Nikon MD-12

CMoore · Nov 10, 2021

I got this 4 or 5 years ago. It came with a FM.
It worked when i got it.
I tested 8 new batteries. All are at 1.610 VDC

Motor is not attached to camera.
I put the battery pack in, turned the switch to ON, and nothing happened.
I switched from Single to Continuous, pressed the button, and the motor fired one time and quit.

Anybody experienced anything like this or have experience wit the MD-12?
Thank You

BrianShaw · Nov 10, 2021

Turn it on and put a coin on the 4-pin contacts. If it is working it will cycle.

When the shutter release pinn is in the down position and the wind tabs are aligned with the length of the motor, turn off and attach to a camera.

Earlier this year I bought a MD-12 that acted like that. It was real fickle and every time it was connected to camera it would work once or twice and then go full-auto, no matter how the switch was set. I’ve had much better success with MD-11… except that annoying battery drain issue.

CMoore · Nov 10, 2021

BrianShaw said:
Turn it on and put a coin on the 4-pin contacts. If it is working it will cycle.

When the shutter release pinn is in the down position and the wind tabs are aligned with the length of the motor, turn off and attach to a camera.

Earlier this year I bought a MD-12 that acted like that. It was real fickle and every time it was connected to camera it would work once or twice and then go full-auto, no matter how the switch was set. I’ve had much better success with MD-11… except that annoying battery drain issue.

Sort of hard to describe what is going on.
Wish i had video.

I am shorting those 4 contacts with a screw-driver.
The winder clicks once or twice, makes a "Whirring" sound and then stops with the light staying on.
If i turn it Off and then On and press the release it clicks one and stops, the light goes out and nothing else happens.
When i connect the winder to the camera, nothing happens at all.

shutterfinger · Nov 10, 2021

I had a MD15 for a FA that had intermittent no power problems. It turned out to be the battery holder, a new one fixed it. The defective one showed good on a ohm meter and volt meter, I did not have a way to measure the current even though my meter is capable.
Nikon's spring loaded contact pins may be tarnished enough to prevent correct operation as well as the switch contacts. Get a can of CRC QD Electronic Cleaner https://www.homedepot.com/p/CRC-11-oz-QD-Electronic-Cleaner-05103/205021975 and flush the switch and contacts for the camera.

CMoore · Nov 10, 2021

shutterfinger said:
I had a MD15 for a FA that had intermittent no power problems. It turned out to be the battery holder, a new one fixed it. The defective one showed good on a ohm meter and volt meter, I did not have a way to measure the current even though my meter is capable.
Nikon's spring loaded contact pins may be tarnished enough to prevent correct operation as well as the switch contacts. Get a can of CRC QD Electronic Cleaner https://www.homedepot.com/p/CRC-11-oz-QD-Electronic-Cleaner-05103/205021975 and flush the switch and contacts for the camera.

Yeah, i will try that.
This winder look like it was stored, in a box, in a closet with the battery holder inserted and without batteries, for many years.
All the contacts looks quite good..
But looks CAN be deceiving........i will give DeOxit a try.

BrianShaw · Nov 10, 2021

CMoore said:
Sort of hard to describe what is going on.
Wish i had video.

I am shorting those 4 contacts with a screw-driver.
The winder clicks once or twice, makes a "Whirring" sound and then stops with the light staying on.
If i turn it Off and then On and press the release it clicks one and stops, the light goes out and nothing else happens.
When i connect the winder to the camera, nothing happens at all.

One thing I’ll mention but can’t guarantee to be 100% correct without doing the experiment myself… that sounds right except for the “nothing happens at all” when you connect to camera. I think there is a switch in the bottom of camera that interacts with the MD. I’ve never known a MD-11/12 to do more than 1 cycle per shorting of the contacts. I’ve done that multiple times to get it synced for proper installation on camera but never seen a C mode work with the MD off. In fact, I can’t recall the switch working with MD detached but that might because I always short the contacts.

Please tell me that your not attaching it to your jammed FM.

