Nikon F2 - Use after storage

It's worth bearing in mind that dozens, probably hundreds of camera repairers worldwide were competently fixing Nikon F2s when they were needed as professional tools on a daily basis. I haven't used Sover Wong but I guess he's seen a market for repairs to a camera he knows inside out, and has the spare parts for, and trades successfully on his knowledge. Some Leica repairers function in the same way.

Mechanical cameras are simple tools, mostly, that require familiarity and a supply of spare parts if broken. This guy encourages amateurs to have a go so long as they're not ham-fisted: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_LLC4wtg7fORCFtw97xhDg
It really depends how much the camera means to you.

The basic mechanical focal plane 35mm SLR concept is the indeed same, but there are vast differences between brands and within brands. Eg the F is totally different to the F2, and I am not able to fix some F faults because I don’t know how to fix them. I also collect other camera brands. I can fix basic faults on some of them, but I am not able to fix some faults because I don’t know how to open the camera or I don’t have any spare parts, eg leatherettes. Since I only specialise on the F2, I have a lot of spare parts including new ones. On request, I can replace external parts with better or new ones, to make the camera look better.

To date, I have serviced 883 F2’s and that’s only about 0.1% of the number of F2s produced. Presently I have a 5 weeks waiting time, and working 7 days a week because I can only service one F2 body + finder per day. I can’t imagine any repairer can survive on servicing one camera per week, say at $200. Most repairers spend 2 hours at most on a standard service. I would be pleased if less people come to me, so I can have a break.

A professional shutter tester is indeed needed in a professional repair shop. However, I have seen ‘professional’ repair shops with basic testers that cannot possibly fully calibrate the F2. I have received F2s that were previously ‘professionally’ serviced but they had their shutter curtain travel times set too fast or too slow, because the previous repairer’s shutter tester can’t display them or the repairers didn’t know what they should be set to. Newer shutter testers including Kyoritsu don’t have the facility to detect leading and trailing shutter curtain bounces, and that’s why I have another professional Kyoritsu shutter tester that can do that.

No doubt any enthusiastic car mechanic would be able to restore a vintage Rolls Royce, but if he is new to it, then he has to find the repair manual and spare parts first. The turn around time would be much longer, than a specialist restorer. It would be stupid of him to tune an unknown engine if he didn’t know what the precise timings should be.

Maybe one difference between me and other repairers is my passion and total commitment to the F2. I had custom F2 parts made, and I customise F2s on request. I treat all my customers as friends, and some indeed became close friends because we share the same passion.

I do however wonder why some would send their cameras to the UK for service at extra cost and possible loss when there are some fine techs right here in the USA who can do the job and do it right..

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Good thought that deserves an answer. In my case, as Sover will attest, the camera I bought looked absolutely as new right out of the box and the photos of it I was sent you'd be hard pressed to distinguish it from new. No dings, scratches, brass wear-LNIB. I was sent a pdf file of the repair list just about a year prior to my buying it. The repairs were done by APS(Nikon Authorized Service) in IL March 2014. The had gone through the camera(supposedly) and did a complete CLA of the camera but again as Sover can tell you they missed the boat in quite a few areas and obviously didn't check the shutter speeds and a lot of other items. What they may have done or overlooked caused the problem with the shutter curtains that's no doubt.

When I got the camera it looked as good as the photos and I was very pleased with it. I had other things going and didn't get around to putting a roll of slides through it just to test until about a month later. That's when I saw the problem. On a 36 exposure roll I had at least 12 slides that showed where light was hitting at the same spot. I wrote Sover about it and bottom line was the shutter problem mentioned before and the gap between the curtains.

They claimed on the repair invoice to have adjusted the shutter speeds which apparently if the did it was done by a rank novice, their test equipment was way off or they just didn't do it. They claimed also to have replaced the foam but where is up for debate as Sover had to replace several areas if not all to include the dried out meter foam.

I could go on with this but suffice to say not all the major Nikon Repair shops know the F2 like Sover does or just don't care about their repairs. I wrote the seller back about the problem and he refused any help for the cost of the repairs because I had waited too long after his time line of a two week return. I couldn't have shot 36 exposures, found a place to process the slides and get then back in that time frame so, he wouldn't accept a return or aid in the cost of fixing it, so; I was pretty much stuck with either a nice paper weight or getting someone to fix the problems that knew what they were doing which APS obviously did not.

