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From the bench ·

Mamiya C TLR Lens: Two Shutter Checks You Can Do

Here are a couple of ways to check if your Mamiya C TLR lens needs service: 1.) In the first video, the shutter is released while the cocking lever is held…

C Series TLR · Shutters · Testing

From the bench ·

Mamiya 80mm C Lens: Replacing the Seiko 0 Speeds Escapement

Servicing a Mamiya 80mm C lens. This lens had several issues, main one being that the shutter was not working properly at the slow speeds. Usually…

C Series TLR · Shutters · Parts

From the bench ·

RB67 250mm Lens: Impact, Separation and Fungus

This Mamiya RB67 250mm lens wins the weekly trifecta for issues: 1.) impact damage 2.) separation in the element group 3.) lots of fungus. Looks like this…

RB67 · Fungus · Lenses

From the bench ·

Mamiya 645 Pro: Checking Bayonet Flatness After Impact

This Mamiya 645 Pro came into the shop with what I suspect might have been some impact damage. In cases like this, I carefully inspect the camera for…

645 · Testing · Calibration

From the bench ·

Nikon 50mm f/1.8 Series E: Insect Shells Inside the Lens

Servicing a Nikon 50mm f/1.8 Series E lens. This lens was in exceptional condition except for one issue: there was a small family of three insects living…

Nikon · Lenses · Cleaning

From the bench ·

Mamiya 7II: Replacing the Cable Release Socket

Replacing the cable release socket on a Mamiya7II. Mamiya made a major change in the cable release socket from the model 7 to the model 7II. On the Mamiya…

Mamiya 7 · Electronics · Parts

From the bench ·

Mamiya 645 80mm f/2.8: Oily Diaphragm and Loose Focus

This 80mm f/2.8 lens for the Mamiya 645 wins the prize for most oil on lens diaphragms this week. Also, the focus was very loose and uneven. For the lens…

645 · Cleaning · Helicoid grease · Focus

From the bench ·

Mamiya 6: Loose Wind Lever and Glue Residue

Servicing a Mamiya 6 and lenses. There were a few issues to deal with, most obvious was the wind lever that was loose. After removing the rubber covering…

Mamiya 7 · Mamiya 6 · Winding & transport

From the bench ·

A Fascinating Custom Camera

A quick look at a fascinating custom camera. Still don’t know what to call it.

From the bench ·

Recommended Book for Camera Collectors

For anyone just starting out in camera collecting or learning about photography, this book is a great start.

From the bench ·

RZ67: Wind Lever Locked After Electronic Release

Working on an RZ67 with a release issue. Actually, in this case, the issue was that the shutter would release electronically, but the wind lever would…

RZ67 · Electronics · Winding & transport

From the bench ·

Mamiya 645 80mm f/1.9: Lens Out of Focus Tolerance

This Mamiya 645 w/80mm f/1.9 lens came into the shop with a complaint of poor focus. In checking the lens, I found it to be plus 0.16mm out of tolerance as…

645 · Focus · Calibration

From the bench ·

Focus Fixtures for Adjusting Mamiya Lens Infinity

My once a year dusting of focus fixtures. The tools are used to adjust focus on Mamiya medium format and 35mm lenses. Each fixture has a small mirror at…

645 · Focus · Calibration · Tools

From the bench ·

Flange-to-Film Distance Fixtures for Mamiya Cameras

Still doing spring cleaning at the shop and thought this would be a good time to show some of the fixtures used for Mamiya flange to film distance and…

Mamiya 6 · Calibration · Tools

From the bench ·

Mamiya 645 PRO Mirror Stop: Pitfalls of 3D Printed Replacements

While replacing the mirror stop in this Mamiya 645 PRO, I feel it is time to talk about this procedure again. By now, many have decided to replace the…

645 · Parts

From the bench ·

Mamiya 7 150mm Lens: Calibrating the Rangefinder Cam

Servicing a Mamiya 150mm lens for the Mamiya 7. After checking focus on the lens, next stop is checking rangefinder cam movement. Until the rangefinder cam…

Mamiya 7 · Rangefinder · Calibration

From the bench ·

Mamiya 7: Bent Rangefinder After an Impact

I did not repair this Mamiya 7. It came in with the complaint that the frame finder marks were not correct for the attached lens and that the rangefinder…

Mamiya 7 · Rangefinder · Viewfinders & meters

From the bench ·

RZ67 Early 1982 Body: Mechanical Release Failure

Servicing a Mamiya RZ67 for a release issue. When these do not allow mechanical release, the problem is quite often an issue with the body not fully…

RZ67 · Winding & transport · Buying advice

From the bench ·

Mamiya 7 80mm Lenses: Separation and Fungus in the Rear Group

I have had two Mamiya 7 80mm lenses in for service this week and was unable to fully resolve the issues with them. Reason: separation and fungus on the…

Mamiya 7 · Fungus · Lenses

From the bench ·

Mamiya 6: Replacing Broken Viewfinder Glass

Servicing a Mamiya 6 with a broken viewfinder glass. For some reason, I see more Mamiya 6 cameras with broken finder glass than Mamiya 7. No idea why…

Mamiya 7 · Mamiya 6 · Viewfinders & meters · Rangefinder

From the bench ·

Mamiya C220 After a Fall: Finder Glass and Filter Ring Repair

This Mamiya C220 had a rough time recently . It was sent to me by @sirjakethomas and he told me that during his recent London trip, it had a bit of a fall…

C Series TLR · Viewfinders & meters · Lenses

From the bench ·

Mamiya 7 and Mamiya 6 Repair Tools

I'm doing some spring cleaning/reorganization so thought it might be a good time to show some of the Mamiya 7 repair tools that I use (all of the items in…

Mamiya 7 · Mamiya 6 · Tools · Calibration

From the bench ·

Mamiya 645 1000S: Corroded Battery Compartment and Broken Latch

This 645 1000s came into the shop for the typical slow film counter return and shutter calibration (I have documented the counter return issue on a…

645 · Electronics · Parts

From the bench ·

Fuji GS645W and GS645S Wide 60: Similarities and Differences

Servicing two Fuji 645 rangefinder cameras today that share some body traits. This gives me a chance to show some of the similarities and differences…

645 · Rangefinder