# Need help restoring and calibrating my Ricohflex IIIB



## xypex982 (Feb 1, 2009)

I finally got my first TLR. It was a gift from a friend, and when I finally got the focusing ring unstuck I was playing with it and the top metal ring around the lens came off.....so now I may as well restore it a bit.


It is in fair-good condition I just need help on doing the following things:

1) Lubing it, what should I lube and what lubes should I & shouldnt use?
2) How do I remove and clean the viewfinder?
3) Now that the ring from the top lens came off I assume I cant just throw it back on, and that I have to calibrate it,  so how do I calibrate a TLR.



Excuse the newb-ness I just have never had or used a TLR and am really excited to get it going even through my own ingorance. Thanks a ton in advanced guy! :thumbup:


----------



## Mitica100 (Feb 1, 2009)

Might you be able to post some pics of the TLR?

The waist level viewfinder is usually easy to remove/clean. There should be a set of screws, usually four, along the side of the viewfinder, all facing up. Take them out one by one, put them in a small bin so you don't loose them. You can probably pull the entire WLF (waist level finder) up and gain access to the mirror. Do *not* clean mirror by rubbing something on it, no matter how soft. 

Now, the viewfinder's glass might be held down by some sort of a spring, sometimes this spring is held in place by one or two screws. Remove very carefully and the ground glass square will come out. Clean with Windex or an alcohol solution.

Regarding the lubrication...  Does the TLR seem to focus on the hard side? Any controls being stiff? Shutter is functioning at all speeds? Usually camera shutters don't need lubrication but the focusing gear might. If that's the case, white Lithium grease (just a tad) will help.

Post a pic. of the lens ring so I can see how it can be re-attached. Most likely a small screw.


----------



## xypex982 (Feb 2, 2009)

Ohh ya here ya go man.

DSC_0020 on Flickr - Photo Sharing!
DSC_0025 on Flickr - Photo Sharing!


The tlr was focusing like it had no lube, very stiff. Otherwise the shutter and everything else seems to work fine! :-D


----------



## compur (Feb 2, 2009)

I assume the picture shows the camera after you removed some parts, 
correct?  If not, the camera is missing some parts.

If you removed the parts:
You marked the position where those 2 gears meshed together before
separating them, right?  And, did likewise with any other parts you 
removed from that area that would affect the focus of the 2 lenses 
syncing correctly?


----------



## xypex982 (Feb 2, 2009)

Yes that was after I had taken the ring gear thing off, but that is all I took off, is there anything missing?


"You marked the position where those 2 gears meshed together before
separating them, right?"

yaaa........um the top ring just fell off after I focused it a few times......so it was unexpected and I didnt get a chance to mark the rings, but it still has the little screws in it guess they must have come loose. So im guessing im going to have to re-sync it, and if I am how would I do that?


----------



## compur (Feb 2, 2009)

The procedure is to mark where the 2 gears mesh before separating them
so you can get them back together correctly.


----------



## xypex982 (Feb 2, 2009)

I would have loved to, but the ring fell off, so it was unexpected....so now how do I get it recalibrated


----------



## compur (Feb 2, 2009)

I suppose if both lenses have an infinity stop you can try setting both all 
the way to their stops and then mesh them at that point.  (Note that the 
2 lenses rotate in opposite directions.)  However, doing that may or may 
not work. I have never worked on that particular camera and I'm just giving 
you an educated guess.

Otherwise, you'd best give it to a repair technician and see if they can
do it.  You would have to set up a ground glass at the film plane and 
focus on a measured distance and compare that to the viewing lens
image, etc.  It's not an easy task, sorry.


----------



## Mike_E (Feb 3, 2009)

There is a procedure involving tape or a piece of ground glass on the opened back and using a second camera set to infinity to use to sight through the lens in question to reset the focus.  I'm not at home so I can't trawl through my Hdd and find it.  Google is your friend here but you might start with the sticky on camera manuals that's around here somewhere because I think that a link that I placed there is to a site that either has this info or a link to it.


here you are..   http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/...roducts-news-reviews/146000-free-manuals.html


----------



## xypex982 (Jul 10, 2010)

I know this is old, but I recently got back into 120 and got bored with my Diana and Hawkeye and wanted a more "real" camera so I looked to my Ricohflex. Everything on it now is good and I got the view lens unstuck, but as I spin it it does two things wrong,

A) It never stops, I can go on and on in either direction
B) It doesn't effect my focus.


Why is this and how do I fix it so I can calibrate this thing?


----------

