Konica Auto S2 aperture question

<p>This is so obvious I'm almost ashamed to ask but I always tell my students there are no dumb questions. So here goes. I've got a Konica Auto S2 that appears to be in wonderful shape. Everything works as it should with one exception: the aperture opening does not change when I move through the aperture settings on Bulb. I've checked the manual on Butkus and can find nothing that would suggest this is normal. I would assume it is stuck except for the condition of the camera and the fact that I've learned that many of these older cameras have strange (to me) procedures for getting some functions to work. If any Auto S2 people out there could give me a quick shout on this, I would very much appreciate it. Many thanks!</p>

<p>Rebecca, I don't have my Auto S2 in front of me but I think it should show the aperture stopped down and it may be stuck. Being a leaf-shutter rangefinder it doesn't have, or need, an "auto" aperture. I'm sure one of the other forum members will confirm before I get home from work today to check mine out.</p>

<p>Aperture blades should move with the aperture ring at all speeds including Bulb,<br>

That's the way it works on my KAS2 at least.<br>

(And I just noticed you can't select Auto on the aperture ring with speeds slower then 1/4th of a second apparently.)</p>

<p> </p>

<p>I have an Auto S2 that was serviced early this year by Greg Weber. If I set the aperture to 16 and the shutter speed to B, open the back, hold the shutter release down, and look through the camera from behind while moving the aperture ring from 16 to 1.8 and back again, I can see the aperture iris gradually open all the way and then gradually close again. If yours does not do this, then I think something's wrong with it, unless there was an engineering change in the Auto S2 that would account for the difference in behavior.</p>

<p>If you set the shutter speed to something else (say 1/2 sec.) and release the shutter several times with the back open and the aperture set to different values, can you see the aperture size varying between shots? If not, then you definitely have a problem.</p>

<p>Rick, my Auto S2 behaves like yours: if I have the aperture set to Auto and I try to select a shutter speed slower than 1/4, I feel some resistance in the shutter speed ring, and then as the shutter speed moves past 1/4 the aperture moves off of Auto toward 1.8.</p>

<p>Thanks all -- it's stuck! Bummer, but at least I know!</p>

<p>Maybe it's dried grease. I know the shutter tends to freeze on this camera if it hasn't been used for some years. Exercising the aperture ring might help a little. </p>

<p> </p>

<p>I took my camera out today. Wonderful model but they're almost famous for needing a shutter clean. Mine is nearly mint but still needed attention which I did myself. It's not so hard to get inside one, and there are quite a few links and photos about how to do it, but you will need to remove and re-solder a wire. It's very likely, if the shutter speeds are OK, that it just has some evaporated lube on the aperture blades. Clean this off, and it should work fine. It is definitely worth the effort, because the Hexanon lens is excellent.<br>

Once attended to, you should also ensure that, looking through the back of the camera, it will select the full range of f stops when it is set to "Auto". This isn't full auto, it provides shutter priority operation, where the photographer selects the shutter speed and the camera meter linkage adjusts the aperture automatically. You should be able to see the aperture change size as you run through the speed range from 1/500 down. It's not so uncommon for the aperture to function acceptably in manual mode, however the actuating spring for the auto function isn't particularly strong, and the smallest amount of contamination can create exposure problems on the auto setting. If yours does not move at all it badly needs cleaning.<br>

The correct battery (which is needed only for the meter, and hence, of course, for auto aperture operation) is a PX625 or equivalent. I use a Wein cell in mine and usually get in excess of six months life or more from the cell. Naturally if you want full manual and separate metering a battery isn't needed at all. This is one of the things that makes the Konica a better option than some of the Minoltas and even later Konicas such as the S3. Auto aperture is there if you need it, but full manual control via mechanical operation is not battery dependant--it gives you more options. Hope this helps.</p>

<p>The problem with the S2 aperture is that it is moved by a tiny hairspring. If the aperture blades are more or less stuck, the hairspring cannot move them anymore. It is useless to rebend this hairspring or to use a self-made one with thicker (and stronger) wire, this will disturb the auto-aperture mechanism.<br>

So you HAVE to clean the aperture blades very carefully until they are snappy again.</p>

I've heard Greg Weber is the one to send Konicas to. Stuck apertures blades as well as shutter blades become more common as cameras age. I have two Konica Auto S rangefinders with stuck apertures and also a Minolta Hi-Matic 7.

