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Message |
    
D.Brennan
Tinkerer
Username: Irish_eye
Post Number: 2
Registered: 08-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, August 21, 2006 - 11:32 pm: | 
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Anyone ever own one / refurb one?
Very sweet little camera.
Lens will not focus,
as grease has turned into aged concrete ala ~ Walz.
Tried the torch, (lens off body.) got a little movement, going to try the light oil next, then back to heat.. |
John Cribbin
Tinkerer
Username: John_cribbin
Post Number: 1
Registered: 08-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, August 24, 2006 - 11:41 am: |
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Hi,
Please don't add oil to the mechanism, you don't know where it will end up. Very likely diaphrapm blades, gumming them up, or if you are really unlucky migrating onto the optics. OK the sensible answer is to disassemble the lens, remove the hardened grease and repack with an appropriate optical grease. But I don't know the camera, the lens or your level or skills in this area. What you can try with some confidence, is to apply a small ammount of lighter fuel and work this into the grease. This fuel will soften the grease and allow you to operate the lens. However, when the fuel dries out, you may find the lens becomes stiff again. I've used this method several times, some lenses have become usable after a single application, some need a redo after a period of time, weeks / months and some are stiff again the following day. If you do try this method I can only stress use a few drops at a time, if you squirt it in, you may well end up with runny sludge which is just as bad as the oil you were going to use in the first place.
Good luck
John |
Pete Hobbis
Tinkerer
Username: Pete
Post Number: 1
Registered: 08-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, August 26, 2006 - 08:21 pm: |
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It is a cute thing, isn't it? Very quiet in operation too.
I got one of these apart by a combination of soaking in lighter fuel to extract some of the old lube (for several days; I took the glass out first), heating in a cool oven (maybe 100 C? after letting the petrol evaporate for a while!), and finally, while hot, I stuck it in a vice (with rubber jaws) and turned it with rubber-faced grips. The rubber on my grips sheared, and I scored the plated surface a little. The thread came apart though, and the camera is functionally fine now. Once I got it apart, I went round the thread with toothpicks to scrape out the lube. |
John Scott
Tinkerer
Username: John_scott
Post Number: 1
Registered: 08-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, August 27, 2006 - 09:51 pm: |
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I have several of the PaX series. On the ones that came to me with the lens focus stuck, it was alcohol that finally solved the problem. I took the lens/shutter assembly off the camera, took out the lens glass, and submerged the stuck area in alcohol for a few days, and then was able to unscrew the threaded pieces.
I first tried naptha (lighter fluid), but that didn't do anything.
I use the pink-colored industrial-grade alcohol that the hardware stores sell here in Taiwan. Might check at the auto parts or the hardware store and get the strongest alcohol they have.
I have solved this problem using heat on other cameras. I used the kitchen oven, and had the parts in the oven about 10-15 minutes on medium heat. Immediately after I took the parts out of the oven, I held them in a towel and unscrewed the threads. The heat softened the old grease enough so that I didn't need to use tools.
I've read that a heat gun works well, too.
I also tried using a torch (mine is a tiny little butane torch), but I think the reason that didn't work is because heat applied by my torch wasn't gradual or complete enough to soften all of the old grease sufficiently. |
D.Brennan
Tinkerer
Username: Irish_eye
Post Number: 3
Registered: 08-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, August 29, 2006 - 09:28 pm: |
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Thanks to all who replied!
Glad to see that others have found this camera!
I did use some drops of light oil (removed the lens elements first). I just placed them on the treads at the rear of the mount. (it really didnt do much.)I felt pretty comfortable using heat. (if you do, just be very careful with the torch!) Brass is an excellent heat conductor. The grease melted out, and the lens spun freely. Now to clean and re-lube the threads..  |
John Scott
Tinkerer
Username: John_scott
Post Number: 2
Registered: 08-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, August 30, 2006 - 05:31 am: |
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I have found these PaX models fairly easy to get back together after disassembling them, compared to many cameras. On the last one, I had the focus threads exposed for cleaning.
They ARE cute and fun to use, but as far as results, I don't think you can expect greatness. For one thing, the 3-element lens is a limitation. But you can certainly get images as nice as with any of the many other 3-element-lens cameras that were common in the early and mid-1950s.
Here's a couple of links to some of the better photos I have gotten with my PaX.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/21506490@N00/229064952/in/photostream/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/21506490@N00/229064954/in/photostream/ |
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