RZ 67 doesn't like winter

sportster44 · Feb 3, 2017

I'm having a problem with my RZ67 in that the mirror slows down in terms of upward movement whe the camera gets cold...ie the ambient temperature is at 0 C or lower. The only thing that I can do is to use a remote release on the lense after I trigger the shutter button to move the mirror. I'm wondering what else I can do as using the remote really kills the spontaneity of using the camera.

wiltw · Feb 3, 2017

CLA with thinner lubricants...this used to be an issue fairly commonly in the days of all-mechanical cameras to be used in very cold weather climes.

Sirius Glass · Feb 4, 2017

Wot wiltw sez!

sportster44 · Feb 5, 2017

Was just CLA'd a couple of years ago. Hate to spend the money all over again..... and to find someone that can use a winter friendly lube

MattKing · Feb 5, 2017

Any chance that it is the battery?

One of those hand-warmers might help.

John Koehrer · Feb 5, 2017

Yow!
Depending on the lube used if it wasn't very fine it could thicken.
Think watch oil vs 3 in 1

sportster44 · Feb 5, 2017

I really don't do it is the battery as everything is fine when I use the remote attached to the lense.

Terje Lindal · Feb 6, 2017

Me and a friend of mine (Svein) was using RZ (II) at -20C for quite some hours a few years.

We didn’t do any special preparations except fresh battery… .. .

Maybe the cameras had understood that they were in Norway and that it wouldn’t work to complain?

Harry Stevens · Feb 6, 2017

When it come to the cold and cameras and just like a telescope it's always best to climatise the camera several hours before use.

Willyekerslike · Feb 6, 2017

Hi, newcomer here so be gentle,

I thought there was a wire lead for cold shooting available for the RZ same as the 645. You attach the battery to one end of the lead and keep that near your body heat and the other end goes to the camera.
I'm sure I had one for the Mamiya 645 but I can not fnd it just now.

Cheers K.

sportster44 · Feb 7, 2017

I can certainly try a fresh battery to see if it helps. And a lead for a larger battery would be awesome, because my rz sits all winter waiting for warmer temperatures

dynachrome · Feb 7, 2017

The shutter speeds in RZ cameras, when using RZ lenses, are timed electronically. Other cameras which work this way have remote battery packs. I have remote battery packs for Konica FS-1 and FT-1 cameras. Sometimes a remote battery pack will use the same battery as the camera and sometimes it will use a larger battery with the same voltage but more amperage. The remote battery pack goes inside your coat. The other end sits inside the battery compartment. Minolta made a winder for some its manual focus SLR cameras which used the winder's AA batteries rather than the two MS-76 batteries to power the meter. I have not tested the low temperature limit of the RZ or RB cameras. Without a remote battery pack I would be tempted to use my RB lenses on an RX rather than the RZ lenses in very cold weather. I figured out years ago that the Konica TC is not very tolerant of cold weather. The Canon F-1/F-1n does much better in cold weather and the F-1N (with its batteries removed) is supposed to be especially tolerant of cold weather.

iakustov · Feb 7, 2017

I used my RZ67 in cold weather (around -10C) with external battery case from Mamiya accessories:

As you say the mirror slows down, I suppose this could be rather a lubrication problem than dead battery. At low temperatures after 10-15 mins even with the fresh battery the camera just would not allow me to release the shutter if the battery is not kept in the pocket with the accessory above.

sportster44 · Feb 7, 2017

Good to know. Thanks

chassis · Feb 18, 2017

Hello all

Where can RZ and RB cameras get CLA'd nowadays, in the United States? I emailed Mamiya and didn't get a reply. Thanks.

Alan Gales · Feb 18, 2017

RZ67 doesn't like winter? That's ok. Just mail it to me. We'd get along fine. I don't like winter either!

sportster44 · Mar 18, 2017

Well, I can definitely say that the camera needs a CLA with thinner lubricants. Tried this morning at - 8°C and within 30 minutes the mirror was lagging badly. Put a fresh battery in, put a hand warmer under the camera on top of the battery chamber and made no difference. In a couple of instances I had to wait several seconds for the mirror to move before tripping the shutter with the cable release.

Anyone know of a reputable service person in Ontario that could service it with thin lubricants?

Theo Sulphate · Mar 18, 2017

sportster44 said:
Was just CLA'd a couple of years ago. Hate to spend the money all over again..... and to find someone that can use a winter friendly lube

Where was the CLA performed (geographically)? Maybe they didn't realize the temperature range you'd be using it in. Still, 0C is hardly extreme and I'd expect they would've used the proper lubricants.

sportster44 · Mar 18, 2017

Don't know. Supposedly it was done by the previous owner. I didn't think that the temperature was bad. Going to figure out a good service person and have it done in the fall before next winter. In a month it won't be an issue.

M. Axel Wikstrom · Mar 18, 2017

Like others have said, it's probably the battery. Last week I used an all-mechanical camera down to about -25F (-31C, camera was a Hasselblad). It had some issues below -20F or so, but ran fine at warmer temperatures.

sportster44 · Mar 18, 2017

The battery was fresh and kept warm. This has to be the mirror assembly and the lube.

Sirius Glass · Mar 18, 2017

If a camera is lubricated for cold weather, it should work well in the cold. However if batteries are involved, the batteries need to be kept warm. When I took cameras alpine skiing, every year I had them winterized by Minolta and I never had a problem.

sportster44 · Mar 18, 2017

Sirius, I agree that it needs to be lubricated for winter. It's my understanding that the battery in the RZ only powers the shutter and the meter. The mirror is mechanical is it not?

paul ron · Mar 18, 2017

its not about thinner lubes.. its about temerature range of the lubes.

http://www.skf.com/group/products/l...nderstanding-grease-technical-data/index.html

http://www.machinerylubrication.com/Read/798/grease-selection

not all parts get lubed in mechanical cameras. there are parts that run dry. lubed parts are load bearing gears n bearings. The mirror mechanism has delrin bearings that run dry. now perhaps some diy lubed it thinking it would run better? over lubing can also cause the same symptoms.

i dont work on RZs because I don't want to deal with electronics issues.

problems to consider with electronics.. battery drain at cold temps, sticky relays n solenoids. caps go bad in time as well, so they get old and slower. low temps just rectifies the flaws that much more.

Sirius Glass · Mar 18, 2017

One can still take photographs without using the meter, however if the battery can not activate the shutter then it does not matter whether or not the mirror is mechanical. Only my 35mm slrs require batteries to take photographs; the Hasselblads, Speed Graphic, Graflex, Voightlander Vito II, Tessina and WideLux do not need batteries.

RZ 67 doesn't like winter

Moderator

Privacy & Transparency

Privacy & Transparency