Replacing yarn light seal

[George Mann]

I have a little issue that needs tending to. The yarn light seal in the back of my Yashica A needs to be replaced. Is there a suitable yarn to replace it with, or should I replace it with camera foam?

 

[Bill Burk]

Foam that rots? No I would look for a good natural fiber yarn. Maybe look for Merino wool black yarn.

 

[Ian C]

Shops such as JoAnne Fabrics (U.S.) have a large selection of black yarns in various types, diameters, and densities. You can examine them to determine which seems most suitable.

https://www.google.com/search?q=joa...CBhAAGBYYHsICCxAAGIAEGIoFGIYD&sclient=gws-wiz

 

[Dan Daniel]

And you can remove strands if the yarn is too thick. I have a black cotton yarn that is 4 strands. 2 or 3 strands works in most doors like the Yashica A.

 

[BobUK]

I followed an internet recommendation for Lily, Sugar n Cream, Cotton Yarn. Black 0002 Made in Canada.

UK readers can find it at Hobbycraft.

A ball will last a life time, and it was reasonably priced.

Easier to use than foam, and if it needs replacing at a later date lifts out of the crevice with no troublesome adhesives to pick out.

 

[Bill Burk]

Cotton is probably a better choice than wool

 

[BrianShaw]

I’ve not done a thorough analysis but the material used on my late-1960’s Rolllei appears synthetic. And I’m certain that it is the factory material.

 

[Philippe-Georges]

If it is real yarn (textile) and no foam?
I used a simple piece of a fine shoelace (yes) that just fit into the slot, and some thin industrial grade double-sided tape to fix a Pentax camera's back door light sealing.
A shoelace is supposed to be very strong and somewhat flexible, and very easy to find.

This DIY 'repair' is holding now for more than 20 years...

 

[chuckroast]

I just bought this for that purpose, though I don't know if the width will be correct for your camera:


www.amazon.com/dp/B00H3QG62A

 

[BrianShaw]

…

This DIY 'repair' is holding now for more than 20 years...

To me, fussing over the material is a bit of a waste of time. Anything that worked is good enough as light seals or dust seals. The craft-store foam I used on an old Ricoh Singlex. has been in service for 15 years. If/when that fails, replacement is a 20-minute task, although the original foam was so gooey that it transferred to everything including the shutter. In the future I’ll refresh the seals before that happens again!

 

[Truzi]

For a long time I didn't know I had a problem on my Sears/Ricoh 35mm because I always had the bottom half of the case on the camera, which covered the entire back of the camera. It was a sort of fail-safe... until I changed film on Whiteface Mountain and didn't put the case back on.

The foam seals had deteriorated. I replaced them with cotton yarn from the local craft store. Everything seems fine.

Holding it in is the question. I used a few dabs of rubber cement, but don't know if that would create some sort of issue for film.

 

[George Mann]

I just bought this for that purpose, though I don't know if the width will be correct for your camera:


www.amazon.com/dp/B00H3QG62A

A waxed cord won't absorb moisture. Thanks for the link.

 

[Dali]

I’ve not done a thorough analysis but the material used on my late-1960’s Rolllei appears synthetic. And I’m certain that it is the factory material.

And I am pretty sure that cotton yarn is the original material for a Yashica A.

BTW, I wonder why manufacturers switched to foam which is way worse IMO.

 

[gordonrgw]

I followed an internet recommendation for Lily, Sugar n Cream, Cotton Yarn. Black 0002 Made in Canada.

UK readers can find it at Hobbycraft.

A ball will last a life time, and it was reasonably priced.

Easier to use than foam, and if it needs replacing at a later date lifts out of the crevice with no troublesome adhesives to pick out.

Can second this, worked a treat on an ae-1 and a couple of minoltas..

 

[choiliefan]

What kind of adhesive will bond to waxed cord?

 

[BobUK]

I am not sure you need adhesive.
Cotton yarn wedges into the crevices by friction alone, no need for an adhesive, unless the waxed cord is springy and jumps out.
In that case softened bees wax might hold it in place.

