Mamiya RZ67 Pro II Dark Slide Doesn't Lock

[lt_col_gordon_tall]

Hello there,

For those of you lucky enough to have used a Mamiya RZ67 Pro II, I’m sure you know that the dark slide is designed to stay locked into place when the back is removed from the camera. Specifically, if the back is off the camera, the dark slide shouldn't budge. Likewise, if the dark slide is already out, you shouldn't be able to remove the film back from the body. These interlocks exist to prevent you from ruining your roll of film.

A few days ago, I noticed some "paper gunk" in the crevice of the film back where the dark slide inserts. I removed the back and engaged the safety pin control (as described on page 23 of the manual) to remove the dark slide for cleaning. No film was loaded at the time. I cleaned out the debris and reinserted the slide.

All good, right? Not exactly. Now, I can remove the dark slide freely whether the film back is attached to the camera or not. The fail-safe hasn't worked since I manually bypassed it; it’s as if the safety pin never "popped" back into its locked position.

Fortunately, this doesn’t seem to affect the actual firing of the camera. I still have to remove the slide to take a shot. That fail safe still works. However, there is a risk of accidentally removing a loaded back without the slide inserted.

Does anyone have advice on how to reset this mechanism or fix the pin?

Thanks for your time!

 

[mshchem]

Try applying a single drop of lighter fluid with a toothpick. Maybe the same with sewing machine oil.

 

[lt_col_gordon_tall]

Try applying a single drop of lighter fluid with a toothpick. Maybe the same with sewing machine oil.

Thank you for the suggestion!

 

[moggi1964]

Hello there,

For those of you lucky enough to have used a Mamiya RZ67 Pro II, I’m sure you know that the dark slide is designed to stay locked into place when the back is removed from the camera. Specifically, if the back is off the camera, the dark slide shouldn't budge. Likewise, if the dark slide is already out, you shouldn't be able to remove the film back from the body. These interlocks exist to prevent you from ruining your roll of film.

A few days ago, I noticed some "paper gunk" in the crevice of the film back where the dark slide inserts. I removed the back and engaged the safety pin control (as described on page 23 of the manual) to remove the dark slide for cleaning. No film was loaded at the time. I cleaned out the debris and reinserted the slide.

All good, right? Not exactly. Now, I can remove the dark slide freely whether the film back is attached to the camera or not. The fail-safe hasn't worked since I manually bypassed it; it’s as if the safety pin never "popped" back into its locked position.

Fortunately, this doesn’t seem to affect the actual firing of the camera. I still have to remove the slide to take a shot. That fail safe still works. However, there is a risk of accidentally removing a loaded back without the slide inserted.

Does anyone have advice on how to reset this mechanism or fix the pin?

Thanks for your time!

I hope you don't mind me adding to your thread. I have the opposite problem of a dark slide being stuck and the release pin being pressed does not release it. I wondered if you had any thoughts on how that might be resolved? I'll post a new thread if you prefer me to of course.

 

[lt_col_gordon_tall]

I hope you don't mind me adding to your thread. I have the opposite problem of a dark slide being stuck and the release pin being pressed does not release it. I wondered if you had any thoughts on how that might be resolved? I'll post a new thread if you prefer me to of course.

That's too bad. Your issue is definitely worse than mine. At least I'm still able to take pictures with my film back.

I wonder if the other suggestion might also be appropriate to your issue? I haven't tried it yet but it seems it's mainly intended to add a tiny bit of lubrication to the pin.

Hope someone with more expertise can chime in.

 

[moggi1964]

That's too bad. Your issue is definitely worse than mine. At least I'm still able to take pictures with my film back.

I wonder if the other suggestion might also be appropriate to your issue? I haven't tried it yet but it seems it's mainly intended to add a tiny bit of lubrication to the pin.

Hope someone with more expertise can chime in.

Thanks for getting back on this. It's definitely a challenge for both of us. Good luck with a fix.