Yashica TL-Electro meter draining batteries

[Necator]

My beloved Yashica TL-Electro have started draining the meter batteries quickly. I use 2 SR44's and some tin foil and tape instead of the banned PX640's. The first set of batteries lasted about a year, before the meter readings started to be faint. The second set died (almost) in about 2 weeks. I initially suspected that it was because I have started using a preset Helios 44-2 lens, where the lens thread is longer than on my Yashicas, and that it might have short circuited something, but now I am not so sure.

Have you experienced problems with very short battery life in your TL-Electro, and if so, was there a way to solve it?

 

[Jim Chinn]

I have a TL-E that I got for free and that my daughter uses. Built like a tank and has one of the sharpest 50mm lenses I have ever seen on a SLR. When I received the camera the meter did not work. Put in new batteries and the meter hardly moved. So I just got used to shooting without a meter. If you shoot the same one or two films all the time you will quickly adopt a version of the sunny 16 rule that matches exposures you want. It's been a great excercise for my daughter as she has to think about the quality and direction of light on the subject. It really "forced" her to learn about the relationship between available light, aperture and shutter speed.

Keep notes on a few rolls when you shoot in different light conditions and you will quickly see what exposure works best with what lighting and your developer.

Now if my daughter is with me when I shoot LF she makes fun of me for using a handheld meter to determine an SBR.

 

[Pumal]

It has the advantage that you can use all the Super-Multi-Coated Super Takumars that you want

 

[mjs]

I've never used a TL-Electro, but if it has the same setup as my Electro 35's it has an electronic shutter and needs working batteries.

For what it's worth, I've had a spate of Electro 35 failures in the past couple of years: I suspect they're simply wearing out. They're all rather old these days. I had amassed a collection of five of them, mostly from local estate auctions, and keep one in an ever-ready case under the seat of my car as my casual camera. Over the past three years I seem to be averaging one Electro death every 14 months or so: the first was failure of the focusing mechanism and the last two were the electronic shutter. Vibration, probably. Frankly, while I like my Electros and they make good photographs, they weren't the best made cameras of their era, and that era was quite a while back.

 

[Steve Roberts]

I've never used a TL-Electro, but if it has the same setup as my Electro 35's it has an electronic shutter and needs working batteries..

The TL Electro is, in effect, Yashica's Spotmatic II, as I recall it has a pair of green LEDs making the top and bottom parts of an 'O'. The top or bottom light according to over or under exposure and correct exposure is shown by the whole 'O'. Apparently on some the electronics eventually gave up (perhaps as the OP's, but let's hope not). I had one for many years and had nothing but praise for it. Getting back to the problem, I do remember that mine was fairly thirsty for batteries compared to Spotmatics and the like, but a couple of weeks is a very short time. Could the meter have been left on? Dud batteries? Alternatively, your mention of tin foil sets bells ringing - short circuit, perhaps? I don't know what facilities you have, but one course of action would be to switch off the meter, connect the batteries in series with an ammeter set to milliamps and see whether any current is flowing. If it is, then you've got problems, if not, then look elsewhere.

Good luck!

Steve

 

[Pumal]

The Meter cannot be left 'on' in the Yashica TL Electro o Electro TL X. You need to lower a lever to turn it on.