Adjusting and Cleaning Focus on Helios 44M
This is a photo blog tutorial on adjusting and cleaning the focus assembly on a Helios 44M M42 mount camera lens.
Keep reading for a photo guide on dis-assembly and re-assembly.
This post is a tutorial on adjusting focus on a Helios 44M lens. It also covers cleaning the focus mechanism for smoother action. I’m going to start off by showing you a few photos of what the adjustment looks like. The lens on the left has been adjusted so that my adapters can be used for infinity focus. It will actually focus a bit past infinity, but if you wanted to play with it I’m sure you could get them focusing exactly to infinity.
*Tutorial Begin*
We start off by removing the 3 screws that hold the back on and gently removing the back. If you have a lens adapter screwed on you’ll need to remove that first. I hooked mine into a 2x multiplier to make it easier to unscrew.
Remove the inner aperture ring. You may also want to remove the outer aperture ring as well. If you do remember that it isn’t easy to get back on with both bearings. I just use one, because it feels much smoother to me (and it’s easier to put back on).
You’ll now need to remove the focus ring. It’s held on by 3 tiny screws. You can see one of the between the 2 and 3 in my photo. DON’T REMOVE THEM. They’re a pain to get back in and very easy to lose. Just back them out enough to slip the ring off.
Use the screwdriver to remove the front ring. You should be able to catch it in one of two tiny holes and twist it counter clockwise. Once you get it loose just spin it in circles with your finger until it falls out.
Remove the 3 screws holding the filter ring on and take it off. You may want to start wiping off excess grease and oil buildup at this point.
At this point I used qtips lightly covered in Ronsonol to start breaking up grease inside the lens. You may want to wick it out into a cloth or towel so you don’t saturate the insides of the lens in Ronsonol.
Manually turn the focus on the lens to expose the threads. What I did was take it over to the sink, hold it sideways, and let Ronsonol run into the threading a few times. I then manually turned the focus back in and out to work it in. You’ll want a cloth handy to wipe off the excess and get the now broken down grease/oil out of the lens assembly.
Once everything is moving freely it’s time to adjust the focus. Focus the mechanism back until the two tabs (top and bottom in the above photo) are lined up with the top of the groove they ride in.
Reinstall the focus ring and turn it until infinity lines up with the red line. It should noticeably stop at that point and shouldn’t be able to go any further. Tighten it down.
This is an important step. Turn the focus ring the other direction until it stops. If you don’t the filter ring will bind when you tighten it down.
Reinstall the filter ring and tighten the 3 screws down.
Turn the focus back toward infinity and you should notice it stopping a bit before you ever get close. Once you have it as far as it goes loosen the focus ring and turn it so that infinity lines back up. Tighten the ring down again.
Reinstall the front Helios 44M ring onto the lens.
Reinstall the inner aperture ring. It should line up on two shafts coming out of the aperture housing.
Reinstall the Aperture ring. I only use one bearing to make the action smoother and make it easier to put on, but if you want to try both bearings go for it. They fit into a hole with what appears to be a tiny spring in it.
Reinstall the back of the lens. Watch and make sure the A/M switch arm is hooked onto the aperture rod. Put the 3 screws back in and tighten it down. If you flip the A/M switch and nothing happens you either didn’t hook it to the aperture rod, or you need to clean the aperture. I have a tutorial for doing that here.
You should now have your Helios 44M reassembled and working great. The above shot was actually taken with another Helios 44M that I recently repaired.
Posted by falcoln0014 
November 2009
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