Lens wobble. Has anyone experienced this?
I got a "Well Used, optics fine" Pentax 15mm Limited from MPB today and noticed the front element "wobbles." Specifically, the whole focus ring/front element assembly moves, such that the frame can change while looking through the viewfinder without the camera body being moved at all. I hope that makes sense. I've included a photo showing what I'm talking about. When the camera is held level, the gap at the front of the lens is large and the gap at the bottom is small, so the front element is rotated slightly, which probably affects the image somewhat.
Just curious if anyone else ever had a lens with this issue and what your experience with it was. I don't mind a beat up lens, in fact I tend to prefer it due to price reduction (and character!) so long as the optics are good. But this may be a bit too beat up. 🙃
Edit: looking at it closer, the entire element assembly moves within the part of the lens that mounts to the camera. You can see the rear element move along with the front. Nice. lol I think I'll go get some sample images now. 🤪
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For me that doesn't look good.
The deep marks on the lens "hood" tell me that the lens hit a rough, hard surface fairly hard and the distribution of the marks not only in one spot are a hint that it was not only one hit. The different gap sizes indicate that the lens is decentred and the wobble - if I get it right - shows that something is loose inside the lens and that should not be loose. The optics might be good, but the necessary mechanical stuff obviously is not.
I'd send it back, because I don't know how to repair that damage and to give it to a special photo repair shop is probably more expensive than a lens in better condition.
E.
Quote from JBP on July 31, 2022, 7:44 pmI got a "Well Used, optics fine" Pentax 15mm Limited from MPB today and noticed the front element "wobbles." Specifically, the whole focus ring/front element assembly moves, such that the frame can change while looking through the viewfinder without the camera body being moved at all. I hope that makes sense. I've included a photo showing what I'm talking about. When the camera is held level, the gap at the front of the lens is large and the gap at the bottom is small, so the front element is rotated slightly, which probably affects the image somewhat.
Just curious if anyone else ever had a lens with this issue and what your experience with it was. I don't mind a beat up lens, in fact I tend to prefer it due to price reduction (and character!) so long as the optics are good. But this may be a bit too beat up.
Edit: looking at it closer, the entire element assembly moves within the part of the lens that mounts to the camera. You can see the rear element move along with the front. Nice. lol I think I'll go get some sample images now.
So what's funny, you've bought my DA 15 Limited, seriously I could probably match the SN lol and I recognize those dings. It was that beat up in 2020 when I bought it from Mint Camera in Japan. I never had a problem with it, but I don't remember the element bouncing like that. I just traded it in 2 weeks ago. Have you shot anything with it yet? I last used it in Dec 2021. This is the last shot I took with it in Fairbanks Alaska!
In fact @jbp is the S/N 9323130 by any chance? And how does it behave once it's mounted on camera with the AF motor engaged? I figured it be solid then
Quote from SpruceBruce on July 31, 2022, 9:26 pmQuote from JBP on July 31, 2022, 7:44 pmI got a "Well Used, optics fine" Pentax 15mm Limited from MPB today and noticed the front element "wobbles." Specifically, the whole focus ring/front element assembly moves, such that the frame can change while looking through the viewfinder without the camera body being moved at all. I hope that makes sense. I've included a photo showing what I'm talking about. When the camera is held level, the gap at the front of the lens is large and the gap at the bottom is small, so the front element is rotated slightly, which probably affects the image somewhat.
Just curious if anyone else ever had a lens with this issue and what your experience with it was. I don't mind a beat up lens, in fact I tend to prefer it due to price reduction (and character!) so long as the optics are good. But this may be a bit too beat up.
Edit: looking at it closer, the entire element assembly moves within the part of the lens that mounts to the camera. You can see the rear element move along with the front. Nice. lol I think I'll go get some sample images now.
