I've been fixing cameras out of my garage for maybe 3 years now, never really kept a log until a buddy told me to jot down each job. Well I counted up all my CLA receipts and shutter fixes from an old notebook and hit exactly 200 repairs this month. Has anyone else tracked a milestone like that and had it change how they see their own skill level?
I always figured ultrasonic cleaners were overkill for most camera gear. Then last month a guy brought in a C3 that was absolutely crusted with old lubricant and who knows what. Couldn't even advance the film. Tried my usual methods for a few days with no luck. Finally borrowed a friend's cleaner, ran it for 15 minutes with the right solution, and the thing moved like new. Felt dumb for resisting it so long. Anyone else have a tool they ignored for years that turned out useful?
I had a beat-up 1950s Agfa folder with a pinhole in the bellows last month and tried the heat gun trick to shrink the leather back tight, and it actually sealed the leak on the first try. But I've also seen guys cook the bellows so bad they crack into dust, so I'm wondering if it's a real fix or just a desperate gamble. Has anyone else had luck with this or gone another route like liquid patch?
Last month I picked up a beat up 50mm f1.4 from a flea market in Portland. The front element had that spiderweb fungus that usually means the lens is toast. Tried the usual UV light trick for a week, nothing. Then read somewhere that 3% hydrogen peroxide can kill the fungus and wipe it off. Dabbed a q-tip in it, gently rubbed the element for maybe 30 seconds, and the fungus just wiped away. Rinsed with distilled water and dried it. Element looks perfect now. Anyone tried this on coated lenses?
I've seen so many repair posts online where people go straight to relubricating a stuck focus ring without actually cleaning the old grease out first. In my experience, you need to fully remove the old compound using a solvent like naphtha or even lighter fluid before putting anything new on. I had a Pentax 50mm f1.4 come through last month where the previous 'repair' just caked new grease on top of hardened old stuff. It made the focus feel gritty and rough after just a week of use. Has anyone else run into this where a simple clean would have saved a lot of hassle?
I was chatting with a retired repairman named Frank at a camera show in Chicago last month. He said using a bit of lighter fluid on a Q-tip is way better than those fancy sensor swabs for old cloth shutters. I tried it on a beat-up Konica from 1972 and the shutter speeds came right back to life. Has anyone else used lighter fluid for cleaning or is that too risky for newer cameras?
Saw a guy on YouTube claim you can check slow shutter speeds by filming the curtain with your phone and counting frames. Thought it was nonsense. Tried it on a beat up Pentax Spotmatic last month. Counted 1/15th coming out as 1/8th. Grabbed my shutter timer to double check and it was dead on. Now I use it for quick checks before I dive into a full CLA. Anyone else got a trick they dismissed at first that proved useful?
I keep seeing guys grab canned air to blow dust off sensors, but I've had a $60 sensor cleaning kit work fine for 5 years without risking propellant residue. Which side are you on and have you ever actually seen damage from canned air firsthand?
Pulled apart a Kodak Retina IIa last week that had a nasty spot of fungus on the rear element... figured I could just clean it off with some hydrogen peroxide and alcohol. Turns out after about 10 years of sitting, the fungus actually ate into the coating and left a permanent haze. Anyone else run into a lens where the damage was way worse than you expected once you got the glass out?
For like 2 years I was cleaning shutter blades with isopropyl alcohol and wondering why they kept sticking. It took a guy at a shop in Portland to tell me that alcohol strips the lubrication and makes things worse. Now I use naptha lighter fluid and a tiny drop of sewing machine oil. Anyone else waste time on the wrong cleaning method before?
I found a Yashica-Mat EM at a Goodwill in Portland for $15 the other day. The taking lens was hazy and the shutter wasn't firing at all, but after a full CLA and polishing both lenses with some cerium oxide, it now takes sharper shots than my Rolleicord. Has anyone else brought a junker back to life and been surprised by the results?
