Sanity check needed : Yashica Mat 124 winding process

[Laurent]

Hello all,

I'm ready to put the Yashica Mat to its paces, and the only issue I have is that I'm not sure if the winding is fully working:

If I load a film and wind it to the green mark, I'm then able to close the back, wind to the first frame and this is fine.
I can then fire the shutter, wind again, see the counter advances to the next frame, and repeat this up to the 12th and last one.
Then the camera winds forever so that I can remove the roll.

All of this is fine BUT if I wind partly (I do no wait till the lever blocks in the forward movement before going back) and I've been far enough for the shutter to be wound, I can then trigger the shutter again, even if the film is not fully wound.

I fixed many small issues in the winding mechanism, mostly due to fossilized grease, and in the process I may have mis-mounted a part somewhere...

So if you happen to have a Yashica Mat 124 on which you could test this, that would really help. I used a roll and its' backing paper as Yashica advises against winding the camera with an empty roll in the receiving end.

Thanks in advance

 

[chuckroast]

The guy to ask about this is Mark Hama in the US. He used to work for Yashica and does overhauls. I would imagine he might answer a polite question like this.

 

[oneeyedpainter]

All of this is fine BUT if I wind partly (I do no wait till the lever blocks in the forward movement before going back) and I've been far enough for the shutter to be wound, I can then trigger the shutter again, even if the film is not fully wound.

I have a Mat 124G. Can confirm that if you wind enough to load the shutter, you can trigger the shutter again, thus partially double-exposing the previous shot. It has been that way for as long as I can remember.

OneEyedPainter

Edit: I am pretty sure my specimen has never been disassembled, and has worked flawlessly since the original owner (my grandad) bought it new.

 

[Laurent]

I have a Mat 124G. Can confirm that if you wind enough to load the shutter, you can trigger the shutter again, thus partially double-exposing the previous shot. It has been that way for as long as I can remember.

OneEyedPainter

Edit: I am pretty sure my specimen has never been disassembled, and has worked flawlessly since the original owner (my grandad) bought it new.

Thanks a lot for the confirmation.

I still have an issue to fix as the camera will not let me wind after triggering, so I have to slap it on my hand, but at least it's only one issue!

 

[Andreas Thaler]

Thanks a lot for the confirmation.

I still have an issue to fix as the camera will not let me wind after triggering, so I have to slap it on my hand, but at least it's only one issue!

If you encounter mechanical issues with SLRs, you can try to clear any jams by accessing the mechanism behind the base plate. The function is similar but implemented differently. From there, you’ll need to disassemble the unit further to get to the root cause.

---

Just a side note—as far as I can tell, this doesn't apply to your camera

This also applies to the electronics that control the mechanics. Any necessary measurements can usually be taken on the circuit board, which should be accessible with moderate effort. Troubleshooting instructions in the technical documentation will guide you through this process.

---

We should reconsider the practice of tapping SLRs to clear blockages. Because even if the blockage is cleared, the cause remains unresolved and the problem may recur (lack of lubrication, contaminated solenoids, contact issues?).

But it’s Sunday here in Europe, and I don’t want to lure you into the workshop

 

[oneeyedpainter]

If you encounter mechanical issues with SLRs, you can try to clear any jams by accessing the mechanism behind the base plate. The function is similar but implemented differently. From there, you’ll need to disassemble the unit further to get to the root cause.

Yes Andreas, but the Yashica Mat 124G is a TLR not an SLR, there is no base plate, and it is all mechanical Actually, as soon as you open the back, you can see almost all the mechanichs inside (and there is not much in there, really) by unscrewing just a couple of screws. This camera is indeed the simplest thing you can use to get a picture, if we do not consider pinhole cameras as an option The 80mm f/3.5 Yashinon lens it mounts is just great.

Enjoy the great weather.

OneEyedPainter

 

[Andreas Thaler]

Yes Andreas, but the Yashica Mat 124G is a TLR not an SLR, there is no base plate, and it is all mechanical Actually, as soon as you open the back, you can see almost all the mechanichs inside (and there is not much in there, really) by unscrewing just a couple of screws. This camera is indeed the simplest thing you can use to get a picture, if we do not consider pinhole cameras as an option The 80mm f/3.5 Yashinon lens it mounts is just great.

