Pentax Mx..What the hell?

[Mike Kennedy]

I had my MX serviced (meter not working)at Commercial Camera Repair Ltd.out of Toronto.They did a fine job.I just picked it up this morning and the meter is T.K.Oed again. .Of course the warrenty expired last month.
Is the MX prone to self distruction while sitting idle? Any thoughts of a solution? I certainly can't afford another trip to T.O.

Mike

 

[David H. Bebbington]

I had my MX serviced (meter not working)at Commercial Camera Repair Ltd.out of Toronto.They did a fine job.I just picked it up this morning and the meter is T.K.Oed again. .Of course the warrenty expired last month.
Is the MX prone to self distruction while sitting idle? Any thoughts of a solution? I certainly can't afford another trip to T.O.

Mike

How long ago was the servicing? 7 months ago (six months warranty plus one month)? What did they do to the camera? If they got the old meter cell working again, then I would say it is bad luck (but obviously very annoying)that it has now failed. If on the other hand they installed a new cell, I would contact the repairer and make a goodwill claim - if a new cell (or even a newly-installed used cell) has lasted only seven months, this is unacceptable. Pentax center-weighted metering was never the most accurate, but the cells always seemed to be good for at least 20 years.

Regards,

David

 

[A.C.]

Mine's done 28 years and counting...fingers crossed now..Its been through periods of busy and idle during that time, and although its never suffered any battery leakage inside, it has been flat. I've experienced no problems at all.

 

[Mike Kennedy]

Thanks for the tip David.The repair was 7 months ago but I shall contact them and see if the problem can be rectified.

Mike

 

[Chan Tran]

I bought an MX for $5 at a garage sale recently. The meter wasn't working but it's only because the battery cover has been corroded. I cleaned it up and it works fine except that the X sync doesn't work. Both the hot shoe and the X sync PC connector don't work. Must be the X sync contact by shutter. FP sync OK. I sold it for $50.

 

[Ian Grant]

Mike, I've spoken to two different repairmen about my own MX, both indicated that parts were becoming hard to obtain and that the MX's are prone to develop electrical problems.

However the usual problem is with the o/off meter switch activated by the film advance, and I was told this was a simple repair. Usual signs are complete electrical failure, including the hotshoe/x-synch.

Unfortunately the minimum cost of repairs now is often more than the price of a mint model on the auction site, so its difficult to make a decision.

Ian

 

[Mike Kennedy]

Thanks Ian,
It still fires so I think it's time for a hand held meter + grey card.A bit slower..............but then again,so am I.

Mike

 

[John Koehrer]

However the usual problem is with the o/off meter switch activated by the film advance, and I was told this was a simple repair. Usual signs are complete electrical failure, including the hotshoe/x-synch.


Ian

The meter switch has no physical connection to the flash synch circuit at all, it is actuated by moving the advance lever away from the body. The switch itself is a gold plated pair of contacts that either corrode or accumulate some insulating crap & require cleaning for them to be functional again.
The synch circuit does have two switches within the circuit but are not battery dependent.
It's likely that Mike's camera has actually gunked up just by sitting & requires a buffing of the contacts. In the past I've used the edge of US currency to clean switches such as this. the surface of the $$ is rough enough to burnish the contact.

 

[Ian Grant]

You may be right, however that's what I was told by a very reputable repair technician. The same technicians had just done a superb job on an LF lens.

Ian

The meter switch has no physical connection to the flash synch circuit at all, it is actuated by moving the advance lever away from the body. The switch itself is a gold plated pair of contacts that either corrode or accumulate some insulating crap & require cleaning for them to be functional again.
The synch circuit does have two switches within the circuit but are not battery dependent.
It's likely that Mike's camera has actually gunked up just by sitting & requires a buffing of the contacts. In the past I've used the edge of US currency to clean switches such as this. the surface of the $$ is rough enough to burnish the contact.

 

[Jerry Thirsty]

Have you tried another battery? The MX is notorious for shorting out even with the shutter button locked; you can read about it at the bottom of this page:

http://ca.geocities.com/spirope/mxmlu.htm