Konica Auto s2 film advance lever won't move

[curioduo]

Hi, all - I'm a new owner of my first rangefinder ... Konica Auto s2. Such a beautiful camera!

Anyway, the film advance lever won't move (and no, there's no film in the camera) and I'm about to do my first surgery. Any thoughts on why it may be stuck?

 

[albada]

Welcome to Photrio!
I *think* the release catch is under the bottom cover, so I suggest removing two screws to remove the bottom to see if that catch is stuck due to old grease.
Another likely cause is the shutter being stuck. To determine this, release the catch under the bottom, wind, and press the shutter button. If it doesn't fire, the problem is the shutter.
Shutters often stick when somebody sets the self-timer and it is sticking due to old lube. Another common cause of stuck shutter is oil that has crept onto the blades. Either way will require removing the items in front of the shutter.

Mark

 

[curioduo]

Hi thanks for the note back. I can't quite tell what the "release catch" is when I open up the bottom of the camera. Can you tell me how to what the release catch is?

 

[curioduo]

OK so while I don't know what the "release catch" is (and would still like to know) I think I got the camera working ... at least in manual mode. All of my searches kept coming back to the self timer on these things being gummed up, meaning the self timer wouldn't actually finish it's countdown, meaning the shutter wouldn't fire, meaning the film advance lever couldn't move. After putting some lighter fluid on the self timer countdown switch and moving around the self timer (and making sure the timer on/off was on "X" not "M"), I heard the timer run and the shutter fire! I had to keep working the mechanisms and now it seems to fire just fine at all apertures and shutter speeds in manual.

And while this is fine with me, I would like to figure out what the deal is with "auto" mode. When I set the aperture to "auto" the shutter won't fire on any fast shutter speeds. I'm in a super bright room, but it is 11pm and there isn't much ambient light so maybe I don't have enough light?? I *do* know the light meter is working, which is awesome, so maybe that's the deal.

I'm truly fascinated by this camera and VERY excited that I got it working!

But if you or anyone else knows the deal with the "auto" setting I'm all ears.

 

[curioduo]

OK so the plot thickens. I spent some more time this evening working on my S2 and it was working fine most of the evening, but now the shutter won't fire on faster shutter speeds. I'm guessing there is more gumming up to be cleaned.

But what's even more interesting (and may be more accurate than my statement above), is that I notice the shutter won't fire when the light meter indicates the camera will either underexpose or overexpose the picture. If the meter looks like it will underexpose the picture, and I slow down the shutter speed one stop, the shutter fires just fine. So odd, though again I don't know these cameras well. Almost as if it's stuck in auto / electric eye! Just for kicks, too, I removed the battery from the camera to disable the light meter and it wouldn't take any pictures at all ... again, like it's stuck in auto / electric eye.

Any thoughts?

 

[koraks]

Welcome to Photrio!
That's a pretty camera indeed. I used to have one. When I got it, it mostly worked, apart from the meter I think, which I fixed. It then worked and I used it for a brief while before it ended up in a closet. At some point, I decided to sell it off, so I took it out, gave it a try and...it was stuck in the same way yours was. I didn't bother trying to fix it and dumped it for a pittance.

Sorry, it's of little help. It is a pretty camera if it works, but it's also somewhat cumbersome 1960s technology in a relatively large and heavy package.

 

[reddesert]

OK so while I don't know what the "release catch" is (and would still like to know) I think I got the camera working ... at least in manual mode. All of my searches kept coming back to the self timer on these things being gummed up, meaning the self timer wouldn't actually finish it's countdown, meaning the shutter wouldn't fire, meaning the film advance lever couldn't move. After putting some lighter fluid on the self timer countdown switch and moving around the self timer (and making sure the timer on/off was on "X" not "M"), I heard the timer run and the shutter fire! I had to keep working the mechanisms and now it seems to fire just fine at all apertures and shutter speeds in manual.

And while this is fine with me, I would like to figure out what the deal is with "auto" mode. When I set the aperture to "auto" the shutter won't fire on any fast shutter speeds. I'm in a super bright room, but it is 11pm and there isn't much ambient light so maybe I don't have enough light?? I *do* know the light meter is working, which is awesome, so maybe that's the deal.

I'm truly fascinated by this camera and VERY excited that I got it working!

But if you or anyone else knows the deal with the "auto" setting I'm all ears.

The X/M switch is for the flash sync mode, not the self timer. Leave it on X. M mode uses a delay mechanism to delay the shutter to sync with flashbulbs, and it is also possible for this M delay mechanism to get sticky and prevent the shutter from firing.

When the aperture is on Auto, the camera will not fire the shutter if the meter is outside the available range of apertures (over/underexposure). This is typical of how auto-exposure rangefinders of this generation work (Canonet, etc). This also means it won't fire on Auto if no battery is installed.

However, when the aperture is moved off Auto to an f-number, the shutter should work in mechanical mode without a battery at the set shutter speed. If it doesn't, something is wrong. The camera uses a "trapped needle" auto exposure system that is largely mechanical (that's how these cameras can do auto exposure yet still work without a battery; same for Konica Autoreflex SLRs). Perhaps something in that is failing to disengage.

The auto S2 is a nice camera with a good lens and especially nice viewfinder among cameras of this type (IMO).

 

[koraks]

especially nice viewfinder among cameras of this type

Yes! Bright and clear, and it has a (for the era) fairly unique and very effective parallax compensation.

 

[curioduo]

Picked up a couple more of these ... they are super cool and fun. Is there a safe way to lubricate the shutter speed ring? They seem quite sticky.

 

[koraks]

Is there a safe way to lubricate the shutter speed ring?

I'd be inclined to disassemble and clean. It's most likely just buildup of dirt and grime that makes the ring sluggish.

 

[bZaN]

Picked up one recently for the price of a meal and got to know it has the same issue. The advance lever won't wind and the self timer is stuck half way. Since I neither have the money (student) nor the tools , I asked a watch repair guy to remove the base plate and found the marked lever to stop the catchment from rewinding.
I asked someone for a CLA and it's eight times the price of the camera. Except for the hazy VF everything looks solid.

If anyone could advise based on the image and what more could be done on the base instead of the lens element.

 

[bZaN]