Got a Yashica Electro 35 GSN with a dead shutter on my bench last week. The original ribbon wires were toast. I always heard solder is more reliable, but crimping is faster. I went with soldered connections using 30 gauge wire wrap wire. Took me about 90 minutes but the shutter fires every time now. No cold joints so far. Anyone else have strong feelings about ribbon wire repairs on these old rangefinders?
I had a Pentax MX with sticky shutter blades that drove me crazy for weeks. Last weekend in my workshop I tried using a tiny bit of lighter fluid applied with a cotton swab to the edge of the blades, then working the shutter a few times. It dissolved the gunk in about ten minutes and the speeds are back to normal. Has anyone else found a reliable solvent for this kind of buildup?
Spent a whole morning stripping screws on an old AE-1 with a regular Phillips before I caved and bought the proper JIS set. The crosspoint fit is so much tighter, no cam-out at all. Has anyone else had a stubborn camera screw that just would not budge until you switched tools?
Was reading a forum last night while waiting for glue to dry on a shutter rebuild and stumbled onto a thread about thorium in Canon FD 50mm f/1.4 lenses from the 1970s. Someone posted a Geiger counter reading showing the rear element puts out like 3 times background radiation. Has anyone else run into one of these hot lenses and had to handle the yellowing?
I've been tinkering with this Canon A-1 for weeks now. The shutter would just lock up after a few shots and I couldn't figure out why. I was ready to give up and call it a parts camera. Then I stumbled on a forum post from like 2018 where someone mentioned that the little foam bumper on the mirror box can get sticky and cause issues. I checked mine with a flashlight and sure enough, the foam was all gooey. I scraped it off with a toothpick and some alcohol, put it back together, and it fired off twenty shots in a row no problem. It wasn't a complicated fix at all, just cleaning out old decayed foam. Has anyone else run into this with older Canon gear?
I was at the Arlington camera swap last Saturday and some older repair guy was telling a newbie he sprays WD-40 directly on sticky shutter blades to free them up. I held my tongue but that seemed like a fast track to ruining the mechanism. Has anyone else run into this kind of advice floating around at local meets and had to politely steer someone straight?
Some random on Facebook told me to use Windex on a Canon 24-70mm front element and it stripped the coating off in 30 seconds flat. Has anyone else had a bad repair tip cost you real money?
Ngl I was just going through my repair logbook last night and realized I've done 50 clean-lubricate-adjust jobs on old rangefinders in 2024 alone. Most were Canonets and Minoltas from the 60s and 70s that people found in attics or at estate sales. Has anyone else noticed more of these showing up lately or is it just my corner of the market?
I used to clean every camera sensor with just a blower and a microfiber cloth. Last month a guy at the Portland Camera Show watched me do it and said 'you're just rubbing grit into the coating with that thing'. He showed me a $30 sensor cleaning kit with swabs and solution. I got stubborn at first but tried his method on a dusty Nikon D800. It came out perfectly clean on the first pass and I haven't touched a microfiber cloth to a sensor since. Has anyone else had a veteran repair person call them out on something they thought they knew?
After the usual cleaning didn't work, I left the shutter assembly in a sealed bag in my freezer for 20 minutes, and the old lubricant stiffened just enough to let me gently separate and clean each blade without damage, so has anyone else had a specific camera model where this oddball method was the only fix?
Always thought that old Nikon F3 was just a pretty paperweight, but it's been dead reliable for checking curtain timing. Anyone else have a go-to workhorse for basic function tests?
For a long time, I used to source these from a supplier in New York who was always reliable. About six months ago, they switched to a new manufacturer without telling anyone. The parts look perfect until you install them and they fail after maybe 200 cycles. I've had three come back this week alone from a repair I did in January. The metal is just slightly softer and the spring tension is off. Has anyone else run into these fake Canon parts recently, and where are you finding good ones now?
I went with the original part from a donor body and the camera's been running perfectly for a client for over six months now, so what's your go-to move when a part is discontinued but the generic feels like a gamble?
It felt like a lot at the time, but it's already saved two vintage lenses from getting scratched up by my old makeshift tools. Anyone have a better source for replacement spanner tips that won't strip?