Who would I recommend getting their F2 series cameras repaired by? Sover Wong and you won't have to be concerned if you'll have to end up sending it back or if all the problems were taken care of. I don't care if he lived in outer Mongolia, that's the man mine go to. sure if cost me about $65 to send it to him but it was either that or have a more expensive and useless paperweight. Take you pick.

Here's a good example of what APS claimed they did-"Repair and replace DP-11 rubber seal and foam". I don't think so. This is the photo Sover sent me of where it was not done and he did the repair himself.

F2 7831745_6 by David Fincher, on Flickr

So what else did they claim to repair and not do? Even more.

Before...

DP-11 118213_3 (2) by David Fincher, on Flickr

and after Sover...

DP-11 118213_5 by David Fincher, on Flickr

Hi Sover,

As others have said, welcome.

It's great that you took the time to share.

Your reputation as a craftsman is safe.

If the F2 wasn't so big and heavy I'd have sent at least one to you a long time ago.

Take care...

Xmas said:

Your gas tank is always half empty...

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And would you please explain the meaning of what you said??

soverf2repair said:

The basic mechanical focal plane 35mm SLR concept is the indeed same, but there are vast differences between brands and within brands. Eg the F is totally different to the F2, and I am not able to fix some F faults because I don’t know how to fix them. I also collect other camera brands. I can fix basic faults on some of them, but I am not able to fix some faults because I don’t know how to open the camera or I don’t have any spare parts, eg leatherettes. Since I only specialise on the F2, I have a lot of spare parts including new ones. On request, I can replace external parts with better or new ones, to make the camera look better.

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In reality there is little difference in many of the Japanese cameras and if you can fix the F2 then the F shouldn't be too difficult. Several parts are interchangable between the two. In the Nikon line the F is by far my favorite camera..

soverf2repair said:

To date, I have serviced 883 F2’s and that’s only about 0.1% of the number of F2s produced. Presently I have a 5 weeks waiting time, and working 7 days a week because I can only service one F2 body + finder per day. I can’t imagine any repairer can survive on servicing one camera per week, say at $200. Most repairers spend 2 hours at most on a standard service. I would be pleased if less people come to me, so I can have a break.

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I can't say that I have repaired that many F2's but over the course of my time doing repairs I'm sure I have done far more models overall.

In addition to my repair business I was and still am a photographer so I did not dedicate an entire day to just servicing cameras. Plus I never said I take a full week to fix 1 camera. I preferred to keep it at least a week to re-test the speeds after it sat a few days... In reality I could do more than 1 a day but I preferred to go slow to insure the camera was serviced right.

soverf2repair said:

A professional shutter tester is indeed needed in a professional repair shop. However, I have seen ‘professional’ repair shops with basic testers that cannot possibly fully calibrate the F2. I have received F2s that were previously ‘professionally’ serviced but they had their shutter curtain travel times set too fast or too slow, because the previous repairer’s shutter tester can’t display them or the repairers didn’t know what they should be set to. Newer shutter testers including Kyoritsu don’t have the facility to detect leading and trailing shutter curtain bounces, and that’s why I have another professional Kyoritsu shutter tester that can do that.

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You keep insinuating most techs are below par. Some so-called pro shops are in fact not worth using but many do a fine job.. I would never take a camera to a camera retail shop who hires off the street but most established shops are well worth using.

I would never use a kit built tester but there are others out there that will do the job right.

I disagree with your assessment of newer pro grade testers... I used a Noritzu for years and it would do everything your tester can do including making checks on leaf shutters.. and I've seen a few Spectron testors that were just as good. The Kyoritsu does not by any means have the market on shutter testers..

Leicarfcam, your are obviously better than me, because you have serviced more cameras than me over 40 years, and you can service/repair every camera whereas I could only service the F2.

I only aware that the F shutter curtains are interchangeable with the F2. Can you tell me what other parts are interchangeable?

As you rightly said many so called pro shops are not very good. I found even some Nikon authorised pro shops are not very good. If you know pro or non pro shops offer the same level and quality of service, spare parts including ring resistors as me, and with 12 months warranty, then please point them out to APUG members. As I said before, I would be pleased if less people come to me. I have never intended my F2 repair business to be full time as it is now.

There are still 99.9% of F2s to be serviced, so there is enough business for 1000 sole F2 repairers for the next 10 years. If you are so good, then please train people to continue and expand this work. I will certainly do so in the near future, as I won’t live forever and I want to pass down my knowledge.