So what's funny, you've bought my DA 15 Limited, seriously I could probably match the SN lol and I recognize those dings. It was that beat up in 2020 when I bought it from Mint Camera in Japan. I never had a problem with it, but I don't remember the element bouncing like that. I just traded it in 2 weeks ago. Have you shot anything with it yet? I last used it in Dec 2021. This is the last shot I took with it in Fairbanks Alaska!
In fact @jbp is the S/N 9323130 by any chance? And how does it behave once it's mounted on camera with the AF motor engaged? I figured it be solid then
This is too funny! That is the serial number! Small world or just a small Pentax community? 😆
So I took it for a spin after starting this thread and I noticed it could focus up close just fine, but far away it was always out of focus. If I pushed the focusing ring flush (like in the first photo above) then it would be in focus. That was kind of fun in its own way actually. 😅
Unfortunately it soon stopped focusing altogether, even in manual focus. It must have been damaged in shipping at some point, or another owner has bought it, damaged it and returned it since.
It is probably not beyond repair. I am super tempted to take it apart and see what's going on in there. How neat would it be to revive it? A lens with a story and a history, cool! But I'm not sure if I should risk not being able to return it. I'll see if anyone chimes in with "oh yeah, that's an easy fix!" 😄
I got one photo I liked before it went kaput. Just enough to make me want more. The 15mm Limited is a lovely little lens. I've never used a lens that wide and the field of view is really nice.
IMGP6348 by JBP_Mobusaki, on Flickr
Quote from JBP on July 31, 2022, 10:51 pmQuote from SpruceBruce on July 31, 2022, 9:26 pmQuote from JBP on July 31, 2022, 7:44 pmI got a "Well Used, optics fine" Pentax 15mm Limited from MPB today and noticed the front element "wobbles." Specifically, the whole focus ring/front element assembly moves, such that the frame can change while looking through the viewfinder without the camera body being moved at all. I hope that makes sense. I've included a photo showing what I'm talking about. When the camera is held level, the gap at the front of the lens is large and the gap at the bottom is small, so the front element is rotated slightly, which probably affects the image somewhat.
Just curious if anyone else ever had a lens with this issue and what your experience with it was. I don't mind a beat up lens, in fact I tend to prefer it due to price reduction (and character!) so long as the optics are good. But this may be a bit too beat up.
Edit: looking at it closer, the entire element assembly moves within the part of the lens that mounts to the camera. You can see the rear element move along with the front. Nice. lol I think I'll go get some sample images now.
So what's funny, you've bought my DA 15 Limited, seriously I could probably match the SN lol and I recognize those dings. It was that beat up in 2020 when I bought it from Mint Camera in Japan. I never had a problem with it, but I don't remember the element bouncing like that. I just traded it in 2 weeks ago. Have you shot anything with it yet? I last used it in Dec 2021. This is the last shot I took with it in Fairbanks Alaska!
In fact @jbp is the S/N 9323130 by any chance? And how does it behave once it's mounted on camera with the AF motor engaged? I figured it be solid then
This is too funny! That is the serial number! Small world or just a small Pentax community?
So I took it for a spin after starting this thread and I noticed it could focus up close just fine, but far away it was always out of focus. If I pushed the focusing ring flush (like in the first photo above) then it would be in focus. That was kind of fun in its own way actually.
Unfortunately it soon stopped focusing altogether, even in manual focus. It must have been damaged in shipping at some point, or another owner has bought it, damaged it and returned it since.
It is probably not beyond repair. I am super tempted to take it apart and see what's going on in there. How neat would it be to revive it? A lens with a story and a history, cool! But I'm not sure if I should risk not being able to return it. I'll see if anyone chimes in with "oh yeah, that's an easy fix!"
I got one photo I liked before it went kaput. Just enough to make me want more. The 15mm Limited is a lovely little lens. I've never used a lens that wide and the field of view is really nice.
Maybe the original owner, dropped it and it finally gave the ghost 😐?!? I made sure it was in working order when I shipped it out....and it was buried in an 8x8x8 box with foam and bubble wrap. Sucks that happened, but I have no idea what happened in between! That lens was always great to me.
