ottokbre wrote:
I have owned a Minolta Autocord for yearrrrrrs and have worked on at least three of them. They are pretty bullet proof.
Like an old BMW they just need to be driven regularly to keep them running smoothly. Avoid the desire to lubricate them as they on virtually none. As long as the focus isnt too dampened you are good to go. If there is any amount of tension on the focus tab it will break off. Fortunately it's a very easy helicoid to strip and regrease with modern synthetic that will last forever.
What would that feel like? Slow to slide the focus arm?
kwoodard wrote:
What would that feel like? Slow to slide the focus arm?
Yes. Too slow when it definitely feels like you're making an effort to move the focus lever from one side to another and it will feel pretty slow. You'll feel quite a bit of resistance when things are not ideal instead of a very mild dampening after a fresh regrease and the focus lever will be quite easy and quick to move from side-to-side.
My Autocord focus seemed pretty good when I first got it but after a Karl Bryan CLA I then realized that it was far too stiff and slow and he made things far nicer with focusing as well as everything else all around. Highly recommend a Karl Bryan CLA for the Autocord.
A first for me: I junked a roll of Ektar 100 because it ripped off the cannister spool with such a weirdly shaped tear that it was impossible for me to find the end wrapped around the takeup spool in the dark (Leica M-A). Even brought it to a film shop and they couldn't manage either. Had to admit defeat and did it in the light, straightforwardly but needing a little screwdriver to fish out the ripped end, ruining the whole roll. It was definitely a roll full of bangers, too.
One from a roll of Portra 400 earlier this summer in Zürich. Leica M-A, 28mm Summilux-M.
fiorano wrote:
Yes. Too slow when it definitely feels like you're making an effort to move the focus lever from one side to another and it will feel pretty slow. You'll feel quite a bit of resistance when things are not ideal instead of a very mild dampening after a fresh regrease and the focus lever will be quite easy and quick to move from side-to-side.
My Autocord focus seemed pretty good when I first got it but after a Karl Bryan CLA I then realized that it was far too stiff and slow and he made things far nicer with focusing as well as everything else all around. Highly recommend a Karl Bryan CLA for the Autocord....Show more →
Yes. Mine didn't seem too bad but it was enough to break the focus arm off. I had a new focus arm cast from Shapeways, filed and fit it, regreased the helicoid, and put it all back together (and did this same thing to two other Autocords). So if yours DOES break it's not the end of the world.
The leaf shutter on these is very crisp and since you don't have mirror flap you can actually do a speed test with a iPhone app and it's pretty reliable measurement. If it's off then you def need a pro CLA.
ottokbre wrote:
Yes. Mine didn't seem too bad but it was enough to break the focus arm off. I had a new focus arm cast from Shapeways, filed and fit it, regreased the helicoid, and put it all back together (and did this same thing to two other Autocords). So if yours DOES break it's not the end of the world.
The leaf shutter on these is very crisp and since you don't have mirror flap you can actually do a speed test with a iPhone app and it's pretty reliable measurement. If it's off then you def need a pro CLA.
philipj wrote:
A first for me: I junked a roll of Ektar 100 because it ripped off the cannister spool with such a weirdly shaped tear that it was impossible for me to find the end wrapped around the takeup spool in the dark (Leica M-A). Even brought it to a film shop and they couldn't manage either. Had to admit defeat and did it in the light, straightforwardly but needing a little screwdriver to fish out the ripped end, ruining the whole roll. It was definitely a roll full of bangers, too.
One from a roll of Portra 400 earlier this summer in Zürich. Leica M-A, 28mm Summilux-M.
Desmolicious wrote:
How did you rip it off the spool? Were you trying to get 39 exposures from a 36 exp roll?
