Help needed to disassemble a Soligor 250 f4.5

**mgvh** · 03-04-2014, 08:33 PM

I came across a Soligor 250 f4.5 for rather cheap, and it even had a T4 to Pentax M42 adapter on it. Based on the positive report of luisalegria, I took a chance.
Turns out it also had a nice chunk of fungus on one of the inner elements.

According to an old diagram I found, this lens only has 4 elements in 4 groups.
I'm wondering if anyone know hows to take this thing apart to try to remove the fungus. Here's what I see:

Those two screws on zoom part of the barrel are the only screws I see other than those 3 little ones near the mount. Do I just start unscrewing the screws and carefully document to see what I find? I've looked online, and it appears that some lenses disassemble by using a calipers and unscrewing a plate from the front lens, but it doesn't look like that can be done here.
And should I start pulling out screws, any idea what to expect?
For a cheap and old lens, I'll agree w/ luisalegria that it takes quite nice pictures, and the fungus spot is not really noticeable in most shots for now. (It does a better job at 250mm than my DAL 55-300 at 250mm.) Is is better to just leave it be until the fungus becomes a problem? (In the meantime, I'll give it sun exposure to at least try to halt the fungus growth.)
Any help would be appreciated! Mark

elliott · 03-04-2014, 08:50 PM

I'd probably start by seeing if removing the name ring would allow removal of the front element, then see where it goes from there. Many times you can pull all of the elements out without disassembling much on the outside, just from the front or rear. That fungus appears to be in front of the aperture blades, so I'd start from the front.

**mgvh** · 03-04-2014, 10:26 PM

Thanks, Elliott. That's what I was thinking, but it's going to be very tricky to get that front name plate off. There is very little horizontal surface to grasp. It's mainly vertical and down a half inch or so.

elliott · 03-04-2014, 10:33 PM

See those little notches? One between the end of the serial number and "LENS" and the other above the T in "AUTO". They have tools made to grab them, but it isn't hard to improvise something.

**mgvh** · 03-04-2014, 10:49 PM

By golly, you're right! I had to put on my stronger glasses to see them, but they are indeed there. I've seen what others have used. I'll try to figure something out. Thanks!

kh1234567890 · 03-05-2014, 04:00 AM

Originally posted by elliott

They have tools made to grab them, but it isn't hard to improvise something.

This is what I use - old tweezers and a couple of minutes with a needle file

**mgvh** · 03-05-2014, 07:06 AM

Thank you, kh1234567890. I see how you notched the tips to fit the indents on the lens. I take it that you bent the tips the same way to provide a little leverage when you go to twist.

kh1234567890 · 03-05-2014, 07:26 AM

Originally posted by mgvh

Thank you, kh1234567890. I see how you notched the tips to fit the indents on the lens. I take it that you bent the tips the same way to provide a little leverage when you go to twist.

The trick is to file the ends to get a good square fit into the slots and apply even pressure on both. You can get lens spanners off eBay, the Chinese ones look right but the ends are not precise enough. Take your time and don't slip or chew up the slots. If you are lucky whoever made the lens did not gunk up the treads with glue. Sometimes warming/cooling the lens helps. Fungus like that is usually due to something crawling into the lens and not being able to find its way out

03-04-2014, 08:33 PM	#1
mgvh Site Supporter Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: MD Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,030	Help needed to disassemble a Soligor 250 f4.5 I came across a Soligor 250 f4.5 for rather cheap, and it even had a T4 to Pentax M42 adapter on it. Based on the positive report of luisalegria, I took a chance. Turns out it also had a nice chunk of fungus on one of the inner elements. According to an old diagram I found, this lens only has 4 elements in 4 groups. I'm wondering if anyone know hows to take this thing apart to try to remove the fungus. Here's what I see: Those two screws on zoom part of the barrel are the only screws I see other than those 3 little ones near the mount. Do I just start unscrewing the screws and carefully document to see what I find? I've looked online, and it appears that some lenses disassemble by using a calipers and unscrewing a plate from the front lens, but it doesn't look like that can be done here. And should I start pulling out screws, any idea what to expect? For a cheap and old lens, I'll agree w/ luisalegria that it takes quite nice pictures, and the fungus spot is not really noticeable in most shots for now. (It does a better job at 250mm than my DAL 55-300 at 250mm.) Is is better to just leave it be until the fungus becomes a problem? (In the meantime, I'll give it sun exposure to at least try to halt the fungus growth.) Any help would be appreciated! Mark

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03-04-2014, 08:50 PM	#2
elliott Inactive Account Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: North Carolina Photos: Albums Posts: 1,720	I'd probably start by seeing if removing the name ring would allow removal of the front element, then see where it goes from there. Many times you can pull all of the elements out without disassembling much on the outside, just from the front or rear. That fungus appears to be in front of the aperture blades, so I'd start from the front.

03-04-2014, 10:26 PM	#3
mgvh Site Supporter Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: MD Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,030 Original Poster	Thanks, Elliott. That's what I was thinking, but it's going to be very tricky to get that front name plate off. There is very little horizontal surface to grasp. It's mainly vertical and down a half inch or so.

03-04-2014, 10:33 PM	#4
elliott Inactive Account Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: North Carolina Photos: Albums Posts: 1,720	See those little notches? One between the end of the serial number and "LENS" and the other above the T in "AUTO". They have tools made to grab them, but it isn't hard to improvise something.

03-04-2014, 10:49 PM	#5
mgvh Site Supporter Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: MD Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,030 Original Poster	By golly, you're right! I had to put on my stronger glasses to see them, but they are indeed there. I've seen what others have used. I'll try to figure something out. Thanks!

03-05-2014, 07:06 AM	#7
mgvh Site Supporter Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: MD Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,030 Original Poster	Thank you, kh1234567890. I see how you notched the tips to fit the indents on the lens. I take it that you bent the tips the same way to provide a little leverage when you go to twist.

03-05-2014, 07:26 AM	#8
kh1234567890 Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Manchester, UK Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,653	Originally posted by mgvh Thank you, kh1234567890. I see how you notched the tips to fit the indents on the lens. I take it that you bent the tips the same way to provide a little leverage when you go to twist. The trick is to file the ends to get a good square fit into the slots and apply even pressure on both. You can get lens spanners off eBay, the Chinese ones look right but the ends are not precise enough. Take your time and don't slip or chew up the slots. If you are lucky whoever made the lens did not gunk up the treads with glue. Sometimes warming/cooling the lens helps. Fungus like that is usually due to something crawling into the lens and not being able to find its way out