Exercising Your Shutters

Chuck_P · Mar 3, 2012

I know you shouldn't store a lense with the shutter cocked. But, I'm just wandering how many excercise their shutters on their lenses that haven't been used in a while. I will occasionally pull my lenses out and cycle the shutter through all the speeds. Does this seem prudent or really not necessary?

Chuck

David Lyga · Mar 3, 2012

A clean, mechanical shutter does not need 'exercise'. This is said to be necessary only because of the gunk in there which needs to be 'freed'. Lighter fluid works wonders. Don't keep them cocked. - David Lyga

Toffle · Mar 3, 2012

I am not systematic about it, but I do occasionally test my shutters. What I am very careful about, is I will test fire my shutters before making the actual exposure. A couple of test firings will often free a sluggish shutter or sticky cable release. More than once I have caught a problem that would have ruined an otherwise carefully prepared photograph.

BrianShaw · Mar 3, 2012

David Lyga said:
A clean, mechanical shutter does not need 'exercise'.

This is a fact. I'd like to add "and properly lubricated" just for clarity and completeness.

E. von Hoegh · Mar 3, 2012

Even with a clean, properly lubricated shutter it is a good idea, if it hasn't been used that day, to cycle it a few times to "settle" the lubrication and ensure that the speeds will be consistent. This is just the nature of the beasties. You can change the rate of a precision mechanical time piece, simply by letting it run down and stop. It may or may not return to it's original rate.

removed account4 · Mar 3, 2012

i exercised one of my shutters just this morning ... on a cyclone #5 magazine camera.
the shutter was hanging on T ... so i switched it to I and fired it 10-20 times
and T works fine now ... much easier than removing the 4 screws, removing the faceplate,
taking out the lint and adding a few drops of amber oil ....

BrianShaw · Mar 3, 2012

E. von Hoegh said:
You can change the rate of a precision mechanical time piece, simply by letting it run down and stop. It may or may not return to it's original rate.

In that context I totally agree, but how often does a few milliseconds ever make much of a difference in photographic exposure? :confused:

E. von Hoegh · Mar 3, 2012

BrianShaw said:
In that context I totally agree, but how often does a few milliseconds ever make much of a difference in photographic exposure? :confused:

I was offering an example to make a point.

Edit: At 1/1000 sec, a few milliseconds makes a difference.

BrianShaw · Mar 3, 2012

Ahh.. yes, and a good point in that context!

Steve Smith · Mar 3, 2012

CPorter said:
I know you shouldn't store a lense with the shutter cocked.

We have argued this point before. Some manufacturers say leave them cocked, others say not to. The reality is that there is not much difference in the tension of a spring if the shutter is cocked or not as it does not go anywhere near completely slack when fired.

The fact that many models of medium format camera can only mount and dismount lenses when cocked leads me to think that is the best way to leave them.

Steve.

dehk · Mar 3, 2012

I tried to leave the shutters on B when its not going to be used for a while, I believe its a good thing for a lot of mechanical cameras.

BrianShaw · Mar 3, 2012

Steve Smith said:
We have argued this point before...

Agreed. We've argued this, and many other, points before... and likely will again in the future. It is always interesting how great are the diversity of opinion and experience. At time I feel like responding, "It also helps to twirl on your tippy-toes three times in a clock-wise direction whilst wearing a pink tu-tu."

Steve Smith · Mar 3, 2012

BrianShaw said:
At time I feel like responding, "It also helps to twirl on your tippy-toes three times in a clock-wise direction whilst wearing a pink tu-tu."

Anti-clockwise, surely?

Steve.

BrianShaw · Mar 3, 2012

I twirl corrected!

Grainy · Mar 3, 2012

I read the manual on my Leica and if I remember correctly it said that I should fire through all shutter speeds once every three months if I didn't use the camera.

E. von Hoegh · Mar 3, 2012

BrianShaw said:
It is always interesting how great are the diversity of opinion and experience.

Unfortunately, experience is often misinterpreted and/or poorly observed. The facts stand on their own. Trouble is, many do not distinguish between facts and opinions.

