Stuck between a Canon and a screwdriver on that F-1 shutter

Last month I had to decide whether to use a rubber squeegee or a silicone suction cup to pull the shutter curtain drum out of a Canon F-1 at my shop in Austin. I picked the squeegee because it's softer and I was scared of scratching the drum. It worked fine, but the curtain ended up a little tight on one side. Has anyone else had trouble getting those old Copal shutters to seat even after a full clean?

3 comments

3 Comments

victorcoleman4d ago

Man, that's a bummer... I've been there with a Pentax Spotmatic where the curtain would catch on one side after a clean, and it drove me crazy chasing the tension. I ended up having to go back in three times before I got it even close to right, and that was with a squeegee too. Hope it settles for you or you can tweak it without pulling the whole thing apart again.

norag554d ago

Dealing with tight curtains after a clean is a real headache, especially when you thought the tool choice was a safe bet. That slight tension difference can be maddening to chase out once the drum is back in its tracks. It might be worth checking the foam on the brake pad, sometimes a little old residue throws the curtain off just enough.

terryr464d ago

Oh man I feel your pain... had the exact same thing happen with a Konica Autoreflex where the curtain tension went totally off after a clean. What finally worked for me was taking the whole shutter drum out again and checking the capping curtain spring hook. Turns out I'd bent the end of the spring just a hair when I put it back in and that tiny kink was causing the drag. I straightened it out with some fine tweezers and it ran smooth as butter after that. Might be worth a look if you end up going back in there again...