Where to have my Nikkormat overhauled?

My Nikkormat FTN needs routine maintenance service.
I need this thing to come back in excellent working order and don't want to mess around with mediocre shops.
Is there a shop or repair person that specializes in or in well known to be experienced with Nikkormat repair ?

Do you not have a local shop? Nikkormat's aren't particularly difficult cameras to work on, and shouldn't require a specialist. That way you won't have to mess with stuff getting lost or damaged in shipping, and you'll have someone you can talk to about it, face to face.

Does this one have special sentimental value or something? Because it would likely be cheaper to buy a second one in working condition than to have a professional that specializes in these cameras work on it. Plus, if you bought a second one and years down the line it breaks as well, you'll have a "parts" camera to scavenge from. Often times with these old cameras, that's the worst part. They're not terribly difficult to work on, but finding replacement parts can be expensive and time consuming if you don't already have another donor camera on hand. Hence why it's often cheaper to just buy another one than it is to get the old one repaired.

This one has no sentimental value. It is my second Nikkormat body. I just recently bought it cheap "for parts/repair" with the specific intent to have it serviced now...as a hedge against the future if you will. It turns out, I got pretty lucky - it seems to be in pretty decent condition. I've not fully tested it but on cursory inspection everything seems to work but it definitely needs to be serviced.
I have dealt with local and not-so-local repair shops. The local ones, at least the good ones that I have worked with in the past are all closed now. There's a place in Los Angeles that does good work but takes months to turn around an overhaul...maybe I'll try Zack's - they're an APUG advertiser.

Check out http://abilenecamera.com/ They're not cheap but they will tear it down and rebuilt it.

jim10219 said:

Do you not have a local shop? Nikkormat's aren't particularly difficult cameras to work on, and shouldn't require a specialist. That way you won't have to mess with stuff getting lost or damaged in shipping, and you'll have someone you can talk to about it, face to face.

Does this one have special sentimental value or something? Because it would likely be cheaper to buy a second one in working condition than to have a professional that specializes in these cameras work on it. Plus, if you bought a second one and years down the line it breaks as well, you'll have a "parts" camera to scavenge from. Often times with these old cameras, that's the worst part. They're not terribly difficult to work on, but finding replacement parts can be expensive and time consuming if you don't already have another donor camera on hand. Hence why it's often cheaper to just buy another one than it is to get the old one repaired.

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I'll never understand why people persist in this "just buy another fourty plus year old camera" nonsense. Any Nikkormat FTN the op buys will need an overhaul. They haven't been made in decades. The op clearly stated "routine maintenance", the camera apparently works fine and he wants to keep it that way.

I just assume that any used camera that I buy needs an overhaul. Also, over the past several years I had all my cameras and a lens or two CLAed, for some after 40 or 50 years ownership, including Leicas, Leicaflexes, Rolleis, Contaxs and Minoxes, as well as a few recent purchases such a Medalist and Contessa. My policy is not to resurrect battery dependent cameras from unexpected death. It’s better to repair a cameras you know than to buy one with an unknown history.

E. von Hoegh said:

I'll never understand why people persist in this "just buy another fourty plus year old camera" nonsense. Any Nikkormat FTN the op buys will need an overhaul. They haven't been made in decades. The op clearly stated "routine maintenance", the camera apparently works fine and he wants to keep it that way.

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Because not every used camera has the same history. Some will have had routine maintenance in the not too distant past and may be good to go, as is. I’ve bought several vintage cameras that were kept in great shape and didn’t need anything other than film. I’ve bought several more that only needed light seals, which is an easy DIY job. And I’ve bought several that needed major work. I usually do my own work on cameras, because having a professional overhaul a camera can often cost more than twice what the camera will be worth after the repair. My local repair guy charges a minimum of $80 for a basic CLA. Yet he often sells cameras that people dropped off and never picked up for less than that, just trying to minimize his losses.

