Praktica L serie - Repair Thread

chuck3565 · Jul 14, 2022

I'm glad to be of assistance. One thing I forgot to mention is that sometimes the strap has to be bent if there isn't enough range when the strap is pulled all the way to the right.

rvoosterhout · Jul 15, 2022

BuzzyTrent said:
Hi All,

PRAKTICA MTL5b JAMMED WIND LEVER

See video below I posted which shows the wind lever jamming on the small rotating stop arm. It appears that the wind lever stop arm is not being reset by the adjacent cam when advancing the film.

It will only reset if I hold down the shutter release button whilst advancing the wind lever, as shown in the video.

Have no idea how to fix it. I am trying to decipher the service manual posted at #4.

[
Thanks for taking a look.

I have exactly the same problem, but I haven't taken it apart as far as you did. didn't remove the brass plate which has the dial on it. Below is the loading mechanism. I tried to move down the mirror and that works, but it doesn't stay down. What can I try to fix it?

Thanks!

Rick

chuck3565 · Jul 17, 2022

First try pulling down the shutter curtains with your fingernail. If this works and you don't want to disassemble the camera., apply naphtha judiciously to both sides of the curtains and fire the shutter a few times and let the naphtha evaporate. Otherwise, follow my previous post after disassembling the camera. These cameras aren't easy to work on, so failure to reassemble properly is common.

rvoosterhout · Jul 17, 2022

Unfortunately, the small long screw which is inside the shutter speed dial snapped in two while removing, so I'm never getting that one out, which makes the camera irreparable.

BuzzyTrent · Jul 28, 2022

chuck3565 said:
I'm glad to be of assistance. One thing I forgot to mention is that sometimes the strap has to be bent if there isn't enough range when the strap is pulled all the way to the right.

Hi Chuck,

Just had a tinkle with my camera and low and behold it seems the light meter now has a mind of its own (It was surprisingly accurate before the dissemble for the last repair). The needle still moves up and down, but the readings are wild.
It seems to me that my SS dial and light meter are now not in unison. If I use my phone app for a light meter reading of a shot say, "ASA200 - f/8.0 - SS1/30s" the light meter on the camera will read “ASA200 f/22 SS1/1000s”. I’m baffled. I know I have messed up somewhere, but I have no idea where. life story really lol

Is it possible to reassemble the shutter speed dial in an incorrect order? When I reassembled it previously it seemed that the components were manufactured to govern which way they fit together. Could my reassembled SS dial be reading 1/125 but in fact the mechanism is set to something completely different?

Best.

J_V · Mar 16, 2024

Hello! My Praktica vlc’s bulb mode doesn’t work. When setting the speed dial to B and firing the shutter, the shutter opens and closes immediately again. While pressing the shutter button it should stay open until the button is released again. All other shutter speeds seem to work! What could cause this and how can I fix it? Thanks!

J_V · Mar 28, 2024

Hello again .... one more problem with my Praktica VLC. The electronic transmission of the aperture isn't detected by my camera.
I have two "electric" lenses and confirmed that both lenses work on another camera. So the failure should be in the camera. Is there any drawings of the electronics or explanation how the aperture detection works in the camera?
I have also verify that the light meter of the camera in principle works -- but only in the working aperture mode.
Thank you very much for your support!

chuck3565 · Mar 29, 2024

I would guess there is a broken wire from one of the 3 brass contacts to the meter circuit board if the selector ring for automatic exposure control is in the correct position. (The switch knob that surrounds the rewind crank.)

J_V · Mar 30, 2024

Thanks Chuck! That’s a good hint. Please note the diagram that I found online. May come in handy…

Any suggestions regarding the Bulb mode not working? While I open up the camera it would be great to address both issues… thanks!

chuck3565 · Mar 30, 2024

I have repaired quite a few of these cameras but I have never run into this problem. I would guess the problem is on the shutter speed assembly but I have no idea what to look for.

J_V · Mar 31, 2024

Thanks a lot for your reply! Is there any information on the shutter speed assembly around? How it works and how to access? Thanks and happy Easter!

chuck3565 · Mar 31, 2024

Here are two videos. The problem is aligning the light meter mechanism after removing the small flat head screw in the center of the shutter speed dial assembly. That needs to be removed to remove the shutter speed assembly. Here is the service manual. https://www.docdroid.net/Fj9a7o4/reparaturanleitung-praktika-l-pdf and additional information. https://www.photrio.com/forum/threads/praktica-l-serie-repair-thread.141505/ Good luck!

MattKing · Sep 13, 2024

Eight years after the fact, moved to the Camera Repair sub-forum.
"Better late than never"?

Praktica L serie - Repair Thread

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