Pete Smith was perhaps the best F and rangefinder repairer in the US. He was famous for his work, and he was a very good friend of my. It’s a pity he died a few years ago, as I cannot ask him about F repairs anymore. A friend of my has a F with second curtain bounce, and I don’t know how to fix it. I hope you can enlighten me here.

I am not familiar with the Noritzu tester you use. Can you point out which modern version can check shutter bounces, as I will need to buy a replacement when my Kyoritsu dies. Non of the latest Kyoritsu testers can do that :

Dead Link Removed

For leaf shutters, a very basic one sensor shutter is sufficient, unless you think additional features are needed.

I don’t understand why you so detest my fixed price policy. I am currently repairing a F2 with a damaged shutter speed selector, and then entire mechanism has to be replaced at no extra charge to my customer. Additionally here’s a photo of the same camera showing that a broken top part from the F2 battery chamber can interfere the tape pulls the shutter curtain, contrary to what you are keep saying.





You are clearly offended by me, and despises me. I have no aversion against good and honest repairers. Some repairers, like Pete Smith, have gained my respect and I have sold some of my personal spare parts (DP-3/12 ring resistors and MD-2/3 gears) to other repairers in the US because they don’t have them and can’t find them anywhere else. As I said in my web site, anyone who is an F2 user, collector or repairer is a friend of my. It is clear that you don’t want to be my friend, and I accept that with pleasure.

leicarfcam said:

And would you please explain the meaning of what you said??

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There are two types of people

One says their tank is half full
One says their tank is half empty

It is a normal English colloquial expression for optimism or pessimism...

I don't think it is pejorative...

ColColt said:

snip
Who would I recommend getting their F2 series cameras repaired by? Sover Wong and you won't have to be concerned if you'll have to end up sending it back or if all the problems were taken care of. I don't care if he lived in outer Mongolia, that's the man mine go to. sure if cost me about $65 to send it to him but it was either that or have a more expensive and useless paperweight. Take you pick.

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Precisely why, tomorrow in the am, go (via Canada Post/Royal Mail) an F2AS, an F2 and a pair of MD2s, to Mr Sover Wong. $100 (give or take) for shipping? Chump change! Five weeks to have the equipment returned? No biggie: One of eight other Nikons can be pressed into service. Any (imagined) "unnecessary" cost or delay in return is a small price to pay for the quality of work and care that Sover puts into repairing F2s. There simply is no one else I will ever turn to to maintain/repair my F2s. When Sover retires, so, too, will my F2s.

BLK

It takes a while for a package to get from where I am to the UK but once Sover got the camera on 9-18-15 he serviced the body and meter and I got it back on 10-1-15. Two weeks is not a bad track record for what all he did in conjunction with all the others he had. In fact, I'd say it was most excellent. Try that getting your Leica serviced from the few top names.

I will agree if Sover retires from this and I have a problem with my F2's I suppose they'll go to the safe.

So we have a world famous expert specialist that I first heard tell of more than ten years ago.

His reputation for diligence and honesty is attested to by many satisfied or even delighted customers.

He has a waiting list. People all over the world have no trouble entrusting him with their equipment and money.

On the other hand ....

Yeah that whole making sense thing doesn't belong on the internet Sean. Facts are so 1990s.

This forum has rules.

So I'm being as polite as possible.

Good work speaks for itself.....

Xmas said:

There are two types of people

One says their tank is half full
One says their tank is half empty

It is a normal English colloquial expression for optimism or pessimism...

I don't think it is pejorative...

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I know what the meaning of half full and half empty means. What I am asking you is how has any of my posts come off as pessimistic?

soverf2repair said:

Leicarfcam, your are obviously better than me, because you have serviced more cameras than me over 40 years, and you can service/repair every camera whereas I could only service the F2.

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I'm no better than anybody else..

soverf2repair said:

I only aware that the F shutter curtains are interchangeable with the F2. Can you tell me what other parts are interchangeable?

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Curtains, selftimer including the plate, slow speed escapement, as well as a couple of the slow speed components..

soverf2repair said:

As you rightly said many so called pro shops are not very good. I found even some Nikon authorised pro shops are not very good. If you know pro or non pro shops offer the same level and quality of service, spare parts including ring resistors as me, and with 12 months warranty, then please point them out to APUG members. As I said before, I would be pleased if less people come to me. I have never intended my F2 repair business to be full time as it is now.

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Since Nikon no longer makes the parts for the F and F2 many shops have to strip off parts cameras. I still have some new Nikon rings etc myself.