Enjoy the great weather.

OneEyedPainter

Goodness gracious, I don't know any cameras other than those SLRs from the 1980s

I apologize for the mistake

Thank you for the correction.

 

[Dan Daniel]

I still have an issue to fix as the camera will not let me wind after triggering, so I have to slap it on my hand, but at least it's only one issue!

Have you tried pushing the shutter button down as far as possible? Like most cameras, the YashicaMat has two mechanism at work when you press the shutter button. One fires the shutter. One releases the wind mechanism. Ideally they both release at the same time, but they can get out of sync. People hear the shutter release and stop pressing the button, while the button hasn't traveled enough to release the winding mechanism (vice versa also happens, of course). You can see the wind release on the winding plate, front about 3:30 or 4 o'clock from the main gear. Under the plate is something that pushes the lever when the shutter is pushed (second mechanism pathway).

Yashica didn't build in many clean adjustment points so how to get the two back in sync can be tricky. But first make certain that the winding releases with the shutter button at any point (have spool or film in camera). Shutter release point is easiest to adjust by bending the actual shutter release lever under the lens shroud.

If you wrap masking tape around one end of a spool's inner shaft to ride on the thin silver gear in the takeup compartment, you'll smooth out the jumping from the gear riding on the spool ridges and you will calm the Yashica Gods who say not to do this.

 

[Laurent]

If you encounter mechanical issues with SLRs, you can try to clear any jams by accessing the mechanism behind the base plate. The function is similar but implemented differently. From there, you’ll need to disassemble the unit further to get to the root cause.

---

Just a side note—as far as I can tell, this doesn't apply to your camera

This also applies to the electronics that control the mechanics. Any necessary measurements can usually be taken on the circuit board, which should be accessible with moderate effort. Troubleshooting instructions in the technical documentation will guide you through this process.

---

We should reconsider the practice of tapping SLRs to clear blockages. Because even if the blockage is cleared, the cause remains unresolved and the problem may recur (lack of lubrication, contaminated solenoids, contact issues?).

But it’s Sunday here in Europe, and I don’t want to lure you into the workshop

I did not read your post earlier, my only activity in the shop show today has been some cleaning and sorting. When I find the courage I'll organize my spare parts, as the Yashica benefited from a few Canon FTb parts to replace missing ones.

Yes Andreas, but the Yashica Mat 124G is a TLR not an SLR, there is no base plate, and it is all mechanical Actually, as soon as you open the back, you can see almost all the mechanichs inside (and there is not much in there, really) by unscrewing just a couple of screws. This camera is indeed the simplest thing you can use to get a picture, if we do not consider pinhole cameras as an option The 80mm f/3.5 Yashinon lens it mounts is just great.

Enjoy the great weather.

OneEyedPainter

I did enjoy the feather, it's been cooler today so I ran a test roll in the Yashica and exposed some 4x5 frames

Have you tried pushing the shutter button down as far as possible? Like most cameras, the YashicaMat has two mechanism at work when you press the shutter button. One fires the shutter. One releases the wind mechanism. Ideally they both release at the same time, but they can get out of sync. People hear the shutter release and stop pressing the button, while the button hasn't traveled enough to release the winding mechanism (vice versa also happens, of course). You can see the wind release on the winding plate, front about 3:30 or 4 o'clock from the main gear. Under the plate is something that pushes the lever when the shutter is pushed (second mechanism pathway).

Yashica didn't build in many clean adjustment points so how to get the two back in sync can be tricky. But first make certain that the winding releases with the shutter button at any point (have spool or film in camera). Shutter release point is easiest to adjust by bending the actual shutter release lever under the lens shroud.

If you wrap masking tape around one end of a spool's inner shaft to ride on the thin silver gear in the takeup compartment, you'll smooth out the jumping from the gear riding on the spool ridges and you will calm the Yashica Gods who say not to do this.

Thanks for the tip, Dan, I did not think about the bumps as the issue...

At the moment , the camera sometimes makes no fusse and Winds when asked to. I spent some time investigating a part of the interlocks that seems to experience friction, I'll open the camera again (good thing I did not replace the leatherette yet) and see if I can find a solution . As it is one of the few riveted parts, I may have to make a new one, that'll be fun