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Shel Sherman

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Posted on Tuesday, June 15, 2004 - 10:54 am:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Moderator/Admin only)

I am having a problem cleaning the leaf shutter on a Retina Reflex III. Having removed the lens I flood the shutter with Naptha.
The shutter then works fine while still wet. After a couple of hours the Naptha is dry and now the shutter sticks again. I have tried several different lubricants such as Nyoil, graphite, and moly film, all of which cause the shutter to stick worse. I would appreciate some advice as to what I am doing wrong.

Shel Sherman
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rick oleson

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Posted on Tuesday, June 15, 2004 - 11:30 am:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Moderator/Admin only)

Hi Shel:

In my experience, flood cleaning very seldom works and should only be done if it's not possible to reach the problem area (and then with extreme caution). The problem is that the naphtha dissolves the dirt & grease just fine, but when it evaporates the crud is still in there, just somewhat redistributed by the fluid. To clean the shutter the dirt has to be removed from it, and this requires either wiping away the dirty solvent (ie, disassembly) or a huge flood so that the dirt is carried out of the assembly by the flow of solvent. The latter seldom comes without some unintended consequence.

As for adding lubricants to the process, this is a bit like trying to clean something by pouring dirt on it. The problem is caused primarily by lubricants in the first place, and new ones should be added very sparingly (if at all) and never until the shutter is clean.

In the Retina Reflex and other leaf shutter SLRs there is the added complication of drag in the cocking/release mechanism in the body, which is the root cause of more shutter problems in these cameras than the shutters themselves. You may find that the camera will not really run right until you have cleaned and possible relubricated the rack and pinion gears that are located just in front of the prism, behind where the camera name is engraved.

rick :)=

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