No clue! When I didn't find a hard stop after the 36th and 37th frames I checked to make sure there was tension still on the rewind knob and there was none. The bit remaining on the canister end looked like an equilateral triangle, so there was only a small corner on the bottom to actually find and grip to unspool. No wonder we all had no luck in a dark bag. The people at the film shop in Toronto where I brought it had never seen such a tear before.
philipj wrote:
No clue! When I didn't find a hard stop after the 36th and 37th frames I checked to make sure there was tension still on the rewind knob and there was none. The bit remaining on the canister end looked like an equilateral triangle, so there was only a small corner on the bottom to actually find and grip to unspool. No wonder we all had no luck in a dark bag. The people at the film shop in Toronto where I brought it had never seen such a tear before.
First off, I used to be able to fish the leader out of a roll of Tri-X , load it on a reel and cut the film even with the lip of the cassette. Then Kodak made some changes, the images run almost to the end of the roll and the new acrylic tape is almost impossible to cut. I'm back to opening the cassette in the dark bag, loading the reel and cutting the film as close as possible from the spool for a little nub for the drying clip to latch in to. And I always have to really press on the clip to get it to pop through the tape. I guess the M-A wind mechanism is pretty strong!
All my chemistry, and bits showed up today. At 3.15pm I headed down to mix xtol, stop bath, fixer, and photo-flo. Took my 8 quart nylon cambo from the cooking store, and a great set of silicone stirring paddles to put on my cordless drill. Whiz, pour, bottle, and label. Ran the Kentmere through (drying now) and was back upstairs in 2.5 hours. The base is so clear. I used a 1 to 1 dilution. And my hands smell like flowers? I did have gloves on, but I did get chemistry on my hands. I'll scan some tonight. Thanks for the advice folks.
James Markus wrote:
All my chemistry, and bits showed up today. At 3.15pm I headed down to mix xtol, stop bath, fixer, and photo-flo. Took my 8 quart nylon cambo from the cooking store, and a great set of silicone stirring paddles to put on my cordless drill. Whiz, pour, bottle, and label. Ran the Kentmere through (drying now) and was back upstairs in 2.5 hours. The base is so clear. I used a 1 to 1 dilution. And my hands smell like flowers? I did have gloves on, but I did get chemistry on my hands. I'll scan some tonight. Thanks for the advice folks....Show more →
Burbank water is notoriously hard and I own a little jar of ascorbic acid just to get rid of scaling on my sink. Now I might use my spent xtol. lol
James Markus wrote:
All my chemistry, and bits showed up today. At 3.15pm I headed down to mix xtol, stop bath, fixer, and photo-flo. Took my 8 quart nylon cambo from the cooking store, and a great set of silicone stirring paddles to put on my cordless drill. Whiz, pour, bottle, and label. Ran the Kentmere through (drying now) and was back upstairs in 2.5 hours. The base is so clear. I used a 1 to 1 dilution. And my hands smell like flowers? I did have gloves on, but I did get chemistry on my hands. I'll scan some tonight. Thanks for the advice folks....Show more →
I use Foma Indicator Stop Bath which never makes it to the indicator part because of its thirty day (refrigerated) shelf life. It does have a nice orange smell.
madNbad wrote:
I use Foma Indicator Stop Bath which never makes it to the indicator part because of its thirty day (refrigerated) shelf life. It does have a nice orange smell.
I use acetic acid (like strong vinegar) - it never expires. I have two 30 year old bottles of the indicator type, or a life time supply. I was at World Market once and saw Himalayan salt with and expiration date printed on it. I got an embarrassing case of lol. Sales rep asked if anything was wrong. I asked what they did to the salt that took millions of years to form, but now it only had a few months left? We both laughed.
James Markus wrote:
I use acetic acid (like strong vinegar) - it never expires. I have two 30 year old bottles of the indicator type, or a life time supply. I was at World Market once and saw Himalayan salt with and expiration date printed on it. I got an embarrassing case of lol. Sales rep asked if anything was wrong. I asked what they did to the salt that took millions of years to form, but now it only had a few months left? We both laughed.
Now you’re gonna make me look for expiration dates on salt!
