Trials...

So, this has been fighting me all the way, so far. Broken tools, and more broken tools...

When I got the camera, I was hoping that the shutter issue was only in the shutter button, but after taking the camera apart, I found otherwise; the problem has to be in the lens pack.

 

And this is how far I got before my spanner blade snapped. Three screwdrivers, and a spanner have been the casualties, so far. I will be ordering a new spanner, within the next couple of days.

 

Seeing as I cannot go on without a spanner, I will start to clean the parts that I can and polish what needs to be polished.

To The Range

After a bit more teardown, I found that this camera has been "fixed" prior to me getting it. Whomever did the "fixing" did a bit of damage.

As can be seen below, the screws and pinion mount have been stripped or otherwise damaged. After I was given the go-ahead and remove stuff (I was worried that I would break the pinion), I got the thing out. I think I will add a bit of silicone grease to the threads of everything, once I am done.

I will be working more on the teardown, and then I will be cleaning and polishing all the bare metal, in hopes of keeping the parts clean and workable.

The top cap off:

A bit of dirt/grime/oxide:

And the "Rangefinder"

And So It Begins

I finally got some time to start on the camera tonight. This thing is a freaking nightmare to take apart... I did not get very far into the tear down, but so far, I have learned a few things:

1.) Nihon Kosokki apparently used the torque of an ape, and thread-lock while putting all the damned screws in...

2.) This camera uses screws and set-screw that I normally find in mechanical watches (i.e. small).

3.) Modified (read filed down) horology screw drivers become tiny little objects that love to puncture your finger.

4.) This is going to be a challenge. I like that.

Anyway, there are only a few pictures, because I have to be at work in roughly 6.5 hours. More progress will be coming.

You can see some of the old, solidified grease around the spacers. From what I have found with cameras' is that most of the problems stem from the lubricants used, dry and "gunk" up. All will be taken care of when I throw these in the ultrasonic tank.

The parts that have fought me tooth and nail... I don't know if it was old grease or thread locker or plating gull, but damn...



This is what I found to be the most interesting thing, tonight; the set-screws. I have only see these this small in watches. For a scale reference, that is a standard sewing pin...

 

The Arrival

I was contacted by a fellow forum member, and car enthusiast, about cleaning and fixing an old rangefinder camera. After a few messages, and a bit of a wait from a Canadian, the camera is in my hands. I will be documenting everything that I do to the camera. I might not be able to fix it, but never-the-less, I will see what I can do.

To start, this is the condition everything is in and how I recieved the camera. All in all, it looks to be in pretty good shape, with the exception of the shutter not working and the need of a good cleaning to the optics.