-
Broadcast Fujinon lens conundrum
I’ve searched online for hours for a solution to my problem and have come up empty. I have a nice Fujinon 20x SD lens that we’ve adapted for use on an AG AF-100 (by way of a B4 to micro 4/3 adapter).
I wanted to power the zoom from an Anton Bauer D-tap and read about doing it several places online, (Abel Cine makes a cable but only sells it with an expensive kit). There are 2 options available on E-bay and others are successfully using both. I decided to try one (the cheaper one of course) and long story short, it blew the servo on the zoom controller of the lens. I’ve gotten ballparks for repairing it and they’re astronomical. So my question is this:
Is it possible to simply switch the zoom servo unit for a similar Fujinon version from another lens?? I’ve found tech manuals for removing the servo (although Fuji warns you not to, it’s just three screws that hold it on the lens). I’ve found some photos of the servos and they’re just like manual lens controllers in that they’re motors with gears. It seems if they are connected and powered correctly, they should also engage and turn the zoom. I’ve also found half a dozen lenses on E-bay with servos that could potentially work….although none are 20x, several are 17x and 19x.
Well at least it all sounds plausible to me. I’m sure I’m simplifying it way beyond belief and am asking for trouble, but the servo is doing me absolutely no good as it is since I can’t use it. I also cannot use the start/stop button, iris button, return button etc. So I may as well remove it to lighten the lens.
As an aside, everything else on the lens still works when attached to a 2/3″ broadcast camera. So only the zoom and iris servos were affected. I can still start/stop the camera, use the tape return, etc.
Anyway….I can’t believe this hasn’t been tried before, especially at TV stations considering how much wear and tear lenses get there. So just wondering if anyone has done it or if they believe it would work.
Thanks in advance.
Chris Blair
Magnetic Image, Inc.
Evansville, IN
http://www.videomi.com
Read our blog http://www.videomi.com/blog -
6 Replies
-
“The cheapskate always pays twice.”
I wouldn’t try the substitution unless I was committed to the chance I was going to ruin the lens. Now I’m famous for being a skinflint myself, and MacGyvering and dumpster-diving all kinds of junk together to avoid buying a specific thing brand-new. However, in this case, it may be time to stop doing it over, and start doing it right.
-
Didn’t really answer my question there…and to be fair…it wasn’t really a case of MacGyvering the thing.
As I pointed out in the original post…the guy I bought the cable from has sold these to many other users without incident and he himself is using the cable with half a dozen lenses for both real projects and testing. So it’s SUPPOSED to work.
I also emailed Fujinon prior to buying the cable to double check the pin-outs for my lens. So I did as much due diligence as I could. So I don’t know for sure if it was the cable.
It may have been a defective Anton Bauer plate or a bad D-Tap on the battery (from Batteries4Broadcast). About a month ago a D-Tap output on one of our A/B plates fried an LCD monitor. That was an Anton Bauer brand plate from B&H that I took out of service. So it could’ve been the plate or the battery that caused it…or it could’ve just been that LCD monitor’s time to die.
I’m not an engineer or electrician so I don’t really know how to test them to find out.
It’s not that huge a deal as I almost never zoom. It’s jut nice to have it for framing changes.
Chris Blair
Magnetic Image, Inc.
Evansville, IN
http://www.videomi.com
Read our blog http://www.videomi.com/blog -
Wanted to update this thread for anyone that may have read it. The AF-100 lens cable I bought from Ebay was likely NOT the cause of my power problem on my Fujinon lens, although we still have not found definitively what did cause it. We suspect it was some sort of over voltage from the Anton-Bauer plates’ D-Tap, (which I’ve read is unregulated), meaning it could output as much as 16volts (or more) depending on the brand of battery that’s attached and its charge level. Plus, there was an odd bit of wiring inside the A/B plate when we opened it up.
So we think that even though most electronic devices can take a wide range of voltages before damage can occur, either something shorted coming out of it, or the voltage was too high for the lens controller.
The good news is that you CAN indeed use other similar zoom controllers on your lens. I bought one off E-bay for $50 and it works just fine with the lens. The zoom controllers are actually relatively simple devices with servo motors and platic gears that mate with and turn the zoom and iris knobs. The motors turn continuously when they’re not geared with anything so any similar controller will work as long as the gears line up on the lens, which with similar lenses, they do. of course, there are a ton of wires inside the controller, along with a small circuit board, which I asume regulates voltage, so it’s not something a DIYer could likely fix or rewire.
Anyway…wanted to clarify that the lens cable from Ebay wasn’t the problem, but it’s still important to know your pin-outs on your lens controller to make sure the ones that are available out there will work…as some controllers use different pin-outs depending on the lens and brand.
Chris Blair
Magnetic Image, Inc.
Evansville, IN
http://www.videomi.com
Read our blog http://www.videomi.com/blog -
Hello,
So are you saying that you used the cable that you purchased on eBay successfully on other lenses?
I routinely repair my own equipment and have made such cablrs myself that work on all of my Fujinon lenses.
Thanks!
AM 🙂
-
Hi Anthony,
Do you have the Fujinon/Cannon connector pin outs available? I want to make a cable to go from a Sony CA-TX7 Triax adapter to a Fujinon lens.
I found a service manual for the Triax adaptor, but I haven’t been able to find Fujinon manuals online. The Triax adapter outputs 0-5Vdc for Focus, Zoom, Pan & Tilt with a digital control 1 and 2 which are not well documented.
I have found a local supplier for the connectors, and I figure any good quality shielded data cable should do the trick.
-
Hello,
Sorry, I haven’t been on the forums in years.
I sold all of my Fujinon stuff along with the documentation… But I do have this PDF file that might be helpful.
I wish there were a way to attach a file, or even a photo to this post. I really don’t know an easy way to share it here and I’m far too busy now to go through any machinations to figure it out.
If you know of an easy way to do it here in the forum let me know.
AM 🙂
Reply to this Discussion! Login or Sign Up