by chrisbet: Sun Feb 16th, 2020 08:56 1st Post
Any idea where I might get a new rubber grip for the 105 2.8 ?

Fleabay has none, neither does nikon usa. Internet search throws up nothing for this lens!

I have emailed Nikon UK Spares -  lets hope they can help!



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Posted by Eric: Sun Feb 16th, 2020 12:34 2nd Post
chrisbet wrote:
Any idea where I might get a new rubber grip for the 105 2.8 ?

Fleabay has none, neither does nikon usa. Internet search throws up nothing for this lens!

I have emailed Nikon UK Spares -  lets hope they can help!
You might have better luck trying a Nikon repair company like Fixation  https://www.fixationuk.com   or ACS https://advancedcameraservices.co.uk



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Eric


Posted by jk: Sun Feb 16th, 2020 14:25 3rd Post
Like Eric says I doubt Nikon will be much help as this is an item that they wont carry spares for but have go obtain them from Japan.
Try contacting ACS (01953 889324) or FixationUK (020 7582 3294) for the part but you will need to provide lens serial number.



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Posted by GeoffR: Sun Feb 16th, 2020 16:55 4th Post
jk wrote:
Like Eric says I doubt Nikon will be much help as this is an item that they wont carry spares for but have go obtain them from Japan.
Try contacting ACS (01953 889324) or FixationUK (020 7582 3294) for the part but you will need to provide lens serial number.
Fortunately you would be wrong, contact Nikon at spareparts.uk@nikon.com and they will be more than happy to supply the required part/s I have replaced the zoom ring grip on a 24-70 f2.8 and a 16-85 f3.5-5.6. The service is excellent and quick.



Posted by chrisbet: Sun Feb 16th, 2020 17:32 5th Post
Thanks Geoff, I have done - let's see what they say.



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Posted by jk: Mon Feb 17th, 2020 05:35 6th Post
Geoff those are current or recent lenses.  Chris' lens is 30 years old.
Manufacturers are/(were, rules may have changed) only obliged to keep spares for products up to 10 years old.  This is why there was little fuss when Nikon moved to AiS lenses there were no aperture rings for the pre-Ai lenses but some of us accepted it and modified the aperture ring by filing it!

Hope I am wrong and that Nikon UK can supply Chris' rubber ring for his lens.



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Posted by chrisbet: Mon Feb 17th, 2020 11:39 7th Post
It may be old but the lens (at least its UV/IR version) is in current production!!

The lens turned up today and is nowhere as bad looking as the images online made it out to be - a good exterior clean and it is presentable.

As far as image quality goes, here is a close up taken with it - the lens actually goes down to 1: 0.88 with the extension tubes , but this was taken at 1:2.



The focus ring is smooth to turn but a bit "heavy", maybe the helicoid grease has thickened / dried out?



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If it is broken it was probably me ....


Posted by GeoffR: Mon Feb 17th, 2020 14:48 8th Post
jk wrote:
Geoff those are current or recent lenses.  Chris' lens is 30 years old.
Manufacturers are/(were, rules may have changed) only obliged to keep spares for products up to 10 years old.  This is why there was little fuss when Nikon moved to AiS lenses there were no aperture rings for the pre-Ai lenses but some of us accepted it and modified the aperture ring by filing it!

Hope I am wrong and that Nikon UK can supply Chris' rubber ring for his lens.
Both lenses are relatively recent though the 24-70 f2.8 has been replaced by the 24-70 f2.8 VR.

I would still try Nikon first if it is only the rubber covering, if the focusing action is stiff that is another matter.



Posted by Robert: Mon Feb 17th, 2020 16:02 9th Post
Chris, get it serviced by ACS, as Eric mentions above, they have serviced several lenses and cameras for me, ring and ask for David he will give good advice.

The lens should be smooth and buttery to focus.  When they serviced my 300mm f/2.8 Ais, it came back a dream to use, I could (and still can) fine focus by brushing the the focus ring with back of my little finger. It's not expensive and if they have one they will probably put a new rubber grip on as part of the service.



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Posted by chrisbet: Mon Feb 17th, 2020 16:28 10th Post
I have dropped both ACS and Fixation a line ...

...in the meantime I removed the old split ring, clean all the goo off of it, joined the split on the back with tape & superglued the join. Slid it back on the lens and gently abraded the old hard surface with fine carbide paper...  it will do until I get something to replace it.





____________________
If it is broken it was probably me ....


Posted by GeoffR: Tue Feb 18th, 2020 16:06 11th Post
Chris, get it serviced by ACS, as Eric mentions above, they have serviced several lenses and cameras for me, ring and ask for David he will give good advice.

The lens should be smooth and buttery to focus. When they serviced my 300mm f/2.8 Ais, it came back a dream to use, I could (and still can) fine focus by brushing the the focus ring with back of my little finger. It's not expensive and if they have one they will probably put a new rubber grip on as part of the service.

