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Fix Your iiif Shutter - with WD40!!


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  • 4 months later...

I love those kind of ads on ebay, the seller tries to imply that some fault or other is really very simple to put right, but yet they can't do it themselves.

 

I've seen all sorts of them from photo gear to cars. Some poorly running car just needs a new air filter or the long list of faults it failed the MOT can be fixed in an afternoon by anyone with a spanner and screwdriver and £50 for the parts!

 

Fungus on the lens? Just needs a wipe with a lens cloth. Camera doesn't come with a battery so can't be tested but it's working 100% fine (sold as seen/no returns). Yeah yeah.....

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 A bit of WD 40 or silicon oil will free up a lens that is reluctant in the focus department. You have to be careful to ensure that none of it gets on the glass elements. Some people say that oil of any kind will have an adverse effect on the type of grease that is properly used in such lenses, but such grease is not that easily available to 'civilians'. I have not found any problems in this regard. As for shutters and other internal workings, I would not go near them myself. They are for professionals only. I would not listen to anyone who suggests WD 40 as a solution for a sticking shutter. It needs to be taken apart along with the winding gear etc and given a thorough service. You are right to give this one a miss.

 

William

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Bad idea. Just send it in for a CLA instead of ruining a camera or lens. 

 

Many fluids like this will migrate and with a lens they can contaminate the glass and then you can throw it out. Nice way to destroy a piece of history.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Well, you can spray some into a small container and then apply with a needle or toothpick.

 

That is the way to do it. To the point made by Michael, there is a big difference between minor stiffness and a major repair. The former can be dealt with at home, but the latter should always be left to a professional.

 

William

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WD40 is great as a penetrant for freeing up stuck things, but if it is left in place it can gum them up.  Graphite (dry or in suspension in some quick-evap liquid) is a lubricant but also an abrasive, depending on the relative hardness of whatever it's being applied to.  I wouldn't use either of them on a precision geared mechanism such as a Leica slow-speed escapement.  They aren't that difficult to remove, clean with a solvent that leaves no residue, and then re-lubricate.  Proper choice of lubricant is also extremely important.  The tolerances were designed with a specific lubricant viscosity in mind...using the wrong one will affect the accuracy of the speeds.

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WD40 is great as a penetrant for freeing up stuck things, but if it is left in place it can gum them up.  Graphite (dry or in suspension in some quick-evap liquid) is a lubricant but also an abrasive, depending on the relative hardness of whatever it's being applied to.  I wouldn't use either of them on a precision geared mechanism such as a Leica slow-speed escapement.  They aren't that difficult to remove, clean with a solvent that leaves no residue, and then re-lubricate.  Proper choice of lubricant is also extremely important.  The tolerances were designed with a specific lubricant viscosity in mind...using the wrong one will affect the accuracy of the speeds.

 

What you describe here is best left to a professional, unless the camera owner is quite technically adept at such matters.

 

William

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Ach, for patching FP shutter curtains you can't beat roofing tar with a big brush.

 

Seriously, for large format shutters, detach the front and rear lenses and thoroughly flood the shutter with lighter fluid. Blow it dry. The repair tech appreciates that his hands won't get dirty.

Edited by pico
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  • 2 months later...

WD40 is great as a penetrant for freeing up stuck things, but if it is left in place it can gum them up.  Graphite (dry or in suspension in some quick-evap liquid) is a lubricant but also an abrasive, depending on the relative hardness of whatever it's being applied to.  I wouldn't use either of them on a precision geared mechanism such as a Leica slow-speed escapement.  They aren't that difficult to remove, clean with a solvent that leaves no residue, and then re-lubricate.  Proper choice of lubricant is also extremely important.  The tolerances were designed with a specific lubricant viscosity in mind...using the wrong one will affect the accuracy of the speeds.

Graphite is 'funny' stuff. Superb when used sparingly in a absolutely dry application, BUT, the slightest quantity of liquid lubricant and the d**n stuff sets like concrete. Shutter bearings are steel spindles running in bronze or brass bushes. Even 'K' and 'winterised' Liecas have totally dry bearings (I think).

D.Lox

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WD40 is great as a penetrant for freeing up stuck things

 

Compared to other solutions, WD-40 sucks. It does not penetrate well, it is not a lubricant. What does well is to displace moisture, and then only temporarily because as the kerosene evaporates, it attracts moisture again.

 

The very worst thing to use on a camera is powdered graphite. It migrates like an evil nano infection into optical components and is almost impossible to remove.

Edited by pico
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