Pentax k1000 sprocket tearing in film

Hello,

I have a new problem with tearing the sprockets in my film. I've been using this camera for about a half of a year now and never had a problem with this. The film I bought at a camera store could be a little bit old by now, and possibly be the culprit, but I'm not sure. Both rolls tore sprockets, any ideas?

Some hypothesis:

Very cold temperature makes the film brittle;
(if the film was taken out of the fridge or the freezer, check it arrives to room temperature before loading);
Very fast rewinding could tear the film as well;
The film might have been incorrectly loaded - check the the dents match correctly with the holes, slightly tense the film by turning the lever before closing the camera back;

Hope this helps
Fabrizio

Have you tried operating the camera with no film in it? Open the back and see what is going on. As you wind on, the take up spool should turn as well the advance. See if things spin freely when you push the rewind button on the bottom of the camera. The only other thing I can think of to check would be how tightly the film is wound in the cassette, or if the rewind knob is binding, needing extra effort to advance the film.

Overall, they're pretty simple cameras and if something has gone wrong it shouldn't be too major a problem.