pentax 6x7 winder stuck with film in

[pollux]

i have bought one with the TTL meter prism. the counter on the winder lever is showing 10 exposures, however i'm unable to wind the camera on past this to take up the roll and remove it. what could be causing this? there is a roll in the camera.

very happy with the camera though, this is a bonafide bomb proof brass body camera. things are just not made this well now.

 

[Rick A]

Stick it in a changing bag and open it up and feel inside. Hopefully its nothing major, and you can pull the film (if its there) an try to free up the winding mechanism.

 

[cfclark]

This may sound obvious, but are you able to fire the shutter at all? (And if you're new to the 6X7, don't forget the shutter lock switch.) Just wondering if the winder mechanism is waiting on you to click the shutter and free it up. Also verify that you don't have the 120/220 switch set to 220 inadvertently.

Not sure how useful those suggestions are, it's still early here

 

[pollux]

i removed the film however i'm not able to dry fire the shutter. i tried the method in the manual by rotating the exposure counter to the left. however it won't rotate. it's in the middle of the winder. are the exposure counters awkward on the 6x7? the camera is not beat up. the little dial is rotating but its stuck between 10 and 15.

 

[JMcLaug351]

Check the manual. If the battery is dead the shutter will stop. Look at the miror if it is half up and stuck there is a tool to reset it.
JOHN

 

[MFstooges]

Check the manual. If the battery is dead the shutter will stop. Look at the miror if it is half up and stuck there is a tool to reset it.
JOHN

Agree with this, it sounds like cocked shutter. The button for releasing half up mirror should be on the front side.

 

[jordanstarr]

...You might not want to hear this, but I had a similar problem and my winder was broken. I sent it in to Eric Henderson for repairs. It was on my Pentax 67II so it was about $250 to repair. You might need to either repair or if it's the older Pentax 6x7, buy a new body or try to fix it yourself or sell it as parts.

...hope all works out.

 

[pollux]

Check the manual. If the battery is dead the shutter will stop. Look at the miror if it is half up and stuck there is a tool to reset it.
JOHN

i reset the mirror and tried to dry fire it which worked. i didn't force anything before figuring it out. do you think i damaged the winder or any buttons? it just wouldn't wind on before i released the mirror. the shutter is firing normal, and sounds loud like a mortar.

 

[Anscojohn]

[the shutter is firing normal, and sounds loud like a mortar.[/QUOTE]
**************

I call my Pentax 6x7 my "iranian spy camera."

 

[cfclark]

i reset the mirror and tried to dry fire it which worked. i didn't force anything before figuring it out. do you think i damaged the winder or any buttons? it just wouldn't wind on before i released the mirror. the shutter is firing normal, and sounds loud like a mortar.

As Anscojohn points out, that's about what you can expect. For some reason mine reminds me of the ping of an aluminum baseball bat connecting (it's not that metallic, but the first few shots were about that jarring).

Now that you've got the mirror reset and it appears to be working fine, it probably is--6X7s are pretty rugged. I managed to, in the process of reloading, drop my taped-up roll of exposed film right on the shutter curtains, knocking one slightly out of the track. I envisioned $$$ in repair and shipping costs, but after a couple of shots, it was fine. The true test, of course, is to run another roll through it and see how it comes out.

The shutter is dependent on the battery, though, so you may want to replace it if you don't know how old it is.

 

[JMcLaug351]

pollux, If I remember correctly you must have film loaded for the shutter to fire. In the manual was there something about that? I have mine packed away and it's not handy right now. If you have the mirror back in the right position and a new battery load some film and take some photos. I don't think you have a problem that will need a trip to the repair shop. I had a similar situation some few years ago with just about the exact same circumstances. I think in the manual there is a reference to using the same tool that reset the mirror to be able to trip the shutter without film loaded. If you didn't force anything you didn't damage anything. Good luck with it. It's a super fine camera if you have any other questions or need any help just PM me.
JOHN

 

[Tom Taylor]

FWIW, the film advance on the 67 has a history of failing. Pentax re-engineered the advance for the new 67II but even it needs to be sent in for repair occasionally. Mine went out in it's 5th year of service and I sent it back to Pentax in Golden Colorado for repair. They rebuilt the winder installing new parts and the repair bill was ~$180.00. Pentax repair has since been outsourced to Chris Camera so expect to pay a little more. It's a great camera well worth the repair costs.

 

[bblhed]

That is a great camera, don't let a little set back like this discourage you. My 6X7 does the thing where I have to keep firing it until the paper is all the way over to the take up roll, then dry fire it with the door open to get the counter to reset, it's kind of a drag, but I do plan to get it fixed come winter. Yes it does it with 120 or 220 film.

As for the battery, the camera WILL work even if the battery test light does not light up, I know I shot one roll of film that way. I checked the battery and it was good so I loaded the film the night before I wanted to shoot, I was new to the camera so the next morning I did a battery test before shooting, and the light did not come on. The meter worked, the shutter worked, and I replaced the battery after that roll of film, but I was worried the whole time. I think Pentax did this for safety so there is some life in the battery when the battery light says dead, that way you don't end up with a roll of film stuck in the camera. I check the battery every time I load film, and if the camera sits for a few days with film in it I check before shooting. I will probably kill the battery with testing before killing it with the shutter and meter.

Enjoy, the 6X7 is a great camera even if you won't be sneaking up on a flock of birds and taking several photos with it, K-Thud.

 

[Tom Taylor]

If the battery goes dead mid-roll with the 67II, you just change batteries and continue shooting. The frame count remains where it was when the old batteries went out.

 

[BobD]

the shutter is firing normal, and sounds loud like a mortar.

I always thought the Pentax 67 shutter sounded like a horse galloping across a
bridge.

 

[paul ewins]

As Tom says, the winder was the weak point of the 6x7. The key is to use a smooth action when winding rather than the quick jab that usually does the job on a 35mm camera. There is a lot more tension with 120 film than 35mm film so if you jerk the wind lever across as fast as possible the excess force goes into the mechanism. Everything else about the 6x7 is quite reliable.

From what I have been told there were a number of changes to the mechanism over the years to beef it up. Unfortunately that means that the usual parts in stock at repair centres won't fit the older models which is why the 6x7 models are usually listed as unrepairable. I'm not sure what the situation is with the 67 but the 67II should still be fine.

 

[2F/2F]

As Tom says, the winder was the weak point of the 6x7. The key is to use a smooth action when winding rather than the quick jab that usually does the job on a 35mm camera.

Ditto.

Glad you got it working again.

 

[pollux]

The key is to use a smooth action when winding rather than the quick jab that usually does the job on a 35mm camera

yes there is alot of tension in the winder, lucky the camera is in very good condition for its age. this is not a rapid fire camera, i imagine you could damage it by winding on quickly.

 

[StarGeezer]

Hi Pollux - glad to see you are trying MF. Will you be doing mostly landscape - and / or astrophotography with it? Which lenses do you have?

These cameras are rugged - but requires a gentle hand on the winder - and shutter dial. Those small chains are easy to snap if you get too aggressive with either. I take it yours is the 6x7 version - not 67? The 6x7 version has some advantages for astro work - as the battery can be removed for long exposures.