Build a shutter tester for Focal Plane shutters - Cheap, Easy & it Works

j'utilise 5 lasers avec un interrupteur horizontal et vertical :

@ronron Hi, looks good.
You said you wanted a pcb, I have it here ready to post.

I will also send the pcb bracket and a black bezel.

You need some spacers under the TFT pcb so the TFT sits flush. I have some 1.5mm and 2.5mm spacers which I will send also.

Here are some photos of the new bezel.

stl file will be on github soon, (to replace the current one)

Can also send them by post for those who do not have a 3d printer.

It mounts using the existing TFT fixings and overlaps the TFT screen and project-box cut out, to give a neat look.

Bezel attached to TFT pcb (not mounted in project box)




Side-by-side new bezel and TFT
(note four spacers that fit on top of the TFT mounting holes, so the so the soldered joints on the TFT do not touch the underside of the box)


Rear view, showing the bezel wider than the TFT screen, also wiring for SD card

Hi Niglyn! I got my dad's Zenit-E film camera. I replaced the shutter curtains and curtain wires. It's mechanically sound. I'm looking for a way to adjust the shutter speed. I came across your project on GitHub and built myself a tester out of Lego. I downloaded the firmware, but it's asking for the code. Could you share it? I'm attaching a photo of the project and the camera.

Yevhenii said:

Hi Niglyn! I got my dad's Zenit-E film camera. I replaced the shutter curtains and curtain wires. It's mechanically sound. I'm looking for a way to adjust the shutter speed. I came across your project on GitHub and built myself a tester out of Lego. I downloaded the firmware, but it's asking for the code. Could you share it? I'm attaching a photo of the project and the camera.

Click to expand...

HI, have sent you a DM.

Your Lego looks good )

How did you align the new blinds onto the drum?

They have to be glued EXACTLY in the correct position as all indexing for first and second curtain is all done from the drum.

I have never replaced the curtain material, but I have re-glued many ribbons that have come loose from the drum and rollers.

If only one ribbon has come off, one can easily find the correct alignment, however if both have come off, or replacing the ribbons, then it is almost impossible to align them correctly.

I built a jig to correctly align the curtains. It works very well, but is made of wood and was a one-off.

I am currently designing a new jig, to be 3d printed, specifically for the Zenit shutter curtains.

Please join 'Zenit Camera Club' on Facebook. I am active there and you will find updates for the jig and also in the files section, you will find all of my Zenit camera repair guides.

Please ensure you replace the foam under and around the prism. It degrades into a sticky goo, which must be removed from the prism else it eats into the silvering and destroys it.

As for adjusting the curtains, the service manual recommends 1 1/2 turns tension on the mirror assist spring, and far more tension for curtain one spring, than curtain two.

Without the correct tool to loosen the lock-ring, to adjust spring tension, it is a nightmare to do.

Again I built my own tools for the job.
It is a brass socket that fits over the lock-ring, with the correct splines to locate it. Down the middle fits a thin screwdriver to engage with the adjustment slot on the end of the inner rod.

Good luck, please let me know how you get on.

It took me about a month to learn how to glue and align the curtains. I studied the focal plane shutter from YouTube videos. Once I figured out how the shutter works, the curtains stuck pretty quickly. The mirror drive was more of a problem. It kept catching on the curtain's thread drum and tearing it.
I'm attaching a link to a video that explains the shutter mechanism in detail. It uses a different camera, but the operating principle is the same.

A video of my camera working after assembly.
The video I learned from

p.s. If needed, I can try to record a video with the main points for gluing and aligning curtains.

Yevhenii said:

It took me about a month to learn how to glue and align the curtains. I studied the focal plane shutter from YouTube videos. Once I figured out how the shutter works, the curtains stuck pretty quickly. The mirror drive was more of a problem. It kept catching on the curtain's thread drum and tearing it.
I'm attaching a link to a video that explains the shutter mechanism in detail. It uses a different camera, but the operating principle is the same.

A video of my camera working after assembly.
The video I learned from

p.s. If needed, I can try to record a video with the main points for gluing and aligning curtains.

Click to expand...

HI, you are a very clever person to get the curtains back and working correctly.

The video looks like your curtains are correctly aligned.

I won't bother with a jig, people can send the cameras to you )

pcb & 3d parts update

Hello everybody, more applicable to people just starting to make The Shutter Tester....

1) pcb (to replace the breakout board) now available (8 in stock).
Works identically to the current breakout board other than the TFT and ESP32 boards plug directly into it, negating the need to wire the TFT separately. Includes 3d printed mounting bracket.
These are £5.00 plus postage at cost.

2) 3d printed cutting template for the project box. Fits on top of the project box and has the positions of screen and buttons, for easy marking out where to cut & drill.
£1.00 plus postage at cost.


3) Bezel. This mounts over the TFT screen, covering the gap between project-box cut-out and the screen, for a neater look.
£1.00 plus postage at cost.

Note prices are cost price (materials cost, electricity, paypal charges etc).

3d print files are also available on the Github for people to print themselves, if you have your own 3d printer or a local 3d printing service.


pcb (includes all terminals, headers and a mounting bracket not pictured)



screen bezel (screen not included)



cutting template