A different OM2 stuck mirror problem

[azza]

Hi there, was hoping someone could help me out.
I've had a number of OM's that have required a shutter reset after flat batteries for instance. However an OM2 I picked up the other day is giving me some issues I've never experienced before.

Basically, the mirror wants to stay up, even after I do a manual reset. I put new batteries in to be sure. Battery check says they're good. Mirror won't reset, however the shutter does.
Also, I'm able to bring the mirror down manually with my finger (bringing down a little lever to the right of the mirror, not touching the mirror itself) and it locks/stays in place as it should. When the mirror is down the metering works perfectly, film winds and shutter fires perfectly fine. However as mentioned the mirror stays up and I have to repeat the process of resetting and bringing the mirror down manually. Very strange.
I've run out of things to try and will think about taking the camera apart now. I once remember someone talking about escapement timing causing something similar to what I've described but I can't be sure.
If anyone can provide any help or guidance about what to check, adjust or what the potential issue is I'd be very grateful.
Cheers

 

[Sirius Glass]

Sounds like it is time for a CLA. Do not try this at home.

 

[Ricardo Miranda]

Azza
What specific model is it: original OM-2, OM-2N or OM-2SP?
They are all different regarding reseting the mirror.

 

[thuggins]

The OM's use the same foam for mirror dampening as for the light seals. This foam degrades and gets sticky with age. Is it possible that the mirror is sticking to the foam?

 

[azza]

Azza
What specific model is it: original OM-2, OM-2N or OM-2SP?
They are all different regarding reseting the mirror.

Hi there. Just an OM2.

The OM's use the same foam for mirror dampening as for the light seals. This foam degrades and gets sticky with age. Is it possible that the mirror is sticking to the foam?

Thanks for the suggestion, however I've checked that as one of the first things and I've replaced it on a few OM's in the past. There's actually essentially no foam there anymore and when I reset the mirror by hand there is no resistance from any potential sticky foam.
Cheers

 

[theart]

I had a similar issue with one of mine, and it turned out to be a broken lever arm. If that's the case with yours, you'll be able to see it as soon as you take off the bottom plate.

 

[Xmas]

I had a similar issue with one of mine, and it turned out to be a broken lever arm. If that's the case with yours, you'll be able to see it as soon as you take off the bottom plate.

Quite possible but also possibly a damper problem.
For op
--is there any resistance to the mirror returning --
Or alternatively will the camera work inverted?

 

[jajong]

You might also want to check the battery contacts and cap: they must be (very) clean. Even if the battery is okay, grime on the contacts and the cap can lead to weird behaviour. Good luck.
Cheers.
Jan

 

[azza]

Firstly I want to thank everyone for their suggestions. I had checked most of those things already but it's still good to go through a checklist of sorts. I do have an update though and that is I have got the camera working again!

I had a similar issue with one of mine, and it turned out to be a broken lever arm. If that's the case with yours, you'll be able to see it as soon as you take off the bottom plate.

I'm not 100% certain which lever arm you're talking about, but I thought I'd keep an eye out for something out of place under the bottom plate. Thankfully I have quite a few other OM bodies (don't ask how many haha), so I just compared my new OM2 with an old OM2 I had that is working. When taking a photo as a record I noticed something "missing" in the broken camera. In the attached photo I have circled the areas in question. (click for larger image).



On the left is a working camera and on the right is the broken one. The arrow on the left points to the end of an arm or lever that is visible when the mirror is in the down position. On the right you can see the end of the arm/lever is partially hidden and wound back in to the camera. Basically I poked at it with a screwdriver and it firmly sprung back to the "correct" position which brought the mirror back down. I tested the shutter again however the mirror (and lever) seemed to get stuck again. After reseting the lever with the screw driver two or three more times I tested it one more time and the mirror returned without any extra encouragement from the screwdriver! I've tested it a number of times since and it feels to be working perfectly. What I imagine happened was a simple instance of it getting stuck in place after many years of no use. I guess the moral of the story is use it or loose it.

Thanks for everyones suggestions. I'm happy to of rescued another OM body and am looking forward to using it soon. Cheers

 

[theart]

The part that broke on mine was the large brown lever with the slotted screw in the middle. It basically wasn't correctly catching the lever you have highlighted. You appear to have all the parts in order, so a little cleaning should sort it out.