Is Sover Wong worth it?

[BradS]

.... No one will ever again build a machine at all similar to an F2. They are special even among quality film SLRs....

Thanks for this!
I need to print it out and re-read it every time I think about selling my Nikon F2.

 

[pthornto]

Thanks for this!
I need to print it out and re-read it every time I think about selling my Nikon F2.

This is also true for film leicas, rolleiflexes, hasselblads. This is a type of manufactured product that doesn’t exist anymore. On paper my EOS cameras are faster and better than the F2 but the F2 offers an experience that makes for much more satisfying picture taking.

 

[CMoore]

While having no experience with him..........or an F2 for that matter having a reputation as he does carries a lot of weight with me. I had my FM2n restored by Gus Lazzari of TLC camera repair. I was warned of a long wait and that indeed was fact. However it was well wrth it. Camera was returned in as new condition. Price was very good for the quality and amount of work done. The long wait is because those guys are in high demand.

Yeah..... they are "Expensive" because they are very good at what they do, and spend a lot of time doing it.
If they were Electricians or Plumbers, the cost would be 3x more than it is now.

I sent Two F2S to Sover 5 or 6 years ago.
His communication and explanation of what he is doing is remarkable.
It leaves you with no doubt that he knows what he is doing and has actually done the work that is needed.
It is a shame that.....
1. There are not more people like him in all aspects of Repair/Maintenance, for any product.

2. He does not work on other cameras......even other Nikons.

3. People think ...300-600 dollars... i can just buy another F2.!
True enough, but you are simply buying ANOTHER 40-50 year old camera. It may not have the Same or as many problems, but it will definitely benefit from being taken down and serviced for the first time in its life.
JMO.....but a mechanical device like an F2 needs more than your average CLA when it is 45 years old.
Neither Nikon, nor anybody else, ever intended for (or imagined) these cameras to be functioning...circa 2020... without major work being done

 

[logan2z]

If I had an F2 I would certainly have Sover work his magic on it. The cost of the repair will no doubt be paid back over the many years of enjoyment derived from using the camera.

 

[Mike Lopez]

I'm starting to approach one year of waiting for the call to send my bodies in...but I'm confident that the wait will be worth it.

 

[Bikerider]

Suppose he is as good as they say, then I'd say it's money well spent. However, if you find a good repair technician, they could probably do a similar job for a fair bit cheaper.

I took an Olympus Pen F to be repaired to a well respected camera technician and I was told it was unfixable without a donor camera. Later, I took it to a repair shop in Dubai and they fixed it for a very reasonable price. Different repair technicians have different levels of skill.

If the meter isn't working he is the only one who can get it functioning again. He is the only one who can replace the resistor ring in the meter which he makes. Without one, the F" meter makes a very good paperweight. If it counts for anything, I have never ever heard or read anything adverse or condemning his work, but I have heard an awful lot about other camera technicians who totally wreck an otherwise decent camera.

 

[Bikerider]

Although I'm not a Nikon user and I have no doubt Mr Wong is probably the best in the business and World renowned, I understand his waiting lists is around two years or more.

Doesn't that tell you something?

 

[MartinCrabtree]

He is an accomplished specialist. Several steps above a good technician.

 

[Willyekerslike]

Sover Wong has worked on six of my F2 cameras.

The feedback you get from him while he works on the camera is way beyond first class with emails arriving giving discriptions of the condition of the camera and photographs. When you get your camera back you recieve CD with full information of the service/repair again with photos.

I know of no other business that gives you this level of care and consideration and the marvel is he is a one man business.

As for price, well there is an old saying - pay peanuts and you get monkeys.

I wishnI could find someone like Sover to work on Nikon F cameras

 

[SchwinnParamount]

If he does everything he says he does, and can basically rebuild an F2 to nearly new status... I'd be tempted to send the one John sent me to him eventually. Knowing that it's a fully mechanical camera that could last another 100 years gives me a certain peace of mind that I dont get from the F5.

It would be great if he could get to the bottom of T/L ring stickiness. It does turn and the functions work but it's not a great feeling to have even a little bit of the F2 being sub optimal. You'll enjoy the camera as it is for as long as you have to wait for the repair. I didn't shoot that much with it but when I did, it made some lovely images. Of course, you will be able to use any of your Nikon lenses with it. Sover may want to adjust/replace the cds cells in the finder. He has had new ones manufactured so if he needs to, they are available.

 

[ChristopherCoy]

It would be great if he could get to the bottom of T/L ring stickiness. It does turn and the functions work but it's not a great feeling to have even a little bit of the F2 being sub optimal. You'll enjoy the camera as it is for as long as you have to wait for the repair. I didn't shoot that much with it but when I did, it made some lovely images. Of course, you will be able to use any of your Nikon lenses with it.

I'm currently #895 on his waiting list. He'll email me when he's ready for me to send it to him... in 14 months.

 

[BradS]

I wonder how many cameras this thread has added to the queue

 

[ChristopherCoy]

I wonder how many cameras this thread has added to the queue

What number are you? LOL

 

[logan2z]

I wonder how many cameras this thread has added to the queue

This thread has definitely made me think seriously about picking up an F2 and getting in line!

 

[BradS]

What number are you? LOL

I'm not in the queue...

 

[pthornto]

What number are you? LOL

I’m number 815. Got in line on Sept 30. Should be this year I think!