I myself have not had a need for outside repair I have not kept up on reliable shops to recommend but I believe they are still out there.

soverf2repair said:

There are still 99.9% of F2s to be serviced, so there is enough business for 1000 sole F2 repairers for the next 10 years. If you are so good, then please train people to continue and expand this work. I will certainly do so in the near future, as I won’t live forever and I want to pass down my knowledge.

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A good repairman should be willing to pass down his knowledge. One big problem though is most people don't want to take the time, effort, or invest the money to learn.

soverf2repair said:

Pete Smith was perhaps the best F and rangefinder repairer in the US. He was famous for his work, and he was a very good friend of my. It’s a pity he died a few years ago, as I cannot ask him about F repairs anymore. A friend of my has a F with second curtain bounce, and I don’t know how to fix it. I hope you can enlighten me here.

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The shutter brake in the F is visible once the bottom cover is removed. The brake is the round brass disk with the screw in the center holding the brake eccentric itself on. You have to loosen the center screw and turn the eccentric one way or the other to add or subtract tension.. But if you don't have the proper brake tool you can destroy it..

soverf2repair said:

I am not familiar with the Noritzu tester you use. Can you point out which modern version can check shutter bounces, as I will need to buy a replacement when my Kyoritsu dies. Non of the latest Kyoritsu testers can do that :

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Since I haven't bought a new tester in years I have not kept up on specs so I can't help you there.. I really doubt that feature is even still available.

soverf2repair said:

For leaf shutters, a very basic one sensor shutter is sufficient, unless you think additional features are needed.

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That's true. One area though where many repairmen fall flat is they don't check for proper spring tensions and while you may be able to set shutter speeds, it'll be out of spec soon after. Even the escapement has a couple of springs that need to be checked..

soverf2repair said:

I don’t understand why you so detest my fixed price policy. I am currently repairing a F2 with a damaged shutter speed selector, and then entire mechanism has to be replaced at no extra charge to my customer. Additionally here’s a photo of the same camera showing that a broken top part from the F2 battery chamber can interfere the tape pulls the shutter curtain, contrary to what you are keep saying.

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I just don't see the need for structured pricing..especially since I never offered say just foam replacement. When I took a camera in the only option I offered was a complete service since I did not want that camera to come back for something else I could have fixed in the first place..

soverf2repair said:

You are clearly offended by me, and despises me. I have no aversion against good and honest repairers. Some repairers, like Pete Smith, have gained my respect and I have sold some of my personal spare parts (DP-3/12 ring resistors and MD-2/3 gears) to other repairers in the US because they don’t have them and can’t find them anywhere else. As I said in my web site, anyone who is an F2 user, collector or repairer is a friend of my. It is clear that you don’t want to be my friend, and I accept that with pleasure.

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I'm offended by no one. We just have differences of opinions. But you do keep trying to prove yourself when you shouldn't have to..

Sean Mac said:

So we have a world famous expert specialist that I first heard tell of more than ten years ago.

His reputation for diligence and honesty is attested to by many satisfied or even delighted customers.

He has a waiting list. People all over the world have no trouble entrusting him with their equipment and money.

On the other hand ....

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I'm sure he is honest otherwise he would not have a good reputation but he is not the only game in town.. While the list of reputable repairmen has dropped in recent years due to retirement or death, I'm sure there are still plenty who can do a fine job. One name does come to mind right here in the USA for Nikon repair including F and F2 meters is Stephen Gandy.. Precision Camera in Austin, Texas is another. Point is I would not pay a high price to ship a camera to the UK for repair that can be done just as good as Sover's work right here.

leicarfcam said:

I'm sure he is honest otherwise he would not have a good reputation but he is not the only game in town.. While the list of reputable repairmen has dropped in recent years due to retirement or death, I'm sure there are still plenty who can do a fine job. One name does come to mind right here in the USA for Nikon repair including F and F2 meters is Stephen Gandy.. Precision Camera in Austin, Texas is another. Point is I would not pay a high price to ship a camera to the UK for repair that can be done just as good as Sover's work right here.

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The distance from East to West of CUS is less than or more than NY to UK?
Yes it is good to support a local repair person for an over the counter job, but not many of those around any more.

Hi Colyn,

you started off in this thread with an assertion about the accuracy of a repair report.

You were asked why you were doing this here.

You criticise someone for an impression you have formed. You then attack his business model and pricing structure.

