Nikon F2:Winding lever and shutter release stuck. Any help?

[geraint_warlow]

Hi, I am a complete beginner here and have run into trouble with a

Nikon F2 that was recently given to me.

The camera function perfectly for the first roll of film. I removed

this and for a day the camera was filmless. When I reloaded the

camera with film I could not advnce the film with the lever thingmy

as it wil not move past the first position (the red dot position

that activates the light meter). Also the shutter release button

will not depress.

It acts like the button is locked by the little T-L ring thing, but

this is in the middle position. In any case, that little ring will

not move in either direction.

In summary:

1. The film advance lever will not move past red dot.

2. The shutter release button will not depresss.

3. The T/L locking ring around the button will not move.

 

Any help much appreciated. I'm itching to take some photos!

Thanks to anyone who replies!

[lex_jenkins]

I'm not familiar with the F2 so my ability to be helpful is limited. However you might try opening the back and examining the film takeup spool area for bits of broken film that might be jamming something. Occasionally bits break off the margins around the sprocket holes, especially if the owner reloaded film. It's difficult to cut leaders precisely to the clean shape of commercially loaded film leaders, so there may sometimes be a cut through a sprocket hole that leaves it vulnerable to breaking off.

[neil_parker]

Were you able to advance the camera to load the film, or did it jam after the film was

loaded and camera back closed?

 

The T/L ring has to be lifted to move, but if it is in the central position, that is correct. ('L'

locks the shutter and 'T' lets you set timed exposures over a second with the self timer).

 

Is it possible that the film is improperly loaded and jamming the camera somehow?

 

You could take the film out if you haven't taken any pictures on it yet. Just rewind enough

to release the film and still leave the tail out so you can reload it later. If you rewind it

close to your ear you should be able to here it release the film. (To rewind: press the

release button on the bottom plate, and rewind clockwise.)

 

Then try the camera filmless to see if it fires.

[luis triguez]

<a href="http://www.geocities.com/sover_wong/Nikon_F2_Repair_Service.html">just in case</a>

[david_garrigan]

Check the batteries. Sometimes if the batteries are low you can't advance or shoot anymore

[kelly_flanigan1]

The only time any of my F2's died was when one went under salt water with katrina decently. The battery has nothing to do with the shutter; it is for the meter; IF you have a meter prism. This is a fully mechanical camera.

[james_lai]

Try pressing the rewind button and winding again. My F2 once got stuck like this when the MD-3 motor hit the end of the roll.

[lex_jenkins]

Ditto what James suggested. This has happened with my F3HP and FM2N when using motor drives. Sometimes when the last frame catches halfway I have to turn off the motor drive, fiddle with the rewind release button and rewind knob and gentle squiggle the film advance lever. This happens often enough that I've got it down to a routine maneuver.

 

Come to think of it, this has happened a few times with my OM-1, and I don't have a motor drive for it. No big deal.

[scott_warn]

It's not a battery problem, the shutter on the F2 is totally mechanical. The only thing the battery does is power the meter. BTW, one quick way to spot if the shutter is cocked is to remove the meter and look in the center of the shutter speed dial on the camera. There is a silver dial in the center that indicates the shutter status. If the shutter is cocked the line on the disk will point exactly at the set shutter speed. If the shutter is not cocked, with the shutter speed dial set at 1/30, the indicator line will point at the 1/125 shutter speed indication. If it's pointing anywhere else, you have a partially cocked shutter.

 

It's possible it's a "short wind" problem, that is you have the shutter about 95% cocked. If it's a "short wind" try giving a tiny bit more force to the wind lever and see if it moves a small amount. It could also be that the T-L ring isn't sitting exactly in it's slot and it's turned slightly, just enough that it looks like it's centered but it isn't.

