From repairing's pov, which camera model do you like most?

[kl122002]

There are many cameras in our history, from large wood camera to little spy cameras.

As one of the hobbyist or technician who would do camera repairing work, do you have any camera models that you would like? (E.g. easy to locate the faults, easy to source the parts , easy to repair)

 

[Andreas Thaler]

For me, every SLR is a miracle where the chances of a successful repair are usually against me

 

[Nitroplait]

Olympus Trip 35 - if the selenium cell is still good, I can almost always fix any fault.
With most other cameras I fail when I am required to dig deeeper than what’s immediately accessible below the top and bottom plate.

 

[tjwspm]

My personal favorite for repairing is the Mamiya super 16. However, I only deal with subminiature cameras.

- This camera is made of excellent materials.
- It is easy to open and disassemble.
- The parts inside are easily accessible.



Even as a beginner, I managed to get the escapement and thus the shutter speeds working again.
By the way, it also takes great pictures...

 

[Paul Howell]

Agus C 3

 

[Hunter_Compton]

Agus C 3

While the mechanisms inside the C3 are simple and robust, the fact that you have to peel the leatherette off the front to get to the shutter is a major detractor towards serviceability to me.

As much as some deride Kodak, I’ll compliment them for the fact that none of their cameras I have ever worked on required peeling off the body covering to service. I’ll call out the Signet 35 as being partially easily to work on.

 

[MFstooges]

Olympus Trip 35 - if the selenium cell is still good, I can almost always fix any fault.
With most other cameras I fail when I am required to dig deeeper than what’s immediately accessible below the top and bottom plate.

The selenium can't be rebuilt?

 

[Dan Daniel]

Rolleiflex TLRs. They were made to be serviced. Yes, you need to peel back skin to get inside. After that, parts finishing all around is excellent. Most mechanism disassemble for cleaning and replacement if needed. Plenty of adjustment points for operation. From late '30s to the end of the F series (early '80s?), the core mechanics stayed the same. Almost always any change was an improvement, not just a "let's give the summer intern something to play with' type of change (yeah, I'm looking at you, web designers).

Hard to believe that the same country that gives up today's car mechanics studies in ongoing disaster creation also created a camera that took to heart the phrase, 'the better is the enemy of the good.'

 

[4season]

Nikon F (I don't know about the Photomic finder though!)
Nikkormat FTn
Some Nikkor lenses
Olympus OM-1 (OM-1n, a little less so)
Olympus XA

All are pretty tidy designs. The Nikons in particular are well-made, and seem designed for quick service, though Nikkormat's extensive use of foam, and it's internal light meter do complicate matters.

And I really like Nikon's use of a broad, flat spring as aperture-ring "clicker", as opposed to a spring-loaded ball bearing: The former is much more resistant to wear and tear, and isn't easily misplaced when the lens is disassembled!

The Olympus cameras come apart faster than most, and despite small size, the interiors feel almost roomy. Compared to Nikon, you can see more signs of cost-cutting, though.

Features that complicate life: Full-aperture metering, mechanical viewfinder displays. The former usually involves ring resistors, or a system of strings and pulleys, while the latter pretty much guarantees that you'll encounter strings and pulleys.

Lack of more advanced features simplifies servicing of common Soviet cameras including Smena, Zenit, and I suspect, Kiev-19. I've a hunch that the latter is a Soviet copy of a Nikkormat, minus the fussier parts (mechanical finder display, aperture ring resistor).

 

[4season]

The selenium can't be rebuilt?

No such luck with my two Trip 35s, which seemed to have faulty galvanometers.

 

[Nitroplait]

The selenium can't be rebuilt?

Not by me.

 

[Bill Burk]

The selenium can't be rebuilt?

Degraded selenium cells cannot be refreshed, replacements from donor bodies are needed.

If you find a technique that works I am interested, however baking in an oven and catsup touted online is fruitless.

 

[choiliefan]

Graflex Crown and Century Graphics are dead simple to repair.

 

[Nicholas Lindan]

[A camera where it is easy to] locate the faults, easy to source the parts , easy to repair

You realize you are asking for something that does not, and possibly can not, exist.

Better to ask what is the least evil camera to keep going.

I would say anything without plastic or electronics in the essentials and where donor bodies are available. Though with advances in 3-D printing that may change.

Cameras that could be kept going for a long time: Leica M2, M3 & M4, Nikon F & F2, Rollei's, 'Blads ... and a slew of lower end folders and the like. A $14.95 from Montgomery Wards Agfa Solina could be kept going to the ends of time (remove green goo before attempting).

It may be possible to remake Photomic finders if one is willing. And possibly cameras with simple electronics: F3, M5, and the like. A few encoders, an Arduino, a couple of LEDs and a photodiode or two and you are in business. Throw any galvinometers in the trash along with the selenium and CdS cells, ring resistors and other unobtainiums.

You would, though, have to be very, very willing. A labor of love with negative business potential.

Anything with a motor drive or lots of electronic gee-gaws would be hopeless to keep runnning for the next century while a 100 year old Kodak keeps chuging along.

Getting film will become harder and harder - just like finding contemporary 112 for that old Kodak. 35mm will be impossible to make without a perforator.

Maybe wet-plate and tin-type are the way to go. Film is always available and the cameras meets the criteria of easy to locate the fault (it should be staring you in the face); easy to source the parts (lumber yard and hardware store); and easy to repair (saw, hammer, nails, pot of glue).

 

[Pioneer]

Agus C 3

If I can have a camera repaired by someone else then I know that my older Pentax cameras like the SV, Spotmatic and K1000 can still be fixed as can my Rolleiflex.

However, if I have to repair them then the only cameras I have ever successfully repaired are the Holga, an Argus C3 and my Contax II. I guess those are my desert island cameras.

 

[4season]

The selenium can't be rebuilt?

If the galvanometer is in good working order, but the original selenium photocell is dead, then I might simply replace the latter with a small, modern silicon photovoltaic cell. The replacement can be a fraction of the size of the original, because silicon delivers similar voltage, but something like 10x as much amperage. Crystalline cells are very fragile, and a royal pain to cut, but once installed, they ought to last pretty much forever.

An easier solution would be to use flexible photovoltaic cells instead, as some can be cut to size with a pair of scissors. But AFAIK, nothing beats the longevity of crystalline cells.

 

[dxqcanada]

Most TLR's, many Barnack type cameras, most pre-1960's range/viewfinder cameras, most old folders and box ... so pretty much well anything that has no electronics.

 

[MattKing]

My Noon pinhole camera was probably the easiest