I not sure about your self timer but the pictures show the surface machine work on the various surfaces when compared to Rollie's, Nikons, and Pentax is extremely crude and poorly finished.
As for the self timer I have seen some which operate on the same principal as a firing hammer on a revolver hand gun, where when you load it there should be a catch where it stops it from unloading. This is probably badly worn or broken off or in need of adjustment if it can be.