I just bought a Zeiss Ikon Contina IIa which looks to be in good shape except that the winder will not wind. I don't have an owner's manual so I don't know if I'm doing something wrong. Any ideas before I open it up? Any suggetions on what to look for if/when I do look inside?
Propably the wind lever is blocked because the camera is winded but can not be fired. I can imagine two possible reasons.
Many cameras of that aera including the Contina II can only be fired with an inserted film because the shutter is cocked by the sprocket wheel which is turned by the passing film. Try to turn the sprocket wheel manually in the film travel direction and try to fire.
The second reason might be that the shutter is sticky because of dried lubricants. Sometimes a cleaning of the shutter blades with a solvent might help. Sometimes the shutter has to be taken apart to clean it internally.
