Canonet QL17

[ibraheemone]

I recently bought a Canonet QL17 from ebay. The camera looks to be

in excellent condition. My concern is that the film advance lever

doesn't stick (i mean . . .with film in the camera you can advance to

the end of the roll without every pressing the shutter). I

downloaded an instruction manual and it didnt say anything about

this. Normal? or did i buy junk?

 

thanks in advance

[everitt]

Yes, my QL17 GIII does the exact same thing. On the back of the camera,

there is a small window that is red when a new frame is advanced, and turns

white when the shutter is fired. This is how to tell if you've fired the shutter for

that frame.

(I think at least! I don't have the camera in front of me right now :-) )

[tgh]

It's not normal, but it's common for these. Mine too does this. One advantage is not needing to trip the shutter when loading film.

 

Rick Oleson (think that's spelled right) who frequents photo.net had a web page telling how to fix this. It involves removing the front leather, breaking the name plate off and bending a little metal lever in the linkage slightly. I don't have the link to that page, but you may be able to search for it. It's never seemed worth the effort to attempt to fix it when it's only a minor thing to just look at the little red indicator on the camera back.

[skander_zannad]

Just to confirm this does not sound normal : mine does not do that. <br>

Best, <br>

Skander

[bonsignore_ezio]

Yes, it is not normal and yes, it can be repaired but you must known what you are doing. Rick Oleson will most probably post on this tread himself but just in case he doesn't make a search for kyphoto, go to their repeair forum and you will find detailed instructions on how to proceed.

[mark_lapolt___new_haven__c]

I had one of these fine instruments given to me as a gift last year. The photographer who gave it to me was clearing out some old stuff he had no more use for. Nestled in the bottom of the box was a QL17 G-III. I sent it for a CLA and light seal replacement and have been snapping away ever since. A Great walk around camera.

 

However, I have never had the issue of the film advance lever not stopping. My guess is there's a problem with the quick load (why these cameras have a QL designation) mechanism. The QL is supposed to allow you to drop a load of film in, pull the leader to the mark, and close the lid. Then you just work the advance lever until it stops. It should stop (mine always does) on the first frame on the frame count indicator. It sounds like the pin (or whatever) that tells the QL to stop at the first frame is broken/missing.

 

How are the light seals, have they started to go gummy yet?

[richard_oleson]

Hi! here i am!

 

Here's the page for fixing this problem: http://rick_oleson.tripod.com/index-30.html

 

It's not hard to do, and worth the effort I think. It's a pretty nice little camera.

 

rick :)=

[ibraheemone]

Thank you all.

[mph]

<blockquote><i>One advantage is not needing to trip the shutter when loading film.</i></blockquote>

 

Actually, that's not an advantage over a properly working GIII. Even when it's working right, the camera will advance to "1" without firing the shutter. I wish Canon had used the whole QL system in more cameras.

[winfried_buechsenschuetz1]

Rick describes ONE possible reason for this malfunction. Another one is due to the feature described in the last post. Before reaching frame #1, you can advance the film without firing the shutter. A small lever under the frame counter is pushed by a cam on a disk linked to the counter dial. If this lever does not return properly after reaching #1, you can also advance without any stop. Check this mechanism and rebend the lever if necessary.

 

BTW there were less complicated QL systems than the one used on the Canonets. On the Canonets, proper function of the QL system relies on the friction of two rubber pads linked to the advance shaft, and on a smooth surface of the film chamber these pads press the film against. Some Afga cameras had a similar system but they used cams on a disk which fit into the sprocket holes of the film to advance it - but this system was not very reliable either.