I have been on the lookout for a Zenit E camera, circa 65-85, for sometime now and was finally successful in acquiring one, two weeks ago. My particular specimen was advertised as working which it was, well kind of…. It was in a very good physical condition except for one major issue.
The shutter curtain did not finish its journey across the film and remained stuck open. With the curtain still open the film would continue to be exposed to the light. The next image shows the effect this would have.
A search on the web revealed a number of possible solutions. The one I chose, first meant opening up the base of the camera. The four small screws came off easily.
The picture above shows the two screws I was interested in. A tension screw, not sure if that’s its real name, which is kept in place by a locking screw. With the locking screw removed the tension screw had to be rotated anti clockwise until, yes you guessed it, I could feel some tension or resistance, and then replacing the locking screw in place. The key to the possible success of the operation, lay