It depends on the camera. An old Leica will hold enough value that the work may be worth the money. An old Nikkormat, maybe not. They’re pretty common cameras and a lot of people out there use them still. I don’t think it would be too hard to find one from a photographer that’s in great shape for less than the price of finding one in poor shape, and having it resurrected to meet the condition of the former.

If the market was such that you could buy an old camera in bad condition, bring it up to snuff, and flip it for a hearty profit, you’d see a lot more people doing that. Hell, I would be doing that! But for the time being “routine maintenance” doesn’t add much value to cameras, but it sure adds a lot of costs.

[QUOTE="jim10219, post: 2018881, member: 82696"]Because not every used camera has the same history. Some will have had routine maintenance in the not too distant past and may be good to go, as is. I’ve bought several vintage cameras that were kept in great shape and didn’t need anything other than film. I’ve bought several more that only needed light seals, which is an easy DIY job. And I’ve bought several that needed major work. I usually do my own work on cameras, because having a professional overhaul a camera can often cost more than twice what the camera will be worth after the repair. My local repair guy charges a minimum of $80 for a basic CLA. Yet he often sells cameras that people dropped off and never picked up for less than that, just trying to minimize his losses.

It depends on the camera. An old Leica will hold enough value that the work may be worth the money. An old Nikkormat, maybe not. They’re pretty common cameras and a lot of people out there use them still. I don’t think it would be too hard to find one from a photographer that’s in great shape for less than the price of finding one in poor shape, and having it resurrected to meet the condition of the former.

If the market was such that you could buy an old camera in bad condition, bring it up to snuff, and flip it for a hearty profit, you’d see a lot more people doing that. Hell, I would be doing that! But for the time being “routine maintenance” doesn’t add much value to cameras, but it sure adds a lot of costs.[/QUOTE]

That's true, but it's a matter of luck. A couple years ago, I bought a really nice looking Nikon F2A body for $100. At that price, and in that cosmetic condition, I figured it was worth me overhauling it ( I have the service manual, skills, equipment, and experience). When I got the camera (it came from an estate) I noticed it was spotlessly clean, had new foam, and the shutter speeds were spot-on as well as the meter. Come to find out Sover Wong maintains a list of cameras he's worked on and mine was Soverised in 2012. That was an anomaly (or maybe small miracle) though, I expect any camera over 10 or 15 years of age - which for me is all of them , I don't use modern electronic wonders at all except for entertainment, to need at least a cla and more likely a complete overhaul. I have an unused OM3, in the box, the foam is black goo and the shutter caps at the two highest speeds.
Maintaining an already known good camera is far better economics than buying an unknown quantity, I last serviced my Nikon F in 1998 and it's getting due for another, I've noticed it doesn't like cold weather this year.
If you're using the camera, and need it to be reliable, maintenance does indeed add to the value. I'm firmly in the "take care of it, maintain it, until it's worn out" camp, and since I'll never wear out any camera I have, I guess I need to take care of them.

The operative words in post #8, if anyone missed them, is “and needs it to be reliable”.

Carl at Seawood Photo in San Rafael
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rorye said:

Carl at Seawood Photo in San Rafael
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Thanks Rory !

jim10219 said:

Because not every used camera has the same history. Some will have had routine maintenance in the not too distant past and may be good to go, as is. I’ve bought several vintage cameras that were kept in great shape and didn’t need anything other than film. I’ve bought several more that only needed light seals, which is an easy DIY job. And I’ve bought several that needed major work. I usually do my own work on cameras, because having a professional overhaul a camera can often cost more than twice what the camera will be worth after the repair. My local repair guy charges a minimum of $80 for a basic CLA. Yet he often sells cameras that people dropped off and never picked up for less than that, just trying to minimize his losses.

It depends on the camera. An old Leica will hold enough value that the work may be worth the money. An old Nikkormat, maybe not. They’re pretty common cameras and a lot of people out there use them still. I don’t think it would be too hard to find one from a photographer that’s in great shape for less than the price of finding one in poor shape, and having it resurrected to meet the condition of the former.