 

1) To Turn the T-L collar you have to lift it straight up and then rotate it. Two positions will allow the shutter to be released. In the center position, the shutter release will behave as expected. In the T position, the behavior changes and it's quite possible that your in the T position. What happens in the T position is that the shutter release button stays down and you cannot wind the shutter. The way to release the shutter button is by turning the T-L collar to the center position. Once you do this, you can then wind the shutter.

 

BTW, the reason for this is so that you can lock the shutter open when it's set to the B position. Setting the collar to T will keep the shutter open until you release the button by rotating the collar. If your taking a 2 hour exposure, it means you don't have to stand there holding the shutter open. It is also used when using the self timer to provide a 2 to 10 second exposure. Just an FYI, the long exposure option is done with the following procedure. Set the shutter to B, set the T-L collar to T, set the self timer between 2 and 10 seconds, cock the shutter and release it with the shutter button. After the exposure you will have to turn the T-L collar in order to wind the camera.

 

2) There are 2 other methods for releasing the shutter if it is cocked. One is to use the self timer. The other is with the shutter release for the motor drive. For the motor drive release, it's below the slef timer at the front of the baseplate and looks like a screw surrounded by a very narrow silver collar in a small recess. You can use a ball point pen and push it in about 1/8 inch, if the shutter is cocked this will release it.

 

3) Another way to wind the shutter but you do have to be careful. Open the camera back and use a fingernail to rotate the film sprocket in the direction of travel for the film. It takes a bit of force to do this but not enough to break a fingernail clipped fairly short. BTW, a fingernail is probably the best instrument for doing this. If you break your nail, it means the shutter is cocked or the camera is jammed.

 

4) Something else that may help is to try using the double exposure provision. On the F2 you can take a double exposure by pushing in the film rewind button. This will allow you to wind one frame without the fim moving. After that one frame advance, the film rewind button will pop back out. For more exposures on one frame, you just repeat pushing the rewind button in for each exposure.

 

Hope this helps. The first two things you should look at are the shutter release button and the shutter status indicator. If your shutter release button is in the down position, it's probably that the T-L collar is set at T. If the shutter status indicator isn't at either of the 2 positions I described, it's a short wind problem.

[dirk_hr_spennemann]

<p>Is there any other way to overcome the sort wind problem?</p>

 

[AbuAdamee]

I had the winding lever stuck on my 1976 F2 Nikon.

I was abel to released it by taking off the meter and lens. I also locked mirror up. This way, I had full access to shutter curtain.

I pushed back and released the sutter curtain.

This did it for me.

Edited April 21 by AbuAdamee

[orsetto]

Before this thread disappears back in time again...

The Nikon F2 is my all time favorite 35mm SLR, but it does have some quirks that can make it suddenly malfunction in ways the earlier Nikon F (and lesser Nikkormats) do not. Depending on past use history, storage, etc, the F2 can indeed manifest a jammed wind lever (which may or may not be tied to related issues with the shutter button collar mechanism). The F2 shutter is also prone to develop capping (not properly exposing) at the fastest 1/500, 1/1000, and esp 1/2000 speeds: the shutter system is more sensitive to misuse than the older F shutter mechanics.

The F2 is a phenomenal, rugged camera but it doesn't tolerate misuse/disuse to the degree the older F can handle. The F is unkillable, the F2 slightly less so. Most important tip for preserving the F2: never leave the shutter cocked overnight, preferably not more than an hour. Always fire a cocked F2 before putting it away for the night, to relieve tension on the shutter mainspring. Check the shutter button collar occasionally, to be sure its holding to the center detent securely. Avoid moving it off center to the locked or T position unless absolutely necessary. Avoid using multiple short strokes to advance the film or cock the camera: doing this substantially increases the odds of the lever locking up or other mechanical mishaps. This applies primarily to aging F2 cameras that haven't ever been serviced: if your F2 has been recently overhauled by a specialist tech like Sover Wong, it won't be prone to winding or button collar glitches. Just be vigilant about not leaving the shutter cocked for long periods.