Yashica Electro shutter won't open?

[jakegagne]

<p>I am beginning to think I am cursed to an eternal fate of never having a functional Electro GSN. After buying a broken one on eBay, buying a replacement, losing my first test roll, and then Walmart losing my most recent test roll, my latest problem is really irritating.<br>

I went to load a THIRD test roll into my Electro, and found that though the shutter button would press down all the way, it would not actually open the shutter, and the film would therefore not be able to advance. I have seen the shutter work perfectly* in the past, so why it won't now is beyond me. The batteries are good, meter is good, everything seems fine, except it won't open the shutter, and thus I can't load any film.</p>

<p>*I've watched it open and close, but of course, I've never had any results from it.</p>

[k5083]

Ah, another misguided hunter on the quest for the elusive working Electro. Many have stalked this beast, few have bagged it. When my second one worked only at 1/500, I decided to call it a draw and focus on equally good Japanese RFs of the period that stand a better chance of working. Best of luck on your quest, pilgrim.

[Mike Gammill]

<p>And also its poor cousin, the MG-1. I had a beautiful black MG-1 that worked fine for about a year then after would only fire at its default 1/500. Sold it as-is with this fault clearly stated and I haven't looked back. I've got an old Yashica Lynx that I'm trying to fix. Also looking for a Yashica Minister D at some point. Both of these have fully mechanical shutters.</p>

[richard_oleson]

<p>I think a quest for a reliable 30+ year old electronic shutter is problematic on its face. There are exceptions, but I don't think the Yashica comes very high on the list of them. For my pesos, there are too many decent rangefinders out there with reliable and/or repairable mechanical shutters for the Yashica Electro quest to make a lot of practical sense.</p>

[frank.schifano]

<p>Back a few years when I was looking for a neat Japanese rangefinder camera, I looked at the Yashica Electro 35 and decided it wasn't for me at all. There is no manual mode for these things, and I prefer shooting without automation. I was unaware at the time of the difficulties a lot of people have with these things. It's a neat looking camera; but without the ability to manually set a mechanical aperture and shutter, it lost all its appeal. Instead, I bagged a Canonet. It has wonky electronics, but I don't care. I can focus, set the shutter, and set the aperture and it works. Same thing for the Konica Auto S2, whose electronics are working fine, that I bagged a few months later. Together, the two of these cameras didn't cost $50 and they work fine. A few months after that I found a really old Minolta A from the late '50s for $2 at a thrift shop. They were using it as a doorstop for some display cabinet. No electronics on this one, but the slow speeds were sluggish. No matter. A little exercise and they straightened right up. Give it up on the Yashica and chalk it up to a bad experience. There are plenty of old rangefinder cameras out there that work looking for good homes.</p>

[don_e]

<p>You get the virus from having one that works long enough to shoot that test roll, and the pics are just great. Then it breaks, or pieces fall off, or it just stops working. The first stage is denial...8-) I've got the virus (and a box of dead yegs to prove it).</p>

<p>Either set it aside and buy a Konica or Canonet instead and be happy, or send it off to an expert with a parts bin to bring it up to spec. Do anything else and you too will end up with a box of dead yegs in the cellar. All these options cost about the same, it is just that with the first or second option you have a working camera.</p>

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[sasvata__shash__chatterjee]

<p>I have been chasing fixed-lens RFs as well. I got a decent Electro 35 GSN for $45, and everything works on it. I probably need to align the RF, the images I got from the test roll weren't as sharp as I was expecting them to be. The meter works fine. The really annoying thing about the Electro is that it does not show the chosen shutter speed. Of course, it has a stepless shutter, but it would have been nice to see the closest standard shutter speed. You can somewhat guess by moving the aperture to where one of the LEDs just disappears, giving 1/500th for the red LED and 1/30th for the yellow LED, and calculating the speed in your head as you move the aperture. But, it is inaccurate, and really awkward if you need to trick this aperture-priority camera to choose a particular shutter-speed.</p>

<p>I also got a mint Canonet QL-17 GIII (it includes a flash, all boxes, paperwork, even the empty packaging from the original battery :-)), but it cost $100. I like it much better than the Electro. Not only is it smaller, but even though it is shutter-priority, it shows a match-needle aperture scale in the view-finder and I can make sure that my preferred aperture is chosen when I need to do so. The images I get from this one are really crisp, and the metering works great as well.</p>

[sasvata__shash__chatterjee]

<p>Jack, if your electronics are working (battery test, exposure LEDs, etc.), then search Electro-35 POD or "pad of death" to see if that could be related to your shutter issues.</p>

 

[jim_momary]

<p>Jake - Anyone with a GSN has to be a glutton ---<br>

I have yet to deal with the PAD / POD issue. I luv the camera. I've had stuck shutters, broken wires, corroded wires, etc. I have a few in my collection, GSN and GS, all from the dreaded Ebay. For 'auto', it's the way I go. If I want to play 'manual' or have a very reliable body rangefinder, I pick up one of my Canonet G-iii or Konica Auto S2 or Minolta Himatic 9 cameras and have a ball.</p>