Reminds me of the old dilemma. If Teflon is non-stick, how come it sticks to the frying pan?

 

[Andreas Thaler]

Regarding today's foam sealing materials. Shouldn't these be more durable than the materials back then? The materials have been further developed.

 

[chuckroast]

Regarding today's foam sealing materials. Shouldn't these be more durable than the materials back then? The materials have been further developed.

The foam is made of some sort of petrochemical byproduct, if memory serves, and breaks down into a gooey mess given enough years.

 

[grain elevator]

The foam is made of some sort of petrochemical byproduct, if memory serves, and breaks down into a gooey mess given enough years.

It might, or it might not. Its a gamble, and yarn is much easier to replace if necessary anyway, so I've opted for yarn too. I've used wool, the thought process being that it tends to shed longer fibres than cotton (ime) which might be less likely to find their ways deep inside mechanisms. OTOH they have more potential to mess things up if they do.

 

[_T_]

I've seen millennia old cotton garments at museums, and I've seen 20 year old plastic disintegrate.

 

[George Mann]

So which chemicals are useful for removing the old adhesive?

 

[chuckroast]

So which chemicals are useful for removing the old adhesive?

1. Wear nitrile gloves/wear eye protection
2. Make sure you cover shutter curtains with a business card
3. Remove focusing screen/prism if possible
4. Cover mirror, if any, with soft material like a Pec Pad
5. First, remove the gross amount of gook with small stick cut into a wedge shape
5. Soak a Q-tip in naptha (lighter fluid) - make sure area is well ventilated - use that to remove the remaining crud.
6. Clean grooves and then generally in film compartment with Pec Pads dipped in ethanol or isopropyl alcohol.
7. A little adhesive left behind is ok. It will serve to hold the yarn in place
8. Pack the yarn into the grooves.

 

[George Mann]

1. Wear nitrile gloves/wear eye protection
2. Make sure you cover shutter curtains with a business card
3. Remove focusing screen/prism if possible
4. Cover mirror, if any, with soft material like a Pec Pad
5. First, remove the gross amount of gook with small stick cut into a wedge shape
5. Soak a Q-tip in naptha (lighter fluid) - make sure area is well ventilated - use that to remove the remaining crud.
6. Clean grooves and then generally in film compartment with Pec Pads dipped in ethanol or isopropyl alcohol.
7. A little adhesive left behind is ok. It will serve to hold the yarn in place
8. Pack the yarn into the grooves.

These instructions appear to be for an SLR. But you have to remember that the camera in question is a Yashica A TLR.

Nonetheless, most of this should work fine.

 

[chuckroast]

These instructions appear to be for an SLR. But you have to remember that the camera in question is a Yashica A TLR.

Nonetheless, most of this should work fine.

Yup, but the general procedure is correct. Most important is to keep the crud from falling into the camera cavity whilst cleaning. For this reason, once the vulnerable areas are covered, I do the initial scrape and clean holding the camera so that the debris falls downward onto the work surface (a sheet of newsprint will suffice).

 

[tokam]

When cleaning the door channels I fashion a 'rope' from a twisted piece of tissue. Tamp this down into the channel with a trimmed bamboo skewer, (which will later serve as your removal scraper), and lightly drizzle some naptha onto the tissue and tamp it down into the 'dirty' channel. Leave for a coupe of minutes. Apply more naptha and tamp down again. After a couple more minutes remove the tissue rope and scrape out the goo from the door channel. Most of it should come out easily. Finish off cleaning with Q-tips moistened with naptha. This approach helps prevent accidental flooding of the camera interior from over enthusiastic application of naptha. I also tape a piece of card over the shutter opening to prevent potential damage to focal plane shutters.

I haven't used yarn yet for light seals but may try it in future. Still have lots of a kit from Jon Goodman. Is there any recommendation for the flat seals at the ends of the camera body with usually seen to be a sort of velvet cloth?