Bronica S2a CLA around Northern Ohio/Southern Michigan (toledo)

[TheSohnly]

Hello APUG

I recently purchased a Bronica S2a (along with a few other things) and was wondering if anyone knew where to get a CLA for it around northern Ohio/southern Michigan.

The focusing screen is very dirty and kind of dark and difficult to focus. I know that this camera sat in an abandoned house for many years before I rescued it so it shouldn't have any major repairs. It just needs a little tlc

**EDIT**
After doing a quick google search to see if I could do this myself, I noticed that it is a common problem among the Bronica S2 and S2a.

I took a few extremely tiny screws off of the bronica only to find that the foam has deteriorated to the point where it needs redone!

(sorry for the watermelons, but these are straight from the camera)





I know what needs to be done now, I just need to find someone that will do it.

 

[Trond]

Hello,

If you have gone this far already, you can easily do the repair yourself. Just carefully clean away the old foam, using a little alcohol if necessary. Replace the old foam with new (which you can buy on eBay) and install it all in reverse order. The most important thing to look out for is that the ground glass rest firmly on the metal rails. If not, you need thicker foam.

The screen isn't as bright as a modern one. I tried to replace it with a Kiev-screen, but I don't think it was much of an improvement, so I changed back to the original one.

I have used a Bronica S2A for several years now, and I am very pleased with it. A reliable camera with helpful interlocks, well designed backs and many very fine lenses.

Trond

 

[CGW]

Three possible sources:

Frank Marshman at Camera Wiz in Harrisonburg, VA.
1-800-471-8133; 540-434-8133

Koh's http://kohscamera.com/

David Goldfarb here at APUG

 

[TheSohnly]

Trond:

I also heard I could use moleskin to do this. I think I will try that.

Is there a tutorial for doing it for the backs I have? They need it as well

 

[Trond]

Moleskin should be OK as long as the thickness is right.

The most time consuming about replacing the foam seals on the back is cleaning away the old sticky foam. I have a foam kit which I got from eBay with pre cut strips. Very easy to install.

Trond

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

Moleskin works very well and is more durable than foam for this purpose. If you hunt around the internet, you may be able to find Sam Sherman's articles on Bronica focus issues, which have detailed instructions on making this simple repair. They used to be part of Robert Monaghan's medium-format megasite, which was a rich source of information on the Bronica system, but the site lost its server at some point, moved around a bit, and I don't know where it is these days.

 

[TheSohnly]

Firstly: I purchased some kroger-brand moleskin for a few bucks and i'll give that a try. (It's skin-colored and not black and I don't really care at the moment) I couldn't find any pre-cut light seals on ebay

Secondly: I believe I found a cached version of Sam Sherman's tutorial here in this tinyurl link. I know a lot of people don't trust tinyurl links, but I provided the "preview" tinyurl link so you can trust me.

I also emailed Sam Sherman at a few different emails I found online as well and I will post his responses in another thread that I will dedicate to the tutorial with pictures on how to replace the light seals. I will take digital pictures every step of the way so that people don't have as much trouble as I did.

Lastly: I did NOT note the position of the Fresnel lens before taking it out (stupidly) so I was wondering if anyone had any idea which way it goes back on the camera.