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Archive 2010 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

Patrick F.
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

Hey everyone,

I've been using this camera for a few months now without any problems. However today I was shooting outside and suddenly after releasing the shutter it did not advance the film. I turned the camera off, then back on, half-pressed the shutter button... nothing. I released the shutter again, still nothing! No error messages either.

Not knowing what to do I pressed the manual film advance button and it did roll up the film -but I wasted my roll. How do I find out if the issue is resolved without wasting any more film?

Thanks,
Patrick

Dec 06, 2010 at 04:22 PM

sirimiri
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

Out of curiosity, what was the temperature when you were shooting, and how long were you exposed to it? (no pun intended heh heh)

What kind of batteries were you using? Alkaline? Lithium? Ni-Cad? NiMH?

Immediately before, then after the incident, what did the battery meter show?

Did you see a "n0 fB" (gotta love the Mamiya's shorthand!) warning at all?

The ony things I can think of, would be either a voltage drop as perceived by the camera system, or a loss of power to the film back or insert. Usually in the case of the latter, upon "re-discovery" of a back, the system will advance the roll (again) as if it were a fresh one. But from what you say, that's not the case; your 645AF just stopped cold.

The easiest place to start, in my opinion, is to replace the camera batteries with new alkalines or lithiums, as well as swapping out the CR3032 (2030? arrrgh!) button battery powering the back memory.

Fly with that for a few shoots. If the problem is still present, it might be a contact continuity issue, but as I said, usually the the camera will start randomly auto-advancing through rolls even though they are already loaded.

One last test sticks out at me: when this occurred, did you try inserting the dark slide and then removing the film back? Even without batteries, the auto-retract of the shutter should work. But, the re-cocking of the shutter, after you replace the back, would NOT occur, irrespective of what's in the back (and how far along it is). The camera shouldn't care what the back contains, it would only care that a back has been attached and detected, therefore if it has sufficient power, it will re-cock the shutter. If you tried this, and it wouldn't re-set, then I'd say it's specifically a body problem, either electrical or mechanical.

Dec 06, 2010 at 09:54 PM

Patrick F.
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

Hi Sirimiri,

I think you're right about the voltage drop possibility. Outdoor temperature was the coldest I have used it in yet (23 deg F / -5 C). I was outside maybe 10 minutes and the problem occurred. However, I was using new alkaline batteries, and battery meter always showed "full power".

I don't know how old the CR2032 (you were close

) battery is. However in the manual I remember reading that the film back only relies on the backup battery when it's detached from the camera body and that this battery's only purpose is to remember the iso value and frame number.

I will replace the cr2032 tomorrow. Wish I had thought of removing the film back and reattaching before I pressed the manual film advance..! It's too bad there's is no way to manually advance one frame at a time.

Thank you very much for your help, I'll try shooting another film tomorrow (indoors) and see if the issue is gone.
Patrick

Dec 06, 2010 at 10:24 PM

brucemuir
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

Let us know if you figure it out...
battery issues sound feasible.

Last thurs here in DC I walked from the subway to the job location (2-3 city blocks) and my NP-E3 (Ni-MH) that was inside my 1D2 went flat when I got to the job and shot off a few wb tests. (battery was charged the night before but isn't "new")

When I checked the suspect battery the next day it had returned to a full reading.

Dec 06, 2010 at 10:40 PM

Patrick F.
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

So without changing the cr2032 battery, I loaded a new film, took a few shots indoors, and everything's fine! I even took it outside again for a few minutes, no problem. I guess it just doesn't like the cold too much

@brucemuir, Yes I remember the same happened to me once with my 1d2, I was outside in a blizzard (temp was about 20F) and the fully charged battery died after only 5 minutes. My 20D just kept going though. Maybe Li-Ion batteries are less sensible to cold?

Dec 08, 2010 at 11:56 AM

brucemuir
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

Patrick,
yes I do think Li Ion can handle cold MUCH better.

I was just digesting a bunch of info over at batteryuniversity.com

haha

glad things are looking up

Dec 08, 2010 at 12:04 PM

trogdon
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

Sorry to bump such an old thread, but I’m having a similar problem with mine and I can’t find a solution online anywhere

I purchased a Mamiya 645AF recently from a friend for an amazing price, they shipped it out with some film already loaded. The counter showed 2 when I got it. Flash forward some time later I hadn’t had an opportunity to use the camera much (maybe 1-2 shots I had added), and when I checked it the LCD on the back just showed 2 lines. I can take shots, but the film would not advance. I opened the back to see the film (this was a test roll anyway), and it was not moving when I took shots. I wasn’t able to do the manual film rewind, when pushing the button with half pressing the shutter it won’t work. I unloaded the film and tried inserting a new roll, but I keep getting the same - - error, it doesn’t trying film is inserted.

I tried replacing the camera batteries, the batteries in the back, cleaning all of the contact points to the camera and back, putting fresh film in, making sure multiple times the reel has clicked in correctly, setting the back multiple times with different states of the camera being on or off and half pressing the shutter, but nothing I do is working.

