...seriously though, most members here will know that the Hasselblad 500cm and Bronica s2 have foam backed mirrors - that can cause focusing errors as the foam shrinks, but what about other roll film reflexes? I don't recall seeing posts about refoaming mirrors on very common cameras like the Mamiya 67, Mamiya 645 or the Pentax 6x7. Are they foamless? or is the mirror glued into it's frame?
Mirror mirror on the wall who's the foamiest of them all?
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Hmmm ... I will have to reflect on that ...
If you have all these cameras have a look. But if a mirror is going to slap up when the shutter is pressed there must surely be something stopping it from vibrating through the entire camera, no? If a camera from the 1990's or earlier has simply been sitting in a drawer the foam will have degenerated to goo or ready to when the camera is recommissioned in 2023. Old foam can visually look great, but give it a prod and see if it turns sticky. If you have a camera that needs re-foaming you can often buy custom ready made kits, but even better are light seal materials bought 'in bulk', ready for using on other cameras, such as those sold by Polar Bear Camera who do a comprehension range.
not foam, but I've read that the mirror return bumper for the Mamiya 645 Pro TL mirror is plastic and can break causing focusing issues.
That's anecdotal and an overblown "issue". I have owned and own several Pro/ProTL's. I've never had that issue. I know it happens, but to be fair that was a wear item that needed to be serviced at intervals for wedding/portrait shooters shooting thousands of shots. If one was abused and/or stored forever and improperly, much like any foam in other cameras that's a part that could go bad with time.
In regard to the Bronica S2 foam issue, its also the foam around the focus screen that deteriorates. When doing a screen replacement I replace both the mirror foam and the screen foam.
Jeremy
...i' m referring to the under-mirror foam, not ontop of it or any foam bumpers. Foam under the mirror is of course not easily seen.
As far as I know, Bronica S2's do not have foam under the mirror, it uses metal springs.
The OEM foam under the Hasselblad mirror lasted 40+ years. Show me a camera that has that life expectancy today. If you could replace the foam with something of the same quality, it would be another 40+ years. And the design of the mirror allowed a service person to replace the foam without dismantling the camera - it's almost as easy (not quite) as the film back dark slide foam replacement.
The OEM foam under the Hasselblad mirror lasted 40+ years. Show me a camera that has that life expectancy today. If you could replace the foam with something of the same quality, it would be another 40+ years. And the design of the mirror allowed a service person to replace the foam without dismantling the camera - it's almost as easy (not quite) as the film back dark slide foam replacement.
What goes up must come down, on which basis choosing to pick a point about where the foam goes seems a little 'picky'? What happens if you set the camera to 'B', can you see it then?
..not picky at all. The condition of the foam on the silvered surface of a mirror (for example RB 67) isn't important for accurate focus, but deteriorating foam between the mirror cradle and the reverse side of the mirror can be a serious problem and cause focus errors. (It's not possible to see under-mirror foam with removing the mirror.) My original observation was that only the 500cm and S2a cameras are known for problems with failing mirror cradle foam and i speculated that other roll film cameras either didn't use foam under the mirror or perhaps a type of foam that became stickier with age rather than crumbly. I wondered if anyone could confim this.
Nope. Its foam. Like I stated initially, I have replaced it on several.
Have you had one apart?
Jeremy
Yes, thanks for correcting me. I should know since I replaced two of them some 10 years ago, I must be mixing it up with the back's dark slide, which uses metal corrugated springs instead of foam. Or some other camera. Now that I'm reminded, I remember wondering why they did not use a metal leaf spring there, maybe it eventually scratches and cracks the mirror after repeated mirror motions.
Now you know I'm old and forgetful!
No worries!
I'm old and forgetful as well! My wife claims that I just forget the things that I don't want to do, and remember a lot of otherwise worthless info.
Jeremy
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