Should the iris of a Canonet QL17 contract at all in AE mode at maximum aperture?

Note that you need to cock the shutter for the tests below, otherwise the iris doesn’t fully engage with the aperture controls.

If I set my QL17 to ƒ/1.7, the iris opens up fully (as I’d expect)

If I put my QL17 into A mode and partially depress the shutter button (to trigger the exposure mechanism) the iris never opens up larger than (more or less) the aperture I can set manually with ƒ/2.

The coupling is mechanical, and though the repair manual doesn’t mention it, there is an adjustment screw that turns a cam that regulates this.

On the light meter, there are two levers that rotate as the shutter release lever (part 19-0562) is depressed. One traps the other end of the meter needle to hold it in place, and the second follows to intercept the meter with a staircase profile at an angle corresponding to the needle’s angle.

This part of the mechanism is not exploded in the repair manual.

The cam then determines the angle of the EE lever (13-5302) that determines the actual iris aperture.

I can adjust the cam so that in AE mode at maximum aperture, the iris is as wide open as it is at ƒ/1.7 in manual mode – but I’d be interested to know what the behaviour is on yours.