<p>It is my observation that the Yashica GSNs have had issues over time compared to some of their contemporaries; i.e. great lens .... less than great body longevity.</p>

<p>For me, all these 'old timers' are fun and neat toys. They mostly have very large aperture and sharp lenses compared to anything this size today.</p>

<p>And speaking of glutton, I am very glutinous :-)</p>

<p>Jim</p>

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[rustys pics]

<p>Well I'm sorry for your loss! ;) The Yashica Electro is a cult camera which built a huge reputation based on some early internet reviews. IMHO it is not really deserving of such acclaim. If they work they're great. If they don't just junk it and buy a Canonet QL or Minolta Hi Matic. Even the Kiev 4 series is more reliable....and that's saying something!</p><div></div>

[rustys pics]

<p>Just want to ad, the Canonet QL 17s are WAY over priced. Blame that <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0126604/">movie Pecker</a> . The QL 19 is nearly as fast and the lens is equally superb. I got mine for $25 a few years back. The yashica does look pretty on a shelf though. So at least you've got some nice decoration....</p>

[Mike Gammill]

<p>The last version of the QL 19 is almost as compact as the QL 17/GIII 17. Lens sticks out a bit more because it is a 45mm rather than 40mm as on the GIII 17. I sold my QL 19 as-is last year because of a sluggish diaphragm and meter issues. Spelled out these short comings, but it sold anyway. If you really want a Yashica RF, consider one of the earlier ones with a mechanical shutter such as the Lynx 5000 (has a 45mm f1.8 lens and CDS match needle meter.) A real bargain is the Yashica Minister D with its 45mm f2.8 and CDS match needle. The CDS cell for the Minister is on the filter ring for automatic filter compensation.</p>

[jakegagne]

<p>Thanks guys! I've decided to end my Yashica quest before I go broke. :-) And I would love a Canonet, but they are so insanely overpriced right now.</p>

[david_held1]

<p>Jake,<br>

Your quest should continue. My first Electro 35G is nearing its 40th anniversary. The rangefinder is a bit dim but it still works despite being carried for a year in Vietnam. My second GSN is great. I try to use both on a regular basis. Keep the faith and keep on trying. The Electros are great cameras.<br>

Dave Held</p>

[greg_nixon2]

<p>IMHO the Electro 35 is a very nice camera with a few troublesome quirks. In common with its other 40 year old peers there are always maintenance issues to be dealt with. Foam seals, rangefinder adjustments, corroded contacts etc. etc.<br />What makes the Yashica unique is that it was one of the first aperture priority cameras. The CDS "eye" does not drive a meter but is part of the shutter timing cct. There is no "trap needle" mechanism and no meter to tell you what the shutter speed really is. An ordinary photog like me will often decide what aperture I'd like to shoot a particular scene at, and then adjust the shutter speed to suit. The Electro sets the shutter speed automatically. <br />The shutter button directly drives the shutter release lever. It also drives, via a rubber pad, the electronic sequencing switch. The switch turns the camera on, checks the light level and drives the hi/lo leds, ending in timing and releasing the shutter. At lot of faults involve the mechanical/electrical operations being synchronised. The rubber POD is always suspect and is a part of that mechanical/electrical sync. There are 2 other rod adjustments to be made.<br />If you are prepared to remove the lens assy to replace the POD, then i'll send you the adjustment procedure.<br />If you have a nice looking 35 that would otherwise be binned, let me know and I'll pay the shipping to Oz.</p>

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[steve_mareno]

<p>These cameras are worth the hunt to get a working one, but avoid the sun at all costs! Even w/ a hood, and the correct one is useless, their uncoated optics will flare at the first sight of ol sol. The key to buying one is to scroll through all the usual suspects, like "camera appears to work/I'm selling this for a friend/bought at an estate sale" etc until you find one that says it definitely works, has a battery (w/ adapter) and comes w/ a return guarantee. I was infatuated w/ these once and actually sold a set of four, all working perfectly. I never adjusted to not knowing what shutter speed the camera had decided on and had too many shots ruined by flare, but the shots that did work were very sharp. As sharp as Contax G-1 cameras, another item that I have acquired and sold numerous times.</p>

<p>Matt Denton at Matt's Classic Cameras knows a lot about these, and his website may be able to help you w/ your shutter problem. It's probably a wire inside that came unsoldered.</p>

[steve_10170]

<p>Jake - I'm a relative newbie to the Yashica as I just bought one. The shutter operated, but I had some issues and so I decided to replace the Pad of Death (POD) (and just for the fun of it, I did it only by removing the top...so far so good). Based on what I have read about the various items affected by this important element and as pointed out by Greg above, I would start there. My POD was completely rotted away but the shutter seemed to correctly fire above 1/60th, but anything below that operated as though on 'B' (manual shutter operation). Now that I replaced the POD I can tell the shutter speed is adjusting properly across a wider range, though I am still having some trouble with the LED's and have not yet tested with film. But the pics I did take prior to the POD replacement outside with ISO 400 B&W were very sharp. I'm hoping to restore this to fully functional state. Cheers, Steve.</p>