c/camera-repairers

Spent a whole day on a stuck shutter curtain from an old Pentax K1000

A customer brought in a K1000 with a shutter that wouldn't fire at all. I figured it was a simple gear or spring issue, but it turned out a tiny piece of old foam light seal had turned to sticky goo and jammed the first curtain's track. Cleaning that gunk out without damaging the thin curtain material was a nightmare. Has anyone else found a good solvent for that specific kind of old foam mess?

A tiny spring from a Leica M3 shutter flew across my bench today

I was working on a full CLA in my home shop, and the main tension spring shot out when I lifted the curtain assembly. It took me 45 minutes with a magnet and a headlamp to find it under my tool chest. Has anyone found a better way to secure those springs during disassembly?

I used to think those cheap plastic lens spanner wrenches from eBay were junk, but one saved a job for me last month

Bought a $60 ultrasonic cleaner for lens elements and it's a game changer

I was cleaning a stuck helicoid from a 70s lens and the old grease just would not come off with solvents. Threw the parts in the cleaner for 10 minutes and they came out spotless, saved me at least an hour of scrubbing. Anyone have a good mix ratio for simple green versus water for this kind of job?

TIL a tiny spring from a Nikon F3 can launch itself across a room

I was working on a shutter mechanism in my home shop in Tacoma last week, and the tiny tension spring for the mirror lock-up just vanished. Heard a faint 'ping' and spent 45 minutes on my hands and knees with a magnet. Finally spotted it under the leg of my workbench. Anyone else have a go-to trick for keeping those little demons from flying away?

I thought the 'freeze a stuck shutter' trick was total nonsense until my old Nikon F3

Just read that the original Leica M3 had over 2,700 individual parts, which is a wild number to think about when you're holding one.

Found that fact in a 1960s service manual I picked up at a flea market in Cincinnati last weekend, and it makes every successful CLA feel like a minor miracle.

A guy at a flea market in Austin told me to always replace the whole shutter assembly, not just the blades. I think he's wrong.

I thought those cheap plastic lens spanner wrenches from the online auction site were junk, but one saved a 1972 Pentax Spotmatic for me yesterday.

The original metal tool slipped and I was about to give up, but the plastic one gripped the notches perfectly without scratching the brass, so has anyone else found a weird tool that actually works better than the 'proper' one?

Saw a bunch of old film cameras at the Portland flea market last weekend

Most of them were priced like junk but I spotted a Leica M3 in a box of broken stuff for $50. The seller had no idea what it was, just needed a new shutter curtain. Has anyone else found a gem in a pile like that recently?

Changed my mind about using the old Nikon F3 shutter tester

I always thought the classic F3 tester was fine for basic checks, but a friend in Seattle showed me his digital oscilloscope setup. I tried it on a stubborn Canon AE-1 and saw the actual timing wave, which showed a lag the old needle couldn't catch. Anyone have a good budget scope model they'd recommend for this?

Just realized a client's complaint about my cleaning method was totally right

They said my lens cloth left a haze on their 50mm f/1.8, so I switched to a two-step process with a rocket blower first. Anyone else get pushback on their cleaning routine?

Found a weird fix for a sticky Minolta X-700 film advance lever

This camera came in with the lever feeling gritty and catching halfway. I tried the usual clean and lube on the gears under the top plate, but it didn't help. Out of ideas, I put a single tiny drop of lighter fluid on the pivot point of the lever itself, worked it back and forth maybe 20 times, and the gunk just flushed out. It's been smooth for a month now. Has anyone else had luck with a solvent flush on an external part like that?

Vent: A box of 12 vintage lenses came in for cleaning and every single one had fungus.

It was a huge job from a collector in Seattle. Took me three days just to open them all up. The worst part was seeing the damage on a rare 50mm f/1.2. Had to tell the owner half of them were beyond saving. Anyone else get a batch job that just turned into a total downer?

