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Cian Clarke
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, May 27, 2005 - 07:32 am: | 
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My Praktica MTL3 frame counter is not working when I cock the shutter and release - it seems to be stuck at the number five. I have tried rewinding, fiddeling with the bits inside to try and bring it back, all sorts - but it seems nicely stuck. The camera has had a bang to the top right corner, right by the frame counter, and the screen is slightly cracked. Should I try disassembling the camera (again?) Last time I managed to disasemble the shutter speed select dial, and took the washers off the shutter cock lever, but couldn't figure how to remove the actual lever. I also couldn't figure the hot shoe.
It might be worth mentioning I have no battery in the camera (the one it came with was dead, tested it with a volt meter) and I'm waiting for a replacement. Since this is a fully manual camera would I be corect in assuming that whether the camera has a battery or not will have no effect whatsoever on the frame counter working?
Finally, a simple question. I'm a recent convert from the world of digital to a fully manual film camera (straight into the deep end!) - if I meter with my fathers Canon 50E film camera with the same appature setting on a lens of the same mm will I get an accurate exposure reading which I can then use on my Praktica?
Could I do the same with my 300D with the digital ISO speed set the same as the film in the camera?
Thanks,
Cian |
Stephen Brian
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, May 27, 2005 - 08:10 am: |
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A great camera.
The film counter will work fine without the battery.
Dr Mike Otto's website www.praktica-collector.de staes that the modern 625 cell, cocting a few pounds GB can be used without having to adjust the metering. I have found this to be the case as my MTL3/ Super TL 1000 both work fine with the slightly higher voltage.
Good luck with a beautiful camera |
Cian Clarke
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, May 27, 2005 - 12:23 pm: |
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Thanks for the reply. It might be worth menting with regard to the stuck frame counter that I have found what I presume to be the auto-zeroing lever (top right corner, by the door hinge) with the back door removed, and I can push this in and out with a knife, but it doesen't do anything. |
Cian Clarke
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, May 27, 2005 - 12:25 pm: |
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(Also, any help or further instructions regarding removing the shutter cocking lever would be greatly appreciated). |
Tony Duell
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, May 27, 2005 - 02:35 pm: |
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IIRC, to remove the widing lever, you prise out the disk in the middle (a sewing needle is good for this), then remove the E-circlip and washers on the spindle. They're inside a brass cup which you unscrew (normal RH thread) using a suitable tool (a small pair of pliers?) in the 2 holes inside it. With that removed, lift off the lever, then the trim ring under it.
For the hotshoe, unclip the spring plate inside and slide it out backwards. There are 3 screws under it. I think you remove the rear 2, loosen the front one, and slide the shoe backwards to free it. I think the front screw screws into a loose plate inside, which is why you don't remove it. Then desolder the sync wire (normally blue) from the shoe contact.
As regards the counter, it's all up on top of the shutter control assembly. The counter disk itself has a small spiral spring (a bit like a thick hairspring) under it to return it to zero. There are 2 pawls that engage with the ratchet under the numbered disk, the top one is just to stop it running back to zero, the lower one is the one that is couple to the winding mechanism to advance it. Both are lifted away from the ratchet by the reset lever (which you have correctly identified).
If you have to dismantle things further, you can remove the tiny tension spring from the top pawl and then slide this pawl off the spindle. Swing out the lower pawl, and you can then work the lever it's attached to off the spindle. Undo the screw in the middle of the counter disk, which holds the plate with the pointer in place, grip the counter disk _and spiral spring_ together with tweezers and pull the lot off, disconnecting the spiral spring from the fixed stud.
If the counter doesn't go back to zero when both pawls are lifted by the reset lever, then it's either jammed or the spring is broken/disconnected. Should be easy to work out what's going on.
As regard the meter, it's a true bridge circuit, and the correct exposure point _is_ the electrical balance point of the bridge (unlike Pentax!). It should be independant of battery voltage, so a 1.5V battery is fine. The only problem is that the +/- marks on the screen were designed (at least in some Practikas) to be 1 stop over/under exposure indicators, and that is dependant to some extent on the voltage. But if you adjust the shutter speed/aperture for the correct exposure indication and then move them by the amount to give the desired under/over exposure, you will have no problems. |
Cian Clarke
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, May 29, 2005 - 05:10 am: |
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Many thanks for the very detailed reply! I'll get working on this camera later today, thanks! |
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