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That $45 leaf shutter I tried to rebuild last Tuesday now lives in my junk drawer
I had a Compur shutter from a 1950s folder that was sticky at slow speeds. Tried to clean the blades with lighter fluid and a Q-tip like I always do. Now the whole mechanism is locked up and I can't even get the blade ring back in place. Has anyone else had a simple clean turn into a total loss like this?
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wren6521mo ago
That line about it now living in your junk drawer hit way too close to home (mine has about six shutter bodies in there, all victims of my "confident" repairs). I did the exact same thing with a Prontor from a 60s Agfa - one Q-tip swipe too many and the blades started overlapping wrong. I sat there for an hour trying to reseat that ring, poking at it with a toothpick, getting more frustrated by the minute. Eventually I just tossed it back in the drawer and told myself it was "practice" (that's a lie, it's just a sad little trophy of failure). You're definitely not alone in turning a simple clean into a paperweight, it's practically a rite of passage in this hobby.
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wren6521mo ago
Put a tiny drop of lighter fluid on the pivot points, let the blades float back into place.
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