E. von Hoegh · Mar 3, 2012

BrianShaw said:
Agreed. We've argued this, and many other, points before... and likely will again in the future. It is always interesting how great are the diversity of opinion and experience. At time I feel like responding, "It also helps to twirl on your tippy-toes three times in a clock-wise direction whilst wearing a pink tu-tu."

It also helps to mutter "ut tensio, sic vis" under your breath.

BrianShaw · Mar 3, 2012

E. von Hoegh said:
Unfortunately, experience is often misinterpreted and/or poorly observed. The facts stand on their own. Trouble is, many do not distinguish between facts and opinions.

Yes, of course... we agree quite vehemently.

With regard to shutter excercise the discussion is frequently muddled because some people (both question askers and question answerers) mistakenly believe that they have proven experience making an unreliable or inaccurate shutter both reliable and accurate by excercising it. Can't be done.

But to re-answer the original question... I don't "excercise" my shutters on a periodic basis but know doing that surely can't hurt anything at all. In fact, it might have a beneficial side-effect: one can determine if the shutter needs servicing PRIOR to putting it into sevice where failure is undesired.

BrianShaw · Mar 3, 2012

E. von Hoegh said:
It also helps to mutter "ut tensio, sic vis" under your breath.

Yes, that really helps me "snap back" into reality!

BrianShaw · Mar 3, 2012

E. von Hoegh said:
It also helps to mutter "ut tensio, sic vis" under your breath.

I should get "Hooke'd" on doing that prior to using any shutter!

E. von Hoegh · Mar 3, 2012

BrianShaw said:
I should get "Hooke'd" on doing that prior to using any shutter!

Except for the very rare Comptoise weight-driven shutters.

Steve Smith · Mar 3, 2012

BrianShaw said:
some people.... mistakenly believe that they have proven experience making an unreliable or inaccurate shutter both reliable and accurate by excercising it. Can't be done.

No. It only makes it reliable up to now. It will probably become unreliable again in the near future.

Steve.

dpurdy · Mar 3, 2012

My experience speaks counter to the knowledgeable ones who say it is unnecessary. I have been dealing with this lately on several shutters as I own way more stuff than I currently use very often. I let my trusty Rolleiflex 2.8F sit for about six months untouched. I checked it the other day and the shutter speed was very off on the slow speeds. Not only that it was hanging up in B and not closing. And most alarming was that as I spun the arm around to cock the shutter it was opening and closing with out my firing it.
I started thinking about all the money it was going to cost me at Harry Fleenor's but I worked it for a few minutes and everything started working better. Eventually after working it now and then over a couple of days it got back to perfect in every regard.
I also went through my 4x5 lenses that go almost completely unused. Found that 3 of the shutters had gummed up. The lenses I use more regularly on the 8x10 are all working perfectly.
So whatever the theory is, I don't care. I will continue to exercise my shutters on occasion so they will keep working.
Dennis

Steve Smith · Mar 3, 2012

dpurdy said:
I started thinking about all the money it was going to cost me at Harry Fleenor's but I worked it for a few minutes and everything started working better. Eventually after working it now and then over a couple of days it got back to perfect in every regard.
I also went through my 4x5 lenses that go almost completely unused. Found that 3 of the shutters had gummed up. The lenses I use more regularly on the 8x10 are all working perfectly.
So whatever the theory is, I don't care. I will continue to exercise my shutters on occasion so they will keep working.
Dennis

I think that in this case, all you are doing is moving lubricant around to where it is not causing a problem any more... until it works its way back again.

Whilst exercising them gets them working again, a proper clean and re-lubrication would be a better long term solution.

Steve.

BrianShaw · Mar 3, 2012

Steve Smith said:
No. It only makes it reliable up to now. It will probably become unreliable again in the near future.

... which might be good enough for some people and some situations. I'm not criticizing that approach... its just that my definition of reliable is different and of a longer duration. What gets to me is when folks fail to understand that a makeshift approach to maintaining a reliable shutter includes a good amount of inherent risk... according to my definition of both reliable and risk.

Exercising Your Shutters

Privacy & Transparency

Privacy & Transparency