What was your last piece of equipment that died and how did it die?

eli griggs · Jul 9, 2025

Cholentpot said:
I just got one of those a rebuilt and customized MZ-3 a little while ago, found a guy who puts in new gears and stuff. The Pentax Autofocus later stuff is overlooked, probably due to internals crumbling but when you have a working one they're wonderful cameras. I'm using a 40mm flatcake lens on mine.

My F1 (New) is a bit finicky at times. Really could use a tune-up but it'll have to get in line. I'm looking for a motordrive/assist for mine to unlock the functions that come along with it.

I started this thread because I figured so many cameras and older gear have to be going, might as well commiserate together when one goes.

This is the only trouble I've had with this camera, with the exception of a dented AE meter viewfinder tat knocked loose the plastic front piece, causing no difficulty at all.

Cholentpot · Jul 9, 2025

Kino said:
Not photographic, but a very expensive Netgate router got zapped last night by a lightning strike, taking out my WAN port but not my modem.

Today was occupied with trying to reinstall my old modem/router to get back some service and had fight the AI interface on Xfinity which as replaced humans as support.

I am fit to be tied...

My UPS went down due to something like that, got a new battery and it started up. I think the power went out and the UPS drained itself and killed the battery.

Also the 35 2.0 is dead again. It doesn't like being point up so I assume there's some gearing issues in the front.

eli griggs said:
This is the only trouble I've had with this camera, with the exception of a dented AE meter viewfinder tat knocked loose the plastic front piece, causing no difficulty at all.

I've had issues with the metering not engaging when switching to priority. A little bit of tough love while snapping the prism into place got it sorted.

4season · Jul 9, 2025

I recently fried a fancy new, not-cheap radio by plugging it into the same USB port I was using to charge my Steam Deck, resulting in the radio being hit with 14 volts instead of the usual 5. In theory, I might be able to repair it as most of the ICs are off the shelf items, but a new microcontroller would need to be programmed.

FriedLouisStudio · Jul 10, 2025

My beloved Pen F recently developed the auto-diaphragm-closing-too-slowly (especially on the first exposure after a period of disuse) problem that I've had repaired before... but John Hermanson no longer works on any Pen models. I shot a half-roll test to be sure that I haven't developed yet, but I'm pretty much resigned to consigning the Pen F to my camera collection display.

I've got a Pen S too, so I'm still shooting half-frame... but the Pen S just isn't the elegant, spectacularly engineered, downsized-Nikon F-like Pen F!

And yeah, I realize that this may be a doable repair for some of you, but I've never touched a camera's innards in my life... and I'm not gonna start at 70.

thinkbrown · Jul 10, 2025

The shutter in my mamiya press 100/2.8 seized open last weekend and man that was a bummer.

On a positive note, I was at least able to swap the shutter out successfully by cannibalizing my 150mm press lens. Now I still need to buy a new 150mm but that's a hell of a lot cheaper than the 100/2.8

Steve York · Jul 10, 2025

A Summicron Asph about 20 years ago where some internal piece broke and the aperture just went round and round, like a carousel. The well known Leica tech who fixed it in the US claimed that new leica lenses are junk because they're all plastic inside. She's know for her hyperbole, but you get the point. Ironically the only other two lenses that have broken on me in the field were two separate 60mm Elamarits, where something with the focusing went kaput. The same tech who fixed one to fashion a repair piece because that spare part no longer available. Then I once had a complete shutter failure on a Leicaflex SL -- too costly to fix. Another time on a different Leicaflex SL the entire viewfinder fell out due to plastics fatigue reaching end of their useful life. I've had good luck with the older M cameras and their lenses; they've proven reliable.

Cholentpot · Jul 10, 2025

FriedLouisStudio said:
My beloved Pen F recently developed the auto-diaphragm-closing-too-slowly (especially on the first exposure after a period of disuse) problem that I've had repaired before... but John Hermanson no longer works on any Pen models. I shot a half-roll test to be sure that I haven't developed yet, but I'm pretty much resigned to consigning the Pen F to my camera collection display.

I've got a Pen S too, so I'm still shooting half-frame... but the Pen S just isn't the elegant, spectacularly engineered, downsized-Nikon F-like Pen F!

View attachment 402609

And yeah, I realize that this may be a doable repair for some of you, but I've never touched a camera's innards in my life... and I'm not gonna start at 70.

I had John do a full CLA on a Pen F Gothic I bought 4-5 years ago. It was one of the last ones he fixed. I love the machine. Is it a lens issue for you or a camera issue?

FriedLouisStudio · Jul 10, 2025

I think it's probably the lens. But I only have the one (38/1.8), so I can't put on a different lens and test.

John's great, he's also worked on a couple of my OM bodies over the years.

It's unfortunate that he's done repairing the Pens, I've really loved shooting my Pen F in recent years. (Although I originally got it back in 2000, it exhibited this issue from the start, and I put aside for many years. I've only been using it extensively since John repaired it in 2020.) It's made some wonderful images!

https://www.beaconarts.org/artists/Black%20and%20White%20Beacon/album/2172

Don_ih · Jul 10, 2025

abruzzi said:
My Konica Pearl III. Its not totally dead, but it has a light leak I haven't been able to chase down.

I have a Konica Semi that has a light leak. I discovered it after developing a roll. I couldn't find the leak in the bellows - because it's not in the bellows. The bellows, however, has detached from the back. It's only held by glue. I haven't fixed it yet.

I have a Ricoh auto-half that I was trying use (a number of years ago, now) and the front fell apart in my hand. Broke into a whole bunch of little pieces.

The last thing that fell apart on me was a Yashica c/y lens - it was a 50mm ML. I was focusing on something close and I guess it was too close because the lens fell apart in my hand.

Tel · Jul 10, 2025

I recently picked up two Autocords, one of which stopped functioning altogether shortly after I got it—the shutter just refused to cock and fire. On disassembly, I found that the camera’s cocking arm was failing to push the cocking lever on the lens far enough to fully engage. After numerous failed repair attempts, including adding metal to the cocking arm to make it push the lever further, I married the good bits of this camera to another one that I bought as a parts donor and the resulting franken-camera works perfectly. So I guess I’m arguing for a (camera) afterlife of sorts. They never die, they just go in the parts bin and are reborn.

Sirius Glass · Jul 10, 2025

I have been able to save the cameras that I have heavily used, but with respect to newly acquired cameras with problems, most of the time the camera was saved but some I had to give up on.

warden · Jul 10, 2025

Don_ih said:
The last thing that fell apart on me was a Yashica c/y lens - it was a 50mm ML. I was focusing on something close and I guess it was too close because the lens fell apart in my hand.

That’s just the universe telling you to take a step back.

snusmumriken · Jul 11, 2025

Oddly enough, the last thing that died on me was a massively over-engineered Benbo tripod that was so burdensome that I rarely used it.

Otherwise, I haven’t owned a lot of gear, and I seem to have had a lucky run. The only other photography related equipment that failed on me, many years ago, was my first ‘proper’ camera, a Soviet-made Zenit 3M. That began its process of self-destruction almost as soon as I bought it, new.

What was your last piece of equipment that died and how did it die?

Privacy & Transparency

Privacy & Transparency