Mamiya 645 Pro: Mirror Stop Spring Stuck in the Shutter Curtains
Originally posted on Instagram. Notes from the repair bench, kept here as a searchable archive. View the original on Instagram
Another post on mirror stops in the Mamiya 645 Super/Pro/Pro TL.
The complaint with this camera was that the shutter was working erratically. Probably 90% of the issues that I see with this series of 645 models is caused by a broken mirror stop. This was no exception.
On removing the film back for my evaluation, the view was as seen in photo two: the mirror stop spring was stuck in the shutter curtains. After carefully removing the spring the shutter began working. On removing the lens, part of the mirror stop with the adjusting screw fell out (I have pictured it in photo three with the just removed mirror stop spring). Photo four is a view inside the mirror box showing the mirror stop just hanging loose on its mounting stud. The small circle on the side of the mirror stop shows that this is an original Mamiya part, probably from production of the camera decades ago.
Fortunately for my client, the broken mirror stop and loose spring did not cause any problems with the shutter. I have seen otherwise.
This camera will go into the repair queue and I would recommend anyone that has a Mamiya 645 Super/Pro/Pro TL to check the condition of their mirror stop before it breaks and causes deep problems with the camera. Not all broken stops fall apart and cause the spring to go flying into the mirror box. It may develop a very small crack and just decide to break apart at an inconvenient time. And, the springs are no longer available so if it gets lost that becomes an issue.