Quote from SpruceBruce on August 1, 2022, 3:36 amQuote from JBP on July 31, 2022, 10:51 pmQuote from SpruceBruce on July 31, 2022, 9:26 pmQuote from JBP on July 31, 2022, 7:44 pmI got a "Well Used, optics fine" Pentax 15mm Limited from MPB today and noticed the front element "wobbles." Specifically, the whole focus ring/front element assembly moves, such that the frame can change while looking through the viewfinder without the camera body being moved at all. I hope that makes sense. I've included a photo showing what I'm talking about. When the camera is held level, the gap at the front of the lens is large and the gap at the bottom is small, so the front element is rotated slightly, which probably affects the image somewhat.
Just curious if anyone else ever had a lens with this issue and what your experience with it was. I don't mind a beat up lens, in fact I tend to prefer it due to price reduction (and character!) so long as the optics are good. But this may be a bit too beat up.
Edit: looking at it closer, the entire element assembly moves within the part of the lens that mounts to the camera. You can see the rear element move along with the front. Nice. lol I think I'll go get some sample images now.
So what's funny, you've bought my DA 15 Limited, seriously I could probably match the SN lol and I recognize those dings. It was that beat up in 2020 when I bought it from Mint Camera in Japan. I never had a problem with it, but I don't remember the element bouncing like that. I just traded it in 2 weeks ago. Have you shot anything with it yet? I last used it in Dec 2021. This is the last shot I took with it in Fairbanks Alaska!
In fact @jbp is the S/N 9323130 by any chance? And how does it behave once it's mounted on camera with the AF motor engaged? I figured it be solid then
This is too funny! That is the serial number! Small world or just a small Pentax community?
So I took it for a spin after starting this thread and I noticed it could focus up close just fine, but far away it was always out of focus. If I pushed the focusing ring flush (like in the first photo above) then it would be in focus. That was kind of fun in its own way actually.
Unfortunately it soon stopped focusing altogether, even in manual focus. It must have been damaged in shipping at some point, or another owner has bought it, damaged it and returned it since.
It is probably not beyond repair. I am super tempted to take it apart and see what's going on in there. How neat would it be to revive it? A lens with a story and a history, cool! But I'm not sure if I should risk not being able to return it. I'll see if anyone chimes in with "oh yeah, that's an easy fix!"
I got one photo I liked before it went kaput. Just enough to make me want more. The 15mm Limited is a lovely little lens. I've never used a lens that wide and the field of view is really nice.
Maybe the original owner, dropped it and it finally gave the ghost
?!? I made sure it was in working order when I shipped it out....and it was buried in an 8x8x8 box with foam and bubble wrap. Sucks that happened, but I have no idea what happened in between! That lens was always great to me.
I don't doubt it. Yeah it has obvious signs of hard knocks but MPB checks the lenses, so I figured it was working when they received it. I just assumed it got knocked about a little too much in transit.
Whoa, what a coincidence!
@jbp you should really return it tho, it's one thing to buy a busted lens to play with, but fixing optics is not easy, even opening up a lens requires special tools which cost probably about $50 to get started with. They sold you a lens with good optics but that isn't what you got.
Must've been in shipping, I've had issues with shipping lately.
Quote from ahoyhere on August 3, 2022, 1:10 amWhoa, what a coincidence!
@jbp you should really return it tho, it's one thing to buy a busted lens to play with, but fixing optics is not easy, even opening up a lens requires special tools which cost probably about $50 to get started with. They sold you a lens with good optics but that isn't what you got.
Must've been in shipping, I've had issues with shipping lately.
Yeah, I agree. And then they can sell it for parts and someone will be happy with it for the parts price. Is does seem fixable, but that's not what you wanted to take on for the price you paid! It will live on one day yet. 🙂
Thank you, both, I will do that. 🙂
If MPB does turn around and sell it cheap for parts, I may buy it just to keep it in the family 🤣
