Hello!
I've been repairi... fully disassembling some Zenits for the last month or so. I will probably send here a large post about repairs some day.
BUT, I've now noted that there is one difference in Zenit shutter assemblies that may affect the camera manufacture year ranges of some of my future purchases.
This is a photo of 1998 model Zenit 130. As you can see there is a conical spring next to the mirror flipper wheel. In the middle of the image.
This spring greatly helps the first shutter curtain to move smoothly and thus the 1/500 speed is better controlled. The mirror flipper wheel has some resistance to it (since it moves the mirror up) and it is operated with 1st curtain + that conical spring. Now I have found out at not nearly all shutters are the same, some Zenits do not have that helper spring, so that the 1st curtain spring does all the work. That makes the adjusting of the shutter speed difficult, particularly 1/500.
I have a 1990 Zenit 12SD (non-export model) that does NOT have that spring. Also, one 1987 Zenit 11 does not have it either. Neither does 122 from 1994.
1985 Zenit 12XP (so export model) HAS that helper spring. To my suprise, plastic covers version of Zenit ET (supposedly BeLOMO made, in 1990-1992 or thereabouts) also HAS the conical spring. Also the 130 from 1998 has it.
I'm wondering if they tried to simplify the shutter somewhere between 1985 - 1995. It seems that it did not work that well, since the spring has made comeback in later 1990's.
You can see the spring in "B" mode, lock the shutter button and see under the bottom cover with a flashlight. Does your Zenit have that?
I've been repairi... fully disassembling some Zenits for the last month or so. I will probably send here a large post about repairs some day.
BUT, I've now noted that there is one difference in Zenit shutter assemblies that may affect the camera manufacture year ranges of some of my future purchases.
This is a photo of 1998 model Zenit 130. As you can see there is a conical spring next to the mirror flipper wheel. In the middle of the image.
This spring greatly helps the first shutter curtain to move smoothly and thus the 1/500 speed is better controlled. The mirror flipper wheel has some resistance to it (since it moves the mirror up) and it is operated with 1st curtain + that conical spring. Now I have found out at not nearly all shutters are the same, some Zenits do not have that helper spring, so that the 1st curtain spring does all the work. That makes the adjusting of the shutter speed difficult, particularly 1/500.
I have a 1990 Zenit 12SD (non-export model) that does NOT have that spring. Also, one 1987 Zenit 11 does not have it either. Neither does 122 from 1994.
1985 Zenit 12XP (so export model) HAS that helper spring. To my suprise, plastic covers version of Zenit ET (supposedly BeLOMO made, in 1990-1992 or thereabouts) also HAS the conical spring. Also the 130 from 1998 has it.
I'm wondering if they tried to simplify the shutter somewhere between 1985 - 1995. It seems that it did not work that well, since the spring has made comeback in later 1990's.
You can see the spring in "B" mode, lock the shutter button and see under the bottom cover with a flashlight. Does your Zenit have that?