So, what do you teach?

<p>Again, my thanks to all of you for the information on this camera. It's part of the collection I'm selling so I'll be sure to pass along the info to whomever acquires it. I am constantly amazed (and grateful) at the depth and breadth of the knowledge that can be accessed through this forum. I'm thinking about posting a photo every day or so of some of the cameras I'm encountering as I go through box after box after box . . . I think it might be fun for people to see. I'm certainly enjoying handling all these individual "personalities".<br>

To answer Mike's question, I write science and natural history books so I give talks about animals as well as teaching writing classes and photography classes, the latter with my husband. The best days are with either the K,1,and 2 kids (they ask what they really want to know) or the senior citizens (they have better stories than I do and we all end up sitting around swapping tales.) <br>

Thanks again to all of you!</p>

<p>Thanks, Rebecca. I teach science (Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Earth Science) and try to incorporate photography into my instruction whenever possible. My kids love my old classic cameras that I bring to school every day.<br>

And good luck with your Auto S2. They are truly great cameras. I still have and use my Konica Auto S2 that I bought new in 1974. Everything works except the exposure count.</p>

<p>In response to everyones problem with the aperture blades for the Konica S2, I have owned four of these so far that where looking like new still. All had frozen apertures and shutters as well. All I did was remove the rear lens barrel retaining ring to have the lens barrel away from the cameras body. Removing the two wires up front behind the electronic eye is optional to some. I vote to leave in attached for less work. If leaving the wires on you must take care to not to twist the lens barrel around or pulling on the lens barrel. You may break these wires off internally. After I carefully examine the back side of the lens barrel I look to see if the aperture preload spring is still attached. If so I remove the rear lens assembly. I use a self made spanner wrench I have made from a stiff bladed putty knife that was fitted for the rear lens of the Canonet G-III. It works perfect on this S2 Konica. Upon removal I use Ronsonol lighter fluid sparingly on the hinge points of all 5 aperture blades. I also add a drop by the preload spring. I did this once a day for 5 days working the blades by hand. The 6th day all was working by its own lie new again. All had sticky shutters too mind you and the solvent used on all apertures had to loosen the shutters blades as well for all shutters were working again. Luck may have been on my side possibly.<br>

Good luck to all</p>

<p>This is so obvious I'm almost ashamed to ask but I always tell my students there are no dumb questions. So here goes. I've got a Konica Auto S2 that appears to be in wonderful shape. Everything works as it should with one exception: the aperture opening does not change when I move through the aperture settings on Bulb. I've checked the manual on Butkus and can find nothing that would suggest this is normal. I would assume it is stuck except for the condition of the camera and the fact that I've learned that many of these older cameras have strange (to me) procedures for getting some functions to work. If any Auto S2 people out there could give me a quick shout on this, I would very much appreciate it. Many thanks!</p>

I remove the front and rear optics and soak the barrel for a few hours a day for a week in standard lighter fluid. Let dry for two days and try it out before reinstalling the optics. It had worked for me in the beginning. Now I strip the entire lens apart since I repair more than one at a time now

I remove the front and rear optics and soak the barrel for a few hours a day for a week in standard lighter fluid. Let dry for two days and try it out before reinstalling the optics. It had worked for me in the beginning. Now I strip the entire lens apart since I repair more than one at a time now

Also back in the day whale oil was used on this model camera.

It is the hardest oil to get rid of

There are 3 threads about the Konica S2 at the moment. I don't think I can add much more than has already been said. I do have a. Flickr account and up there are a heap of photos of a Konica S2 in various state of disassembly. http://HTTPS://www.flickr.com/photos/3570661@no8

THat should get you close.

The shutter as shown in the photos has a pin sheared off. I can't edit it ATM but will do so next week.

Konica Auto S2

This link will work. I hope!

Photo DSCN2017 at about 1 o'clock, between the speed cam and the clicker plate, there is what appears to be a brass sleeved hole and a flat spring. The brass hole is where a post used to be. The post can be broken off if an owner attempts to unscrew the lens or it has been dropped. Tell tale signs are the CDS cell being off centre.

Good luck if you are going to attempt a repair.

Well this is embarrassing. I've been messing about trying to get the links to Flickr working and a few other comments, only to realise that the thread started in 2011. Is this a "feature" of this latest release of the software?