robert_chadwick

I have a IIa , the film counter mechanism has a lever with a spring on the end, if this spring bit gets broken it jams the winding mechanism because it cannot be reset, there is a small spring loaded pawl in the film advance lever which stops the film being wound on (all part of the mechanism that stops you winding on when counter reaches zero} my counter spring broke and replacements are available but expensive, I think it was one of Chris Sherlocks tips, to tie back this feed pawl in the wind lever with something like dental floss, it means you dont have a film counter but makes the camera usable again, either advance the counter manually, or just keep a check on how many exposures you have made so you know when you are approaching end of film and wind on gently so as to not strip the teeth on the cocking rack.I did this with mine and it has worked perfectly ever since. Just keep an eye on how many frames you have shot.

I Also owned a 1.7 Planar and a Helios 44.2, Tested thm agaist each other and found the Helios was every bit as good as the Planar, kept the Hlios, sold the Planar for a nice little sum.

I have a IIA and a IIc, both produce exceptional images, the IIc is pristine but the IIA has a frame counter problem which I resolved by using dental floss to tie back the counter pawl so the camera can still wind on but doesnt lock up , like it would do normally when the counter reaches zero. You just have to remember to manually move the counter back one every time you wind on. I'm not sure about sending it off to New Zealand for a service whether it is worth the cost, shutter works perfectly and is whisper quiet. As said viewfinders are not perfect.

Hmmm not sure I like this revamp, I knew my way around the old one, this seems confusing but looks clean and modern