If the market was such that you could buy an old camera in bad condition, bring it up to snuff, and flip it for a hearty profit, you’d see a lot more people doing that. Hell, I would be doing that! But for the time being “routine maintenance” doesn’t add much value to cameras, but it sure adds a lot of costs.

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I get what you're saying but you're not counting all of the costs. The cost of professional routine maintenance service is absolutely and completely trivial compared to the loss experienced when a camera fails in the field...especially, if it fails when traveling far from first world services. As an example from my own experience, I had a Nikon FE fail on me while I was in South America. I spent a day looking for some jeweler's screwdrivers and as it turned out, packaging tape, to cobble together a basic repair so that I could limp along until I got home. That was when I abandoned the "just buy a good used body and go with it" approach. Luckily, I had two bodies with me on that trip...both purchased from KEH in EX+ condition. Unfortunately, both had failed by the time I completed my two weeks in country. On another trip, I had the electronic shutter on a Minolta X-700 fail on me...shit happens.

I actually plan to use the camera and as another poster pointed out, "It needs to be reliable".

I'd have trouble thinking of a more reliable camera than a Nikkormat of that vintage. I have an Ft and an Ftn, the Ftn was used professionally (it took pictures of the '80 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid) and came to me with a jumpy meter. A complete overhaul made everything work properly, and if that was the only Nikon I could have, I'd be content.
If you go into the boonies, bring a handheld meter just in case.
I use 675 air cells with all but one airhole covered with nailpolish. A "C" made of 14ga. copper wire will hold the cell centered and make contact, they usually last well over a year - one lasted 27 months.
Good luck.

I've had a Nikkormat FT2 and FT3 jam-up, the FT2 when it was only a few years old.
I've never had a Nikon F or F2 jam up on me, but it does happen.

Okay, I don't understand the "just buy another one" argument. Have we completely succumbed to the current disposable consumer culture?
Here's the deal: these old cameras are machines, from a time when the world made precision machines. Machines NEED maintenance. They need to be lubricated and adjusted at regular service intervals. That's the way they were made, and made very well I would add. Give them a service once in awhile-- do what needs to be done. That is part of the cost of use and ownership. If you do not factor that in I believe you are making an error. In high school we learned on machine tools that were made in the 1890's. Properly maintained they still did their job.

It depends. If it's your principal camera by all means have it served. If the Nikkormat might see a couple of films a year and exposes consistently, I'd leave well alone. I have 5 Nikkormats, all of them work to my satisfaction and none have been serviced. I don't count a dead meter as a flaw because any number of my cameras lack light meters. Others would disagree.

Rather like an old but well made car, if it isn't your main transport it'll probably survive low mileage use indefinitely.

The problem with anecdotal evidence is that it only applies to that 1 particular sample - whether good or bad. So you have to look at the population as a whole. The Nikkormats have proven themselves reliable and, to my knowledge, are free of design defects that have affected other cameras. If you want to avoid problems in the field, you do what the OP plans to do, have it serviced by someone who knows what they're doing.

That may not make sense if you plan to sell it, but does if you plan to use it.

If I wanted the most reliability, I'd be tempted to look for a non-professionally used F2AS. Or an earlier model with the finder's ring resistor replaced. Preferably one owned by a doctor or dentist. But there may other camera's just as reliable. I say "owned by doctor or dentist" only half in jest. I find that they will buy "more" camera than they need, not use it a lot, and take good care of it.

mgb74 said:

If I wanted the most reliability, I'd be tempted to look for a non-professionally used F2AS.

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The difference is a clean F2 costs 5 to10 times an equivalent Nikkormat. An ex-professional F2 is almost certainly in need of a CLA, and possibly replacement. A better comparison would be Nikkormat vs Spotmatic/ SRT/ FTb.