Had a customer bring in a vintage Polaroid with a 'film jam' last week.

The 'jam' was a perfectly intact slice of American cheese he'd tried to use instead of a film pack, said he saw it in a dream. Anyone ever get a repair request that made you just stop and stare?

I used to think a bent paperclip was a fine lens spanner wrench

I was fixing a Canon AE-1 for a friend last year and the front element was stuck. For about 20 minutes, I tried to make a tool from a paperclip and some tape. It just scratched the ring. Now I have a proper set of JIS screwdrivers and a real spanner I got for $35 online. The job takes two minutes and I don't feel like a caveman. Anyone else have a 'tool' they made that they're now embarrassed by?

That tiny spring in a Nikon FM2 shutter assembly cost me a whole afternoon

I dropped it and it vanished into the carpet. Spent four hours with a magnet and a flashlight before I found it stuck to a lamp base. Anyone have a better system for keeping those little parts contained?

The shift in shutter curtain material requests over the past year

I've seen a clear change in the parts I order for older SLRs. This time last year, maybe one in ten jobs needed a new rubberized cloth shutter curtain. Now it's closer to four in ten. The heat this summer really sped up the drying and cracking process on cameras stored in attics or garages. A customer brought in a Pentax K1000 that had been fine in March but was totally stuck by August. Has anyone else noticed this jump, and what's your go-to source for good replacements that won't stiffen up again so fast?

Question about using a heat gun on old shutter curtains

I was sure using a heat gun to relax a stiff cloth shutter curtain on a 1950s camera would ruin it. Tried it on a Zorki 4 last month with the gun on low from a foot away for 10 seconds, and the curtain smoothed right out. Has anyone else found a weird trick that actually works?

I finally fixed my neighbor's old Pentax after it sat on my bench for six months.

I was about to give up, but then I found a tiny, bent spring under the mirror box that I'd missed every other time, and it just clicked back into place.

A tiny screw just vanished inside a Nikon F3 yesterday

Was doing a basic CLA on a customer's F3. The tiny screw for the rewind knob cover popped out and bounced. Spent 45 minutes with a magnet and a flashlight on the shop floor. Found it stuck to the leg of my workbench. Anyone have a better system for catching these little guys?

Had to pick between a full shutter replacement or trying to fix a bent curtain myself

This old Nikon FM2 came in with a shutter that was dragging on one side, and the owner didn't want to pay for a full new curtain assembly (which would have been about $120 for the part alone). I had the choice to either order the whole unit and wait a week, or try to very carefully bend the metal curtain rail back into shape with my micro pliers. I went for the bend, which felt risky, but I used a jeweler's loupe and worked in tiny, tiny increments over about an hour. It actually worked, and the shutter fires at all speeds now. The key was patience and not trying to fix it all in one go. Has anyone else had luck with a repair like this on a focal plane shutter, or is it usually a lost cause?

Tried cleaning a stuck aperture ring with a drop of lighter fluid

Had an old Nikon lens where the ring was completely seized. Saw an old forum post from 2010 that said a tiny bit of Ronsonol could free it up. It worked for about a day, then the ring got gummy and worse than before. I think the fluid broke down some old grease and left a residue. What's the proper solvent you guys use for this kind of job?

Heard a customer at the shop call a lens a 'glass tube'

It was a guy picking up his fixed 50mm, and he told his friend 'they fixed my fancy glass tube.' Made me remember not everyone knows the jargon we live in. How do you explain a simple repair to someone without using any technical terms?

Changed my tune on ultrasonic cleaners for shutter mechanisms

I always thought they were overkill for a small shop like mine in Austin, but a repair on a Nikon F3 last month changed my mind. The shutter was dragging and my usual solvent bath didn't touch it, so I borrowed a friend's Crest unit as a last resort. After one 8-minute cycle, the curtains moved like new. What other stubborn jobs have you guys found an ultrasonic cleaner really helps with?