I agree, if the focus action isn't smooth changing the rubber grip isn't the solution



Posted by chrisbet: Tue Feb 18th, 2020 17:39 12th Post
A little confusion here - the ring needs replacing as it is split - I have effected a temporary repair but would like to replace it.

The focusing is very smooth, it just takes more effort than a brush with the little finger!

I have partly disassembled the lens (without disturbing the optics) and it is not the friction brake causing the resistance.

This is the only manual focus lens I have got and it certainly isn't as free as the AF lenses, so I was just asking whether this is normal behaviour for my lens - especially as it has two sets of helicoids.



____________________
If it is broken it was probably me ....


Posted by Robert: Wed Feb 19th, 2020 00:17 13th Post
chrisbet wrote:
A little confusion here - This is the only manual focus lens I have got and it certainly isn't as free as the AF lenses, so I was just asking whether this is normal behaviour for my lens - especially as it has two sets of helicoids.
I just checked, the word you used was "heavy", no MF lens should feel heavy to focus.  On the other hand, most of the AF lenses I have, feel overly slack to focus manually, quite horrible by comparison with the old MF lenses.

Heavy or stiff are not words which I  feel should be associated with the focus action of good MF Nikkor lenses. The grease may have stiffened, it may have been serviced in the past with the wrong grade of grease or it's suffering from lack of use. A good lens technician will know instantly if it's right or not.  I will try an experiment later to see if I can measure the torque required to turn the focus rings of my MF lenses with the simple expedient of wrapping a little thread around the focus ring and tugging with a spring balance.

Richard Haw is a well known lens expert who is keen to share his knowledge on manual lenses.

https://richardhaw.com

He is rather entertaining and very knowledgeable, it's well worth trawling his site, I would be surprised if he hasn't covered your lens or one very similar.  He covers greases and solvents (among many other things like making lens spanners etc.) in great detail in separate sections of his site.



____________________
Robert.



Posted by chrisbet: Wed Feb 19th, 2020 03:51 14th Post
Thanks Robert, I had already found Richard Haws site some time ago when I repaired one of my "plastic" DX lenses - even made a new bush from brass to replace a broken plastic bush :coffee: and yes he does cover the 105 micro lens in detail.

Fortunately I have a set of instrument screwdrivers and last night I stripped the 105 down to the rear set of helicoids and they are totally devoid of grease, just a black stickyness in the threads..... so I have ordered a small pot of 10 weight helicoid grease.

After cleaning, the rear helicoids are moving very freely, I expect to find the front helicoids in the same state, but I will leave them for now until I have the grease to reassemble the rear ones - I don't like leaving things with too many pieces apart!

The lens has clearly been apart in the past, none of the rings are sealed with lacquer and the front ring grub screw is missing. I will reassemble with a little weak bond Loctite when I am finished.



____________________
If it is broken it was probably me ....


Posted by Robert: Wed Feb 19th, 2020 05:06 15th Post
Brilliant!  We got there. I am sure it will be a joy to use when you have finished.  :thumbs:



____________________
Robert.



Posted by chrisbet: Wed Feb 19th, 2020 07:12 16th Post
Well the extension tubes turned up this morning so as a test I found a watch screw that is about 1 mm long ....

taken at 1:0.88, f2.8 and cropped - DOF is about 1/2mm !



____________________
If it is broken it was probably me ....


Posted by jk: Wed Feb 19th, 2020 08:15 17th Post
Grub screws can be found at an old fashioned jeweller.

Is there a similar screw elsewhere that you could post a picture of.  I might have one or some one else might be able to provide.



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Posted by jk: Wed Feb 19th, 2020 08:45 18th Post
chrisbet wrote:
Well the extension tubes turned up this morning so as a test I found a watch screw that is about 1 mm long ....

taken at 1:0.88, f2.8 and cropped - DOF is about 1/2mm !


See the shallow DOF.



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Posted by chrisbet: Wed Feb 19th, 2020 11:51 19th Post
Its the same thread as the screws that hold the meter coupling bracket and about the same length, but a grub screw not a pan head.



____________________
If it is broken it was probably me ....


Posted by Robert: Wed Feb 19th, 2020 15:30 20th Post
At about 1:1 a ball point pen tip is a bit small but try a clean shiny new small ball bearing, if you get it right you may have a selfie...



____________________
Robert.



Posted by chrisbet: Fri Feb 21st, 2020 17:13 21st Post
The helicoid grease turned up today and the lens has been scrubbed spotless and regreased - a lot of the friction was coming not from the helicoids but from where the front assembly is mounted, 2 parts rotate against each other with a couple of brass shims in between. Cleaning and greasing them has made all the difference.

Not exactly super easy to turn but much better, butter out of the fridge!

I have also acquired a 2x macro teleconverter and its action is similar, so I have obviously been spoilt by almost frictionless AF lenses!



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Posted by Robert: Fri Feb 21st, 2020 17:17 22nd Post
Good to hear that Chris.



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Robert.


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