Zenit-E shutter

[onre]

Sorry - wrong forum!

 

[darkosaric]

Probably not wrong , ask your question .

 

[onre]

Well, the thing is, the question actually sort of solved itself already. After disassembly, cleaning and lubrication I got the shutter to produce some sort of variation in speeds, and a working B setting. The crucial thing here was aligning the shutter drum and the inner drum properly, and noting the stop mechanism on the bottom plate. For later reference, the correct setting is so that when you have the camera lens mount pointing at you and look down at the drum, the outer drum brass piece goes from about 7:30 to 6 o'clock.

After this it should be all about adjusting tension so that the times match even roughly what's on the time dial, right?

Additionally, I'm having trouble making the mirror go up. When I got the camera, I regrettably did not check whether this worked in first place. There is the small lever that actuates the mirror, and the round thing on the bottom of the camera that's connected to gearwork, but I think the lever should be a bit higher for everything to work properly. If I carefully raise the lever just a little bit when cocking the camera, the mirror gets lifted properly. There is an adjustment in the mirror mechanism, but this is already adjusted as high as possible. Any ideas?

EDIT; actually the mirror problem is now solved. All it took was a VERY careful adjustment of the actuator lever. After this, the shutter did not open fully in B. This was solved by pretensioning the spring on the middle of the bottom plate by one and half turns.

 

[trythis]

I always like to suggest that Zenits are not worth the time if you are wanting to use it as a camera. They are fine for practicing camera repair and just fiddling for fun. If you want to take pictures it would be worth your time to find a better camera body. It might work for a roll of film, or two after getting it to work but something else will fall off.

 

[onre]

Dunno really. I just calculated that I've taken at least three thousand pictures with my other Zenit. It hasn't ever failed and works very smoothly.

 

[AgX]

From my two samples one had ripping off the shutter cloth short after I started playing around with it. But statistically that would be irrelevant.
Thus I rather hint at a statistic:

From the Zenit-E alone about 4 Million cameras were made.

 

[Peltigera]

My first SLR in 1973 was a flam new Zenit and it worked flawlessly for several years until I gained a family and could not afford photography anymore. I currently have two very old Zenits and both work well. I have never understood why people need to run them down.

Sent from my A1-840 using Tapatalk

 

[Ricardo Miranda]

Dunno really. I just calculated that I've taken at least three thousand pictures with my other Zenit. It hasn't ever failed and works very smoothly.

That's the right attitude.
If you like the Zenit and it works for you, why change?

 

[David Lyga]

Zenits were manufactured either AFTER the coffee break or BEFORE the coffee break, (in dire anticipation of that coffee break). THAT, ALONE will be the sole determinant as to its longevity and functionality. Quality control in the USSR was that sporadic. - David Lyga

 

[onre]

Dunno about that one either. I got a service manual and after figuring out a couple of my own mistakes, everything works consistently again.

And come on, it's still the best SLR in less-than-five-dollars-with-lens category.

 

[trythis]

Yep, they are great bodies to buy with lens! Toss out the body and use the lens on an m42 to EOS adapter with a Rebel or 630.


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[Ricardo Miranda]

My first SLR in 1973 was a flam new Zenit and it worked flawlessly for several years until I gained a family and could not afford photography anymore. I currently have two very old Zenits and both work well. I have never understood why people need to run them down.

Sent from my A1-840 using Tapatalk

Nor do I.
Here in the UK, the Zenits were for many the camera they learned the basics, their first SLR.
So, it has a special place for many.

Zenits were manufactured either AFTER the coffee break or BEFORE the coffee break, (in dire anticipation of that coffee break). THAT, ALONE will be the sole determinant as to its longevity and functionality. Quality control in the USSR was that sporadic. - David Lyga

I wonder if you were ever in the Soviet Union.
Did you visit the factories?
Did you speak with the workers?

Yep, they are great bodies to buy with lens! Toss out the body and use the lens on an m42 to EOS adapter with a Rebel or 630.


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Oh dear!

 

[darkosaric]

My experience with FSU cameras and lenses is: lenses are great, best value for the money you can find (beside some old nikkors).
Bodies are another story: zenit, zorki, fed (SLR and rangefinders) ... always I have some issues. It is not that body fails totally - just has issues: tear film from time to time, shutter sometimes does not fire, parts falling of from body (but still works ), problematic rewind, frame overlaping ... Only FSU camera that never failed to me is Lubitel.

 

[Grytpype]

Like others here, my first 'proper' camera was a Zenit-E with Helios, bought new in the early '70s (about 20 or 30 GBP I seem to remember). A few years back I scanned a lot of the negatives I took and was amazed how good they were: sharp, well exposed, and not a trace of the tapering across the frame I seem to get whenever I try to adjust a cloth focal-plane shutter today! Worth repairing? I'd say so - unless you feel that the value of the camera when you have finished has to justify the hours spent.

I think I traded in the Zenit in the '80s against the Retina 2c I still have today.