Hi Everyone,
I'm having a devil of a time getting uniform sharpness w/ my 45V-XL across the print (as measured by a 10x grain magnifier; final prints look good, but maybe not to the grain-of-silver level they could.).
Problem Statement 1
As one can see by the images & videos in this folder (some pics in HEIC format), the 3 Lens Turret has a noticeable "sag" or "wobble" as it rests in the carriage(?) of the lens stage of the 45V-XL. As in, maybe 1/16" or close to an 1/8". This concerns me as I focus at f/5.6, and then touch the lens to stop down to f/11 or f/16 (typical printing apertures). I can see grain sharper at one end of the paper than at the other (w/ the grain magnifier).
Problem Statement 2
The hardward on this rig (which I bought used, and was stored in the prior owner's attic), is corroded, included the 2 front screws in the lens stage alignment area. This means I can't adjust the lens stage the way I think I should.
What I've Tried / Current Working Band-Aid
- - Stopping down
- Paper "shim" between the lens turret's board and the housing
Obviously, neither of the above are good working solutions, and the correded hardward concerns me (breaking tiny little screws on a pricey and heavy rig can make for a less-useful heavy rig).
Questions
I'd rather not replace the entire unit, and am finally comfortable w/ the 45 Dichro-SL light source & color mixing for different contrast grades.
Is the fix to replace the turret? (This still doesn't solve the negative stage), or does anyone have ideas on how to work with / fix the turret (which appears to be the older version, judging by the lack of external set screws on the board)?
Or is there a way to retro-fit this sucker to take just a plain-old MX single lens board (which would be fine with me, but my lens boards won't fit w/ the turret rigging in place)?
I've searched the heck out of this and haven't found anything resembling an answer, so hoping the LFP community can assist...THANK YOU IN ADVANCE.
Brandon
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