Spent a whole weekend fixing a stuck shutter on a Pentax K1000

Everyone says it's a simple fix, but the curtain drum spring on this one was totally gummed up with old lube. Took me about 14 hours total to fully clean and reset the timing. Has anyone else found these 'easy' vintage repairs can be a total trap?

4 comments

4 Comments

shane_wilson3d ago

Oh man, tell me about it. Just had the same thing happen with a Canon AE-1, the advance lever felt like it was full of glue. What they call a simple CLA turned into a two day fight.

owens.laura3d agoMost Upvoted

My old Nikon FE had that exact sticky lever problem last year. I feel your pain, Shane Wilson, because those "simple" fixes always uncover three more issues. It's like opening a can of worms where every part needs cleaning. I spent a whole weekend just on the film advance mechanism. You start with high hopes and end up with tiny springs everywhere. Makes you really respect the people who do this for a living.

michael_williams3d ago

Yeah, that's how it always goes. I'd probably end up with extra parts left over and a camera that only takes pictures of my own confused face.

green.laura3d ago

Ever find a tiny screw that just vanishes into thin air? I swear they teleport. Had that happen with a shutter curtain once. Spent an hour looking on my hands and knees. Then you finally get it back together and something else is off. The whole thing is a puzzle where the pieces fight back.