Vintage film cameras

[johnnyrod]

Here it is, just arrived:
Olympus S Electro Set by John Rodriguez, on Flickr
Looks really good. Light seal disintegrated near the film door hinge, but everything operable, need to find out how accurate the meter and shutter are. Self-timer definitely works and very smoothly, thanks to my daughter getting her fingers in. The lever looks just like the shutter co-cking lever on my medium format folding cameras, and she knows you have to operate that, so she just reached in and flipped it over before I could stop her. Lens looks spotless. Hopefully nothing hidden, think I can see why it was calling to me now!

If I hadn't got this then I was going to buy this:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/111982006490
Ignore the title - I believe it's fully working, and they are said to be the sort of camera you'd keep for ever. It's double stroke - you have to operate the advance lever twice - which is most likely why they say they can't get the shutter to operate. The lens is detachable, it was pretty foolish to show that in the first picture - it's meant to do that, but with the title makes it look worse. Other lenses are available for these. In fact there is another on here listed as mostly working:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/222100746750
and I still have GAS but will stop myself from buying! That said if anyone buys one and has trouble I'd be interested in taking it off your hands. To be honest, if the prices don't go too mad, you could sell a broken one for that and get your money back.

[Kenzie]

Nice looking camera. I dare not touch self timers, brushed on on my MV the other day and hoped it didn't stick. Going to do another boot sale run tomorrow. Will keep an eye on the second link you posted.

Sent from my Kindle Fire

[johnnyrod]

Not sure how they work on SLRs (yet!) but on these old ones they're pretty simple to sort out once you get into the shutter, you don't need to disturb the blades etc. just get all the external stuff off. They can be trouble though as you say, and they tend not to get much use so more prone to sticking.

[Kenzie]

Can loan you an OM10 if you want to play?

Sent from my Kindle Fire

[johnnyrod]

As in, it's jammed?

[Kenzie]

No, fully working. Play as in shoot with.

Sent from my Kindle Fire

[johnnyrod]

Not for me - someone else?

[Kenzie]

Not vintage enough?

Sent from my Kindle Fire

[johnnyrod]

Lollllzzzzzz... they're said to be great but I've got one camera with a test film (Contessa LBE), one just arrived (Olympus), one SLR never used and wondering if I can cure the sticky shutter (Pentax K2), one viewfinder needs a clean and would be nice but odd to use (Ikonta 35), and a MF in need of a clean up that I also want to try out again (Certo). Oh yeah, and a Vito in bits for those rainy days! And one more I lent to a mate who is hopefully using it as I haven't properly had a go (Vitomatic II). And five others that work fine (Contessa, Contessamat, Mess Ikonta, Pentaxes MX and Super Program A). This is pretty much a Sunday afternoon for you I realise! Nah seriously kind offer but I'll be lucky if I do justice to half of these this year let alone the rest of life. And some busted ones.

[Kenzie]

No worries, you would have a fit if your saw how many I have. Even I struggle to decide what to shoot with sometimes!