I bought an used Minolta Xgm camera for my friend and she'd been using for about 1 month. Then her brother did something and the reflex mirror would not go down any more and we could not see anything through the view any more. There is a lever in front of the mirror and if I push it to the left, the mirror goes down but if I release it, the mirror goes up again. Please help
Sounds like the second curtain has not completed its travel. I have "repaired" many Minolta XG series cameras that customers brought in with the mirror locked up in this way. Open the back of the camera, holding the body in your left hand. Put your thumb carefully on the shutter curtain and put your middle finger in through the front of the lens mount (lens taken off camera)and on the front of the shutter curtain to press against your thumb. Very gently move the curtain to the left, it should move a few millimeters and you should hear a click with the mirror releasing. This procedure takes just a few seconds but be very careful and don't force the curtain or press it hard. This will work 95% of the time on Minolta XG series cameras.
