PL Mount Won't Open

[Ben Feuer]

:help:
So I had a shoot last night, my 1st AC mounts the lens (a Cooke 20-100 zoom) normally in the PL mount, at least he says so.

We try to swap it out for a prime and we can't actually twist the lens mount! We had to transport the camera home with the lens still attached.

Any recommendations? Advice? Ideas? I'd like to break down my camera rig before long ...:umm:

[chuck colburn]

Perhaps a lite tap with a plastic headed hammer on one of the locking ears.
Counter clockwise.

[Steve Phillipps]

Is the lens supported? If not maybe it's exerting downward pressure and stopping the mounting ring turning?
Steve

[Finner]

Undo the bridge plate support bolt (The support may be to low) grab the end of the lens and jiggle it a little up and down as you turn the PL mount. This usually works with tight PL problems.

[Jorge Díaz-Amador]

Use a heat gun first to expand it and loosen it up. Apply small impacts carefully with a plastic tipped dead blow hammer, or if that does not work, a brass or lead hammer. Make sure everything is supported because when it gives way it will be sudden. Good luck.

[Ben Feuer]

Thanks for the advice, everyone. The hammer solution and bridgeplate/wiggle solution were tried with no success.

What is a heat gun and where do I get one? Is it safe to use on a wooden table or carpeted floor?

[Nick Gardner]

What is a heat gun and where do I get one? Is it safe to use on a wooden table or carpeted floor?

Stop trying to unfuck your camera, and take it to a rental house. You are in LA, it should be really easy.

[chuck colburn]

I don't know about rental houses. They might not want to risk harming your camera. If they offer camera repair and service for outside equipment they might. Did you try alternating hammer taps on the two ears? Counter clockwise when viewing from the front.

[Nick Gardner]

So, a rental house with all the right tools and years of experience would be afraid they might hurt his camera, but he doesn't know what a heat gun is and you want him to hit his aluminum lens mount with a hammer?

If you don't take it to a professional, at least stop hitting it, and try a strap wrench. If you dont know what that is, google it and then go buy one.

The only time I ever had this problem it was a series of attempts, and then it was just "well shit we gotta get it off", so we mangled the mount in the process. It was the rental house's camera and they mangled it. They had to replace the mount. Sometimes threads just freaking sieze.

Good luck, please take it somewhere with the right tools,

Nick

[chuck colburn]

Perhaps you know best. In thirty years of repairing, servicing and building motion picture cameras and optics I never used a strap or chain wrench once. Seeing as how the gentelman is in L.A. it would probally be best to pop down the road to RED and have them take a look at it.