I've got to recommend Zacks Camera, one of the sponsors here, as a very good source for repairs of mechanical cameras like the Nikkormat. I haven't had a Nikon refurbished by them, but they've done a wonderful job on some 50's to 80's era cameras, both rangefinders and SLRs. Every one came back looking great and feeling like they were ready for several more decades of use.

Stan

Brad my latest experience with my go to guy was really disappointing, after asking around locally I'm now using Calvin at Glass Key Photo
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blockend said:

The difference is a clean F2 costs 5 to10 times an equivalent Nikkormat. An ex-professional F2 is almost certainly in need of a CLA, and possibly replacement. A better comparison would be Nikkormat vs Spotmatic/ SRT/ FTb.

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I don't think an F2 is significantly more reliable than a Nikkormat, which is quite a bit less complex and just as well made as far as it goes.
A moot point because I've yet to have any Nikon give any trouble whatsoever

rorye said:

Brad my latest experience with my go to guy was really disappointing, after asking around locally I'm now using Calvin at Glass Key Photo
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Good to know. Thanks Roye. I've been meaning to visit Glasskey.

For anybody who is still following along, here's my present state of affairs....
My old regulars guys, Apollo camera in San Jose and Apex camera in Walnut Creek (Wally and the old German guy) closed years ago. I've completely lost confidence in the place in Oakland. I strongly dislike the guy who used to be near Castro street in Mountain View. The authorized Nikon repair shop in Thousand Oaks, that I have used for decades, now seems to be just one man and his clueless son....such a shame.
Another repairman that I've used from time to time is now semi-retired and "doesn't work on Nikons anymore"...and on and on...blah...

Meantime, I realized that with some careful shopping I could buy a decent-ish Nikon pre-AI lens and get a Nikkormat for the cost of a rear lens cap. So I bought a few. I now have a box of Nikkormats in various states of "it works but...." (and some decent old Nikon glass). As a result, I have one Nikkormat that is in really good usable condition and three more that are good candidates for overhaul and long term use...and a few others that are...well, junk to me.

I still have not sent any of my Nikkormats out for service. I think I will send one to Zack's....maybe I can get into The City this weekend to check out glasskey. (This sounds like fun!)

This experience with the Nikkormats is so different from my experience with Spotmatics and Minolta SRT...I know, for example, that I can send just about any decent Pentax To Eric H. and in a week or two, it'll be back in my hands in great condition. Same goes with Minolta SRT and X bodies and John T.

However, as much as I love the old Spotmatics, these Nikkormats are just so much better that I'd really like to get at least two in excellent working condition. I just need to find a repair place that will do for my Nikkormat what John Titterington does for Minoltas and Eric Hendrickson does for Spotmatics. That place used to be Pro Camera service in T.O....but, I'm not so sure anymore.

I'm actually thinking of just selling all of them and getting a pair of Nikon F2 bodies...simply because there is somebody that I know will overhaul them and do a good job. Too bad Sover won't touch a Nikkormat.

BradS said:

I think I will send one to Zack's

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i can't say anythng about nikkormats ( never had or even seen one ) but zacks does good work
if he doesnt' or can't get some parts he has a small machine shop inhouse and he is able to manufacturer parts.
good luck !
john

The primary problem is that the same piece of the meter in Nikkormats is what fails, making canibalization for spare parts diffficult. Very rugged cameras except for that fault. Therefore it makes sense to just buy another since replacement is easier and cheaper than repair.
I don’t understand the idea of the need for a camera to retain its value unless one deals in cameras. It is a tool to use. Better to think in terms of reliability. While I wouldn’t take my Nikkormat on a round the world trip I enjoy using it close to home since it allows me to use all my Nikon F and Kilfit and Olympic Sonnar lenses.
If all the cameras used by many people on this forum held their value there would be a lot fewer APUG participants. Certainty GAS would be an affliction suffered by very few rather than such a common addition.