how long will a Photomic meter for the F2 last?

Poohblah · Oct 2, 2008

question is basically the title... i have a nikon F2 with inoperative meter, and i want to get a working TTL meter from KEH. since they're rather old, i was wondering what i might expect the lifespan of a working TTL meter to be.

i absolutely love the F2 but sometimes it's a pain to work without a TTL meter!

epatsellis · Oct 3, 2008

You'd be better served in the long run by sending it to Sover Wong, he specializies in the F2 only, and will make it better than new.

http://www.geocities.com/sover_wong/Nikon_F2_Repair_Service.html

nsouto · Oct 3, 2008

Sover has done an absolutely brilliant job on both my F2s.

Having said that, have a look at his site and some of his comments on recovering non-working F2 meters. Some are easy to recover, others are next to impossible.

If yours is one of the "impossibles", it's likely better to just get a working one from KEH or epay.

John_Nikon_F · Oct 4, 2008

Are your lenses non-AI, or are they AI/AIS? If the latter, you could probably go for a DP-11 prism, instead of the earlier DP-1. In either case, try to get a prism that has a red dot on the underside of the shutter speed dial stack. Those are the prisms that have the wire-cladded ring resistor.

-J

Ken Nadvornick · Oct 4, 2008

John_Nikon_F3HP said:
Are your lenses non-AI, or are they AI/AIS? If the latter, you could probably go for a DP-11 prism, instead of the earlier DP-1. In either case, try to get a prism that has a red dot on the underside of the shutter speed dial stack. Those are the prisms that have the wire-cladded ring resistor.-J

That's an interesting bit of info, and one I had not heard before. What exactly does the "wire-cladded" modification refer to?

The images below show the original ring resistor from the DP-1 meter of an early (c. 1974) F2 of mine. It was removed and replaced by a brand new ring a few years ago as part of the camera's first-ever maintenance. I know this because I'm the original (and only) owner. The shutter speed dial stack for this meter shows a red dot on the underside.

Thanks,

Ken (from right around the corner between Monroe and Sultan )

John_Nikon_F · Oct 4, 2008

Ken,

Essentially, the wire-cladded ring resistors don't wear out as quickly as the older carbon resistors. It's likely that whoever changed the resistor out also changed the shutter speed dial to give it the red dot. Details can be found on Sover Wong's site...

Cool, yeah, I'm about 4 miles up Big Rock from Hwy 203... Almost in the Carnation zip code. Like Ralph Javins, I do tend to frequent Kenmore Camera too much, as well as Camera Clinic... ;-)

-J

Poohblah · Oct 4, 2008

thanks John, those DP-11 finders are awfully expensive though.

i assume that i can still use AI lenses with the DP-1, but i just have to index them by turning the aperture ring to its maximum and back to f/5.6? all i have right now are autofocus lenses, but i'm saving up for a 20mm f/4 AI and a 28mm f/2.8 AI-S. i'm not a man of much money

resummerfield · Oct 4, 2008

Poohblah said:
......i assume that i can still use AI lenses with the DP-1, but i just have to index them by turning the aperture ring to its maximum and back to f/5.6? ........

The lens must have a "prong" to catch the pin on the meter, if it is to work properly. Most older AI lenses have this prong.

Poohblah · Oct 4, 2008

all AI lenses have the prong, unless i'm mistaken. except for series E, of course.

John_Nikon_F · Oct 5, 2008

Yep, AI lenses do, unless people have removed them, which happens. But, yes, they'll work fine on a non-AI DP-1, 2, or 3. Set ring to f/5.6, mount lens, then go to minimum aperture and back to the maximum. AKA, the Nikon shuffle, as we call it over @ Nikonians. You can have the prong added to an AF Nikkor. I've had it done to a couple AF Nikkor zooms before. Also once received a 28-85 AF Nikkor with the prong pre-added. The only disadvantage is that most AF Nikkors have weak detents on their aperture rings. So, when mounting the lens to a non-AI body, sometimes the ring will move (mainly noticeable on Nikkormats) and prevent the meter from indexing properly. Easy to solve, though. Use a small screwdriver to depress the tang behind the coupling pin, and that resets the indexing mechanism to 5.6, just like pushing up on the coupling pins of the FTn, DP-1, 2, and 3 photomic heads.

-J

Poohblah · Oct 5, 2008

would i just epoxy the prong to the aperture ring? sort of a hack job though, and it's irreversible

John_Nikon_F · Oct 5, 2008

Yeah, you can. The ones I had modified were done in that manner. With enough force, you can remove it, and the aperture ring will be returned to original condition, since the epoxy will come off with the prong. In normal use, however, the prong will stay attached.

-J

Poohblah · Oct 5, 2008

sweet. and where might i get my hands on some prongs? ebay?

John_Nikon_F · Oct 5, 2008

Nikon sells them new. I don't think they're very expensive. You could also check any camera repair shops in your area for some used ones. The other possibility is to contact Pacific Rim Camera. http://www.pacificrimcamera.com

They sell them for $10 each.

-J

Ralph Javins · Oct 6, 2008

Good morning;

With the more modern lubricants available now, quite a long time. With this addition, the sensing resistors will continue to work for a much longer time than previously thought. This is not a repair; if the sensing resistor has a bad spot already, it will not make it better.

If the meter still swings smoothly, you can have it done with good effect. If the needle jumps around as you change aperture, the probability of just a simple "CLA" getting you going again is not good. The only real cure then is the new type wire resistor. The old carbon trace resistors are no longer available. That may not be a bad thing.

Yes, there are some good techs out there who can make your Photomic type pentaprism work "just as good as new." Unfortunately, the cost for the repair may also sound a lot like the price for it when it was new. I still like and enjoy using the older gear. I still think that the repair is worth it.

how long will a Photomic meter for the F2 last?

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