And now your point is high postage.

What impression do you think this gives of you?

Xmas said:

The distance from East to West of CUS is less than or more than NY to UK?
Yes it is good to support a local repair person for an over the counter job, but not many of those around any more.

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Yeap. The gentleman that repaired one of my OM-1 closed business a week later.

Leicarfcam, you keep back tracking what you said.

First you said most repairers were capable to service the F2 right and well, and then said some are not very good, then said older repairers are dying off and not many taking up this trade.

Then you said modern testers can check shutter bounce, and then said you really doubt that feature is even still available. If you tell me the old tester that you used which has this facility, then I will look out for it.

I am aware that Stephan Gandy offers repairs on DP-1 and DP-11 finders, but I don’t think he has replacement ring resistors for DP-3 and DP-12. I had to get them custom made, which have a life exceeding 1 million rotations, and hence I can give a life time warranty on them (parts and labour). If you know other repairers that can offer this, then please let APUG members know.

For the reasons above, I have warned people on my web site to diligently check if repairers they intend to use indeed have the capability, knowledge and spare parts to service/repair the F2 body, finders and MDs. It seems this is what offended you the most.

I am aware of the F brake spring, and it’s easy to replace it. I knew it can cause first shutter bounce, but I didn’t know that same spring can cause second shutter curtain bounce.

Your are wrong that the F and F2 slow shutter speeds mechanism and self timers are interchangeable. Mounting holes on the F and F2 slow shutter speeds mechanisms are at different locations :



The front plate of the F and F2 self timer mechanisms are different in size and their mounting holes are not aligned. It is not possible to mount the F self timer mechanism onto the F2 front assembly :





No doubt a cowboy would adapt the F self timer and slow shutter speeds mechanisms onto the F2, and vice versa, but I have new and used F and F2 spare parts here.

I have had enough of your challenges, as I am not retired and I have a lot of work to do. So by all means criticise me as much as you want, and direct work to other people whom you don’t know personally. You have not seen my work, and yet rate me as average. Many of my customers had used other repairers before, and only they can compare the quality of my work with others. I will not log onto APUG any more, because there’s no point debating with a nameless, faceless person who thinks he can do everything.

soverf2repair said:

Leicarfcam, ...I will not log onto APUG any more, because there’s no point debating with a nameless, faceless person who thinks he can do everything.

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Please do come back to APUG when you have time; I'm learning a lot from your comments and assume others here appreciate your input too. I believe you can just block Leicarfcam using the forum tools so that don't waste time reading comments that are not useful for you.

Sean Mac said:

you started off in this thread with an assertion about the accuracy of a repair report.

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Where have I do this?

Sean Mac said:

You were asked why you were doing this here.

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By who?

Sean Mac said:

You criticise someone for an impression you have formed. You then attack his business model and pricing structure.

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I have formed no impression.

It's a well known fact that price structuring can lead to dishonesty. I'm not accusing his of dishonesty but I have seen others take advantage of their own price structuring.. When a camera is taken in for service the tech should do a complete job, not staged work.

Sean Mac said:

And now your point is high postage.

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Postage costs seem to be important to some here since they complain about cost except when it concerns someone they like..

If I can find someone close to home who is just as good, I'll use them first before shipping overseas..

Sean Mac said:

What impression do you think this gives of you?

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I could care less what others think of me. I'm not here to please anybody..

Fact: I never questioned his ability..

Fact: I never said he was not capable of doing a good job.. I do believe however that one of the images on his website is misleading in that he stated that it was typical of the amount of dirt in a F2 when what it was in reality was old foam cleaned out of the channels.. Why not go to his site and take a look for yourself.. He should have stated as such..

I simply pointed out areas of his service that I did differently and he is the one who went on the defensive..

I could care less what others think of me. I'm not here to please anybody..

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That seems rather obvious. You seem to be able to find fault with this man wherever and in whatever area you can. I for one am over this and am divorcing myself from this thread.

Hi,

From post 7 "I can assure you that the battery itself had nothing to do with either issue.." This is you directly contradicting a repair report with pictures.

"Any particular reason you're doing this here and now? I can see no good just ego stroking which should be done privately. Stop it." Martin Crabtree asks you why you are doing this.

"Up front you come off as being the only one in town who can properly repair a F2" seems like your impression.

"Fact: I never questioned his ability.." You called Mr.Wongs honesty into question instead. See Post 7.

Good luck with such an attitude.