Fuji GSW690 repairs?

[Timothy Hyde]

I have an otherwise minty Fuji GSW690, but the viewfinder is cloudy. Who in North America does great work on these Fuji rangefinders? Thanks.

Tim Hyde

 

[DREW WILEY]

Inevitable haze on the outside of the window can be cured with Plexiglas polish and a microfiber cloth. But I too would defer the inside to a service pro, but don't know if it would be cost-effective.

 

[Dan Daniel]

It isn't a difficult job. Removing the top cover of these camera is pretty straight forward. Someone who knows basics of cleaning lenses and rangefinder silvered surfaces can handle this. Any local repair people around you?

Although Frank Marsh (?) is retired, Camera Whiz, I think he still does some jobs. He's in Virginia somewhere (I know, VA is a big 'where') so if you can get contact info he might be up for a little job like this. Fuji was one of his specialities.

 

[mpirie]

^+1......i've cleaned the viewfinders of both my GW III and GSW III.

Remove the screws holding the top plate on and use a cotton bud to gently wipe the dust from the glass surfaces.

Mike

 

[Dan Daniel]

^+1......i've cleaned the viewfinders of both my GW III and GSW III.

Remove the screws holding the top plate on and use a cotton bud to gently wipe the dust from the glass surfaces.

Mike

(You also need to undo the black ring around the shutter release and lift up the wind lever and washers and such- make notes on the order of removal. Nothing complex except actually undoing the retaining ring can be tricky.)

 

[Kodachromeguy]

Late update: I found my repair receipt for my GW690II. I damaged it in 2016 while I was on a Route 66 trip. I called Fuji in New Jersey, and they said they do not repair film cameras any more. They referred me to:
Southern Photo
37 N.E. 167th Street
N. Miami Beach, FL 33162
(305) 653 7355

I sent it to them with the help of a UPS store and the camera was home a few weeks later when I returned home. All is well.

 

[Timothy Hyde]

Late update: I found my repair receipt for my GW690II. I damaged it in 2016 while I was on a Route 66 trip. I called Fuji in New Jersey, and they said they do not repair film cameras any more. They referred me to:
Southern Photo
37 N.E. 167th Street
N. Miami Beach, FL 33162
(305) 653 7355

I sent it to them with the help of a UPS store and the camera was home a few weeks later when I returned home. All is well.

Thank you, Kodacrhomeguy. I'll contact them.
Tim

 

[Grim Tuesday]

It isn't a difficult job. Removing the top cover of these camera is pretty straight forward. Someone who knows basics of cleaning lenses and rangefinder silvered surfaces can handle this. Any local repair people around you?

Although Frank Marsh (?) is retired, Camera Whiz, I think he still does some jobs. He's in Virginia somewhere (I know, VA is a big 'where') so if you can get contact info he might be up for a little job like this. Fuji was one of his specialities.

Frank Marshman can be found hanging around the "Learn camera repair" group on Facebook. I think he would take on stuff like this if OP asked him.

 

[mshchem]

I had these guys CLA one of my Fuji GW690III rangefinders. My rangefinder was hanging up, thet opened it up cleaned and lubed.
I had them go through a 35mm Fujica that I bought for 10 bucks, came back perfect. Reasonable rates.

United Camera Repair, Inc.
3830 14th Avenue
Rock Island, IL 61201

Hours: 8:00am to 5:00pm CT Monday thru Friday & 9:00am to 12:00pm CT Saturday

Phone: 309-786-0950
Fax: 309-786-3211

Email Address: Service@united-camera.com

 

[manfrominternet]

(You also need to undo the black ring around the shutter release and lift up the wind lever and washers and such- make notes on the order of removal. Nothing complex except actually undoing the retaining ring can be tricky.)

Hi Daniel,

I really, REALLY hope that you'll get this message, as it's incredibly important to me that you do, so I can perhaps get some of your sage advice.

In short, I'm having this EXACT problem of not being able to remove the black ring around shutter release of the Fuji GW690III. I have been trying to remove the top part of my Fuji GW690III for a few days now, to the point where I now have blisters on my fingers, but I still can't seem to get that black ring around the shutter release to lift up and off for the life of me. It feels like it's impossible to remove and, that being the case, I can't get in to the viewfinder to clean it from its incredible fogginess.

Can you offer some suggestions or help with this? I'd be incredibly grateful.

 

[Dismayed]

Hi Daniel,

I really, REALLY hope that you'll get this message, as it's incredibly important to me that you do, so I can perhaps get some of your sage advice.

In short, I'm having this EXACT problem of not being able to remove the black ring around shutter release of the Fuji GW690III. I have been trying to remove the top part of my Fuji GW690III for a few days now, to the point where I now have blisters on my fingers, but I still can't seem to get that black ring around the shutter release to lift up and off for the life of me. It feels like it's impossible to remove and, that being the case, I can't get in to the viewfinder to clean it from its incredible fogginess.

Can you offer some suggestions or help with this? I'd be incredibly grateful.

Dan's email address is on his web page.

https://www.dandanielcameras.com/

 

[manfrominternet]

Dan's email address is on his web page.

https://www.dandanielcameras.com/

Thankyouthankyouthankyou!!!! I appreciate your help!

 

[braxus]

Advance Camera in Portland Oregon has a really good tech for CLA's on medium format film cameras. He really did wonders on cleaning up and repairing my Pentax 67II camera. Yeah they still work on those. My Pentax 67II looks like new (almost) and working like a charm.

 

[manfrominternet]

Advance Camera in Portland Oregon has a really good tech for CLA's on medium format film cameras. He really did wonders on cleaning up and repairing my Pentax 67II camera. Yeah they still work on those. My Pentax 67II looks like new (almost) and working like a charm.

I'll certainly keep this in mind as I have a Pentax 67II that I ADORE. I got lucky when I recieved mine - looked utterly brand new, and it had a very high serial number.

 

[Mamulcahy]

I spoke with Mark Hama www.markhama.com when I sent in my Yashica 124G for overhaul. He will also work on my GW690 and perform a CLA. I will send it to him after I get my 6x6 back.

 

[Huss]

I spoke with Mark Hama www.markhama.com when I sent in my Yashica 124G for overhaul. He will also work on my GW690 and perform a CLA. I will send it to him after I get my 6x6 back.

Has he worked on them before?

 

[Mamulcahy]

Has he worked on them before?

I didn’t ask, but it’s a pretty basic camera and I have never heard of any pitfalls in repair.

 

[DREW WILEY]

Once that black ring is off, it's fairly straightforward. They can be stubborn. I had to resort to using a needle-nosed Vise Grip plier cushioned with tape. Nobody seems to want to work on them because if something goes wrong, no spare parts are available anymore. Follow the repair manual; the shutter needs to be charged (cocked). But after the ring is screwed off, and once the tiny screws are removed allowing the whole top cover to be pulled off, the inner surfaces of the rangefinder elements are easily accessible to cleaning. The outer portions can be cleaned with Plexiglas polish without needing to remove anything. But the insides tend to get hazed over time and need cleaning per se.

 

[macfred]

May be helpful - The GSW-690 III service manual : https://manualzz.com/doc/3163443/fuji-gsw-690-iii-service-manual

 

[macfred]

From the Service Manual :