LS-600 – Focus Auto fails, Swing/Tilt No Good, Light Axis G 0/470 after old shipping damage

[Ackerman]

Hi everyone,

I’m trying to diagnose what appears to be an alignment problem on my Noritsu LS-600, and I would appreciate advice from anyone familiar with the LS-600/LS-1100 scanner unit.

The scanner was damaged during transport before I received it. When it arrived, the scanner carriage was stuck. With guidance from the seller, I repaired the end support/retainer of the lane-change lead screw. Since then the scanner has worked, although there has always been some mild vibration while the scanner unit moves between the 135 and 240 positions.

The scanner is still usable, but 35 mm B&W scans show a faint, narrow dark band close to the upper edge of the frame. The band is always in exactly the same position and shape, and it is most visible against bright image areas. Overall sharpness is usable, but I have never been able to complete a successful automatic Focus Adjustment, so my current focus setting has effectively been chosen by comparing scans visually.

I have now gone through the relevant service checks using the original 135 adjustment chart.

Current findings:

• Scanner Calibration for both 135 and 240 completes successfully with Registered.
• Scanner Self Diagnostic reports Good for the Scanner Control PCB and CCD PCB.
• 135 Focus Auto Adjustment fails at around 40% and returns error code 06321-03362.
• Swing & Tilt Adjustment Confirmation returns No Good.
• Light Axis Adjustment 2 returns No Good.
• First test, channel G: approximately Left 21 / Right 470.
• Repeated after removing and carefully re-seating the 135 adjustment chart: Left 0 / Right 470.
• The chart itself is flat and appears undamaged in the optical areas.

I also checked the lane-change lead screw mechanically. There is no detectable axial or lateral play, no visible wobble, and no obvious binding when I move the mechanism manually through the drive gear.

The normal user-serviceable optical surfaces and film path have been cleaned. Scanner Sensitivity Check shows some unevenness with Shading OFF, while Shading ON corrects it very effectively.

At this point I suspect that the scanner main body may have been left significantly out of alignment after the original shipping damage, but I do not want to touch any scanner-unit adjustment screws before getting advice from someone who has actually serviced these machines.

I would especially appreciate opinions on the following:

• Does a repeated Light Axis result around G 0/470, together with Swing/Tilt = No Good and Focus error 06321-03362, look like a straightforward scanner-head alignment problem?
• Is there anything mechanical in the carriage or lane-change mechanism that should be checked first, given the old transport damage?
• Has anyone here successfully performed the LS-600/LS-1100 Swing/Tilt and Light Axis procedure themselves?
• I only have the original 135 adjustment chart. Is the 240 chart Z019039-01 essential before attempting a full alignment?

I can post screenshots of the adjustment screens, the Focus error, photographs of the carriage/lead-screw mechanism, and Scanner Sensitivity CSV data if useful.

Before I touch any of the scanner-unit adjustment screws, I would particularly appreciate hearing from anyone who has actually performed the LS-600/LS-1100 Swing/Tilt and Light Axis procedure, especially after transport damage.

Thanks in advance.

[Dave S]

I've repaired a scanner that got knocked on the floor! Everything was obviously completely out of alignment, but it all came back after straightening and lens alignment.

The first thing to check is slide bushes are not broken, there are 4 of them, it's very common for these to get broken during transport when the proper shipping brackets are not installed.
The fact it is scanning means there is nothing wrong electronically, your problem is 99% poor lens swing & tilt and light axis alignment.

[Ackerman]

Thanks Dave, that's very helpful.

The scanner did arrive with the carriage stuck after transport, so checking the four slide bushes before touching the alignment definitely makes sense. I'll inspect them carefully first. It's also encouraging to hear that you were able to bring a badly knocked scanner back into alignment. Thanks again.

[Ackerman]

Thanks again, Dave. I moved the scanner carriage manually with the power off and checked it in different positions. I can feel only a very slight amount of rocking/tilting of the scanner head, but no obvious up-and-down movement, clicking or change in play along the travel.

I’m attaching two photos of the scanner unit in its current position. I’m not sure I have correctly identified the four slide bushes you mentioned. Could you please point out where they are located on the LS-600, and whether this very slight rocking is normal or something that would make you suspect a damaged bush?

I’m also attaching one more photo from below/front, in case it helps identify where the four slide bushes are located relative to the scanner head.

[kodak_service]

First, you need to manually adjust the focus value until distinct "waves" appear on the graphs, and only then run the autofocus.

[Ackerman]

Thanks — that may be an important point I missed. I ran the Auto Focus with the focus value at 209, where waves were already visible, but I did not first manually search for the value that gives the maximum waveform amplitude/resolution. I’ll do that before trying Auto Focus again and report the result.

[Dave S]

The ones maked in red are the ones that usually break.

The ones marked in blue are usually good if they are the updated type.

[Ackerman]

I manually adjusted the focus first, as suggested.
Starting from 209 / G resolution 579, the resolution increased to about 842–845 around Focus Value 231, with very clear fine waves on both graphs.
I then ran Focus Auto Adjustment from that point, but it still failed at around 40% with the same error code 06321-03362.
So it does not appear to be failing simply because the starting focus value was too far out.

[Ackerman]

I can now see from the parts diagram that the slide bushes are underneath the film advance/lane assembly and are not visible without further disassembly. I can feel only extremely slight rocking of the scanner head, but no clear up-and-down movement or clicking. Would you consider that enough to assume the bushes are probably OK, or would you still recommend removing the film advance section to inspect them?

[kodak_service]

Post a screenshot of the graphs obtained during manual focus adjustment.

[Ackerman]

[kodak_service]

It is possible that focusing is failing due to a misalignment of the video camera. The graphs should be virtually symmetrical.

Edited September 16 by kodak_service

[kodak_service]

Take a screenshot of the swing and tilt with a focus value of 209.

[Ackerman]

[kodak_service]

The video camera in your scanner is misaligned. The graphs should look roughly like this:

[Ackerman]

Thanks, this comparison makes the problem much clearer. I can now see that my Swing/Tilt and especially Light Axis Adjustment 2 waveforms are nowhere near the expected pattern, particularly the almost missing waveform on one side. This also seems consistent with the repeated 0/470 result.

I should add that I can manually bring the focus to around 231, where G resolution reaches about 842–845 with very clear fine waves, but Auto Focus still fails at around 40% with error 06321-03362.

Given the previous transport damage, would you recommend checking the slide bushes mechanically before attempting the camera/lens Swing-Tilt and Light Axis alignment, or does this waveform pattern already point quite clearly to alignment?

[Dave S]

The lens is not moving to the correct stop position. Check the lens is reaching the stop on the left when it moves from the 240 position to 135 position.