Does anyone have any idea what this could be? It’s not listed in the manual, it just says the film is probably not inserted properly. I want to know what I should be looking for before shelling out $200 on a new back or even more than that for a new body. I’m trying to find someone local in AZ a similar setup so I can try my back on their camera, but this is proving very difficult as well

May 26, 2018 at 01:23 PM

sirimiri
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

1. Upon placing a "new" roll in the insert/back/turning on the camera, will the auto-advance work? (in cases like like I spool the waste film backwards, to have a "new" test roll)

2. There are only two lines in the back's LCD, correct? No ISO nor 120/220 readout?

May 26, 2018 at 04:45 PM

trogdon
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

sirimiri wrote:
1. Upon placing a "new" roll in the insert/back/turning on the camera, will the auto-advance work? (in cases like like I spool the waste film backwards, to have a "new" test roll)

2. There are only two lines in the back's LCD, correct? No ISO nor 120/220 readout?

On a new roll it won’t auto start, and it wasn’t advancing on the old roll before. It does show the line for ISO and 120, the frame counter is where the lines are showing. It’s like the camera thinks the film isn’t there

May 27, 2018 at 03:33 AM

sirimiri
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

If you attach the back with the insert attached (forget the film for now), remove the dark slide then press the shutter button, what sound does the camera make and what do you see on the film back display?

May 27, 2018 at 04:00 AM

trogdon
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

sirimiri wrote:
If you attach the back with the insert attached (forget the film for now), remove the dark slide then press the shutter button, what sound does the camera make and what do you see on the film back display?

The only sound I get for now is that it will autofocus, but there's no motor noise involved with the back. When initially mounting the film back it'll cock the shutter, but that's it. Makes no attempt to wind the film

May 28, 2018 at 01:03 PM

sirimiri
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

Remove the film back (the shutter should retract even without batteries because of a tab located in the camera's film back hinge coupling) then remove the film insert.

Close the film back and attach it to the camera. Remove the dark slide. Turn the camera on and press the shutter button, while looking at the film back display. What do you see?

May 28, 2018 at 03:41 PM

trogdon
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

sirimiri wrote:
Remove the film back (the shutter should retract even without batteries because of a tab located in the camera's film back hinge coupling) then remove the film insert.

Close the film back and attach it to the camera. Remove the dark slide. Turn the camera on and press the shutter button, while looking at the film back display. What do you see?

I gave that a try, and it does essentially the same thing as when the film was inserted. The camera doesn't attempt to wind, shows the ISO, says it has 120 film, and it just has the two lines for the film counter.

I did try flipping the pressure plate around to see if the back responded to that, and it does show it as 220 when I do that. So it seems like the insert communicates with the back properly.

May 29, 2018 at 07:09 PM

sirimiri
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

When you pull the dark slide and then press the shutter button, do you see a small animation where the ISO usually is (film back), indicating film winding? It's fleeting.

If yes, then I think the back's motor is bad. It should wind whether or not there's a film insert.
If no, then there is likely a failure at the interface between back and camera. The body tells the back when to wind and supplies power for it.

The film insert is the least complex of the three variables. I don't think it's the problem.

May 29, 2018 at 10:20 PM

trogdon
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

I don't believe that I see the animation. To make sure I'm not just looking at the wrong thing, I took a video to show what happens

The back seems to communicate with the body for power, but just not for winding power.

Jun 01, 2018 at 06:47 PM

sirimiri
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

The shutter should be open when the back is removed. There are also fingerprints on the shutter itself.

Based on that there may be something wrong with the body itself. I would have it serviced if I were you.

Jun 02, 2018 at 01:08 AM

trogdon
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

sirimiri wrote:
The shutter should be open when the back is removed. There are also fingerprints on the shutter itself.

Based on that there may be something wrong with the body itself. I would have it serviced if I were you.

Yeah it seems like something is wrong for sure, going to bring it in for a quote today. Worst case scenario it seems Keh has one for around $360 if the repair is expensive. Thanks for helping me troubleshoot!

Jun 02, 2018 at 11:33 AM

sirimiri
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p.1 #18 · p.1 #18 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

Sorry! Good luck.

Prices on used quality film gear seemed to have bottomed out a few years ago and now are on the rise.

(I'd look for at least an AFd if you buy another 645AF)

Jun 02, 2018 at 04:09 PM

trogdon
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p.1 #19 · p.1 #19 · Mamiya 645AF won't advance film

So just as an update for this thread, in case anyone else searches for this and stumbles upon this thread.

I brought it in for repair, and it wasn't able to be serviced by the shop. However, they said that they did get a chance to try another back on my camera, and it worked just fine! So if anyone out there is experiencing this, it seems like a communication issue on the end of the film back, weirdly enough.

Jun 13, 2018 at 07:04 PM


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