 

[ChristopherCoy]

I’m number 815. Got in line on Sept 30. Should be this year I think!

I’ll trade you my 895 for your 815 and mow your lawn for a month!

 

[logan2z]

Maybe I should get in the queue now and then look for a camera. I'll have a year to find a nice one

 

[ChristopherCoy]

Maybe I should get in the queue now and then look for a camera. I'll have a year to find a nice one

he sells F2’s that he’s already serviced. If you don’t have one, that’s probably a good option.

 

[logan2z]

he sells F2’s that he’s already serviced. If you don’t have one, that’s probably a good option.

That's a thought.

 

[Huss]

I used Gus Lazzari for my Leica M3 DS. After months and months of zero contact/no replies to my polite enquiries, it was suddenly done when I said I wanted it back. While mechanically it works properly, everyone says their camera comes back looking like new.. So my question is, when you sent it in did it look like new anyway? Cuz my Leica came back looking just as beat up as it was before. I was hoping that he would replace worn parts (and bill me for it of course) but no such luck. Stuff like the little trim ring around the frame counter etc.

 

[logan2z]

I used Gus Lazzari for my Leica M3 DS. After months and months of zero contact/no replies to my polite enquiries, it was suddenly done when I said I wanted it back. While mechanically it works properly, everyone says their camera comes back looking like new.. So my question is, when you sent it in did it look like new anyway? Cuz my Leica came back looking just as beat up as it was before. I was hoping that he would replace worn parts (and bill me for it of course) but no such luck. Stuff like the little trim ring around the frame counter etc.

The only Leica I've had serviced so far is my M4 and I sent it to YYE. The camera looked really clean when I sent it in so I can't say if Youxin would have made it look like new if it came to him all beat up - but I doubt that would happen as part of a routine CLA, it's not a full restoration.

FWIW, Youxin responded quickly to email inquiries and turned the camera around in three weeks. I wouldn't hesitate to use him in the future.

 

[Huss]

The only Leica I've had serviced so far is my M4 and I sent it to YYE. The camera looked really clean when I sent it in so I can't say if Youxin would have made it look like new if it came to him all beat up - but I doubt that would happen as part of a routine CLA, it's not a full restoration.

FWIW, Youxin responded quickly to email inquiries and turned the camera around in three weeks. I wouldn't hesitate to use him in the future.

Yeah Youxin is great. My question about having a camera returned looking like new is because so many people say that. And as you say, unless a restoration was done, how so?
When my cameras get serviced, no matter who does it or what cameras they are, they come back looking the same as I sent them in.

 

[Christiaan Phleger]

Is he worth it? Generally, yes. But I think it depends on the F2, if its a well kept and used and still within shooting spec then the body may not need Sover level, and another good tech can certainly do a standard CLA on an F2. Where I think Sover really shines is in non functioning and mechanical restoration and he is worth the queue.

I sent him a beater junk worn F2A way way back when he was first started his website (possibly the first 100 cameras) and this F2 looked fine but had a world of issues. I had a reasonable amount of experience with working on F and some F2 issues but this looked way out of my league, with a few indications that I was not the first to attempt a repair. He took on the camera and did what was needed, but noted there were a few unusual points about this F2A (78'). First was its extensive internal wear, as if countless rolls ran thru the camera, with evidence of motor drive use. The shutter curtains had a slight modification I cannot exactly recall but he thought it could be related to the the motor drive use. In addition the frame gate had a very tiny notch precisely cut into one discrete edge, he confirmed my own knowledge and understanding that working pro's would do this to note which bodies were which so they could catch any 'drift from specs'. The meter came back well and accurate, although he did note that it from the heavy wear it was used at between 1/125 and 1/500 and it still had a slight jumpy bump at just over 1/250 consistently. I concluded it was some working sport shooter's motor driven body for slides since it is a chrome body.

After the re build everything came back perfect with an exceptionally accurate shutter. It has never needed any repair or adjustment since the Sover refurbish and I then used it heavily for about 4-6 years in weddings as a SLR 'neck camera' interchanged with a Leica M4; Two motored Nikons on the shoulders (F3's F4's and later F5's pre-digital) and either the M4 with a 35mm/f2 Summicron or this 'Pro-sports' F2 with a complement of Nikkors. I probably shot over 3000 rolls just for weddings alone, and I used it for as personal travel camera to put many more rolls on it. It still gets shot now and then, I no longer put batteries into the meter since I seldom use it and battery leakage stinks.
In all the years of wedding use it never gave a problem, and I absolutely trusted it when it was in my hands, and that little notch was a nice subtle way for me to know which rolls were shot with it.

 

[btaylor]

I used Gus Lazzari for my Leica M3 DS. After months and months of zero contact/no replies to my polite enquiries, it was suddenly done when I said I wanted it back. While mechanically it works properly, everyone says their camera comes back looking like new.. So my question is, when you sent it in did it look like new anyway? Cuz my Leica came back looking just as beat up as it was before. I was hoping that he would replace worn parts (and bill me for it of course) but no such luck. Stuff like the little trim ring around the frame counter etc.

Interesting. I sent a Contax IIa to Gus and had a similar experience getting it finished. I was in an online que that moved at an incredibly slow rate- Ii think I calculated it was going to take years to get it back. So I also politely sent his a couple of emails engine with just send the camera back- and it was suddenly done! In my case the exterior of the camera was beautifully cleaned- it really looked like new.