Archive 2012 · Voigtlander Heliar 15mm Lens Hood Removal

LeeW
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Voigtlander Heliar 15mm Lens Hood Removal

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Edited on Nov 28, 2012 at 01:00 PM · View previous versions

Feb 23, 2012 at 04:33 AM

drofpilneb
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Voigtlander Heliar 15mm Lens Hood Removal

Cool. How did you do about removing the built-in hood?

Feb 23, 2012 at 07:38 AM

JimBuchanan
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Voigtlander Heliar 15mm Lens Hood Removal

I basically did the same thing with the LTM version. For reference, there are no filter threads on the LTM lens hood.

For those interested, the glued name/ID ring had to be pryed off, front element assembly unscrewed and removed, then the hood removed with 3 screws. I turned down the hood in a lathe and likewise 39mm Leica RF style hood from eBay. The 2 pieces fit together and was pinned and glued together. The bond is very robust as I then turned that 2 piece assembly in a lathe to create a recessed mount for a 55mm filter frame.

Now a generic 55mm cap can be used for protection. A 55mm filter will cause vignetting, but at least with stepup rings, larger filters can be used.
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7204/6894200287_b9ceb768b3_z.jpg

Feb 23, 2012 at 09:24 AM

john_edwards
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Voigtlander Heliar 15mm Lens Hood Removal

That lens is next on my "to Buy" list and I'm wondering, as one who has cut many things with a hacksaw, how did you do this so cleanly?
Thanks.

Feb 23, 2012 at 12:19 PM

LeeW
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Voigtlander Heliar 15mm Lens Hood Removal

john_edwards wrote:
That lens is next on my "to Buy" list and I'm wondering, as one who has cut many things with a hacksaw, how did you do this so cleanly?
Thanks.

Hi John,

There was 4 steps to removing the hood & leaving a clean finish -

1. I cut the petals off with an hacksaw as near to the 'base ring' as possible. As you know, this leaves things very rough indeed!

2. I then used a medium gauge metal file to get things a lot smoother. I did this until the outer ring of the hood & the slightly sunken inner ring of the filter holding threads became level (around 20-30 mins). As soon as the two rings 'merged' into one, I stopped filing to prevent damage to the threads (& defeating the whole purpose of the exercise!)

3. I then took a fine gauge sandpaper to take out the marks left by the file. Took about 10 mins.

4. To get a completely smooth, mark free finish, I then polished for about 5 mins with Cape Cod metal polishing cloths (search online). These are pretty cheap & are amazing for shining out any small, scratches or marks from most metals (i use them on my watch occasionally & they make it look like new).

In all honesty, I was surprised how well the whole process went. Took around 2 hours in total with a couple of breaks to rest my aching arm!

One thing I must point out is I COMPLETELY taped up the lens with masking tape beforehand to prevent any of the very fine swarf from entering the lens, or god forbid, marking the glass.

Good luck it you decide to give it a go.

Lee

Feb 23, 2012 at 01:08 PM

Lotusm50
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Voigtlander Heliar 15mm Lens Hood Removal

Might a Dremel motor be easier, faster and cleaner?

LeeW wrote:
Hi John,

There was 4 steps to removing the hood & leaving a clean finish -

1. I cut the petals off with an hacksaw as near to the 'base ring' as possible. As you know, this leaves things very rough indeed!

2. I then used a medium gauge metal file to get things a lot smoother. I did this until the outer ring of the hood & the slightly sunken inner ring of the filter holding threads became level (around 20-30 mins). As soon as the two rings 'merged' into one, I stopped filing to prevent damage to the threads (&...Show more →

Feb 23, 2012 at 01:09 PM

LeeW
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Voigtlander Heliar 15mm Lens Hood Removal

Very possibly, but I don't possess one!

In reality, it could be done in numerous ways but I went about it with the tools at hand. The end result is all that matters really...

Thanks,

Lee

Feb 23, 2012 at 01:18 PM

rscheffler
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Voigtlander Heliar 15mm Lens Hood Removal

Very cool and a super clean job for having done it all by hand! I have thought about doing this as well... Also, I bought the CV12 in Leica thread mount (LTM) primarily to avoid the huge built-in hood. Without that hood, the 12 is very compact, as is the LTM version of the 15... but so far the M mount 15 is small enough for me. It's a great lens. I loved it on the 5N and use it a lot on my GXR.

Feb 23, 2012 at 07:49 PM


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