Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1998/04/25

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Subject: [Leica] Is this another R8 flaw or am I just over-worried?
From: Pascal <cyberdog@ibm.net>
Date: Sat, 25 Apr 1998 19:13:19 +0200

Hello folks:

I have acquired last week the Vario-Apo 70-180 and took a long weekend 
off. Went to the Scottish capital Edinburgh with my wife. The results are 
quite excellent indeed (all pictures taken without tripod).
As far as handling is concerned: it is a heavy lens, and if you want to 
handhold it with a shutter speed of at least 1/500 (or even better 
1/1000) and a 100 ASA film (Fuji Reala), you have to have lots of light! 
You also better have strong shoulders to carry this beast along all day 
long :-)

One thing though I would like to ask fellow luggers who use the R8. I 
have noticed that if you manipulate the 70-180 APO on the R8 (like 
focussing), there is some play on the lens mount (only some millimeters 
but it can be felt). This has nothing to do with the lens, but with the 
body. After you mount a lens until it clicks into position, you still can 
turn the lens some millimeters.
This also happens with other lenses, but is less noticeable because of 
their much lighter mass. With a heavy or long lens you are, of course, 
using more pressure on the body as you are focussing. Then this becomes 
obvious.

There seems to be no practical consequence in this as far as results are 
concerned, but I was wondering if anyone has experienced something 
similar. This is my second R8 body (the first one was flawed and got 
replaced) and it was the same with both of them. Never got this 
impression with my Nikons.
I have asked the question to the Belgian importer over the phone, and 
they said I probably shouldn't be worried as a couple of millimeters 
falls within the "normal tolerance level".
Is this another R8 flaw or am I just over-worried?

Pascal

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