CMoore · Nov 10, 2021

A completely legitimate question.
Yes, this FM will wind and fire the shutter.

I have another FM plus an FM2n.
I will try the motor on those and see what happens.
Thanks for your help.
I Appreciate It

AZD · Nov 10, 2021

Not an expert on this, but I recently worked on a thrift store MD-12 that needed work. Shorting the contacts will not cause the drive to fire continuously. Makes sense as you could have a shutter speed slower than the cycle time of the drive, so there has to be a way to sync the motor to the shutter. When the camera is not cocked there is a switch in the camera that closes and shorts two motor drive contacts, activating the motor. Once cocked, the camera switch opens until the shutter is tripped again. In this way it is possible to accommodate any shutter speed without jamming. However, you can manage to jam things up by goofing around with the contacts and a coin. For instance, getting the firing pin stuck up. Don’t remember how I solved that…

If it’s firing continuously, even on single mode, one of the mini switches inside is sticky or bad. Mine had this problem, so I cut and soldered it permanently in single mode. I don’t recall which two wires they were, but a volt/ohm meter will tell you.

CMoore · Nov 10, 2021

Well.OK.
The winder works on one FM but not the other.
I guess there must be a break in the circuit somewhere in the camera, in those 4 contacts on the bottom of the camera.?
I only got into this to 2x check the winder before i offer it for sale.
Am i safe in assuming the winder is fine and will work on any camera it was designed for.?

If not for this second camera, i would have thought the motor was dead.

AZD · Nov 10, 2021

If it works on one camera but not the other it’s probably the camera. The FM/FE series all utilize the drive in the same way from what I can tell. If you have an ohm meter handy you can check easily. The two contacts circled in red will be a short circuit (0 ohms or pretty close) when the shutter has been tripped AND the wind lever is tucked in. Once the shutter has been cocked the same contacts will be open (infinite ohms, or no reading on the meter).

BrianShaw · Nov 10, 2021

Chip… I would not assume that it’s good if you can’t make it work. The MD-12 I bought was said to be working because it cycled with a coin bit it doesn’t work on my camera, yet my older MD-11 works fine. Honestly, it’s not worth a lot of money so wasting too much time or selling if your not sure and risking return (etc) might not be worth the effort.

CMoore · Nov 10, 2021

AZD said:
If it works on one camera but not the other it’s probably the camera. The FM/FE series all utilize the drive in the same way from what I can tell. If you have an ohm meter handy you can check easily. The two contacts circled in red will be a short circuit (0 ohms or pretty close) when the shutter has been tripped AND the wind lever is tucked in. Once the shutter has been cocked the same contacts will be open (infinite ohms, or no reading on the meter).

You are not an expert, eh.?

The "good camera" works as you say, the one that does not work with the winder reads Open at both settings.
Going to be selling these FM, so i will just mention that to the new owner.

Cannot imagine more than 0.3% of the people buying an FM will be using a winder

Anyway......thanks for the help.

CMoore · Nov 10, 2021

BrianShaw said:
Chip… I would not assume that it’s good if you can’t make it work. The MD-12 I bought was said to be working because it cycled with a coin bit it doesn’t work on my camera, yet my older MD-11 works fine. Honestly, it’s not worth a lot of money so wasting too much time or selling if your not sure and risking return (etc) might not be worth the effort.

Hey Brian -
You probably missed my last post, but it does indeed work.
With THAT said, if i want to actually sell this on APUG... comparing to Ebay.....i think i figured about 25 bux.
And that is WITH shipping included

It was more a gesture of getting it into the hands of a member that actually wants it.
Otherwise, it is yet ANOTHER item that goes into E-Watse, and i am sick of doing that.

BrianShaw · Nov 10, 2021

Ah… I missed that post saying it worked on one body. Sorry.

CMoore · Nov 10, 2021

BrianShaw said:
Ah… I missed that post saying it worked on one body. Sorry.

No Worries.
Ships passing in the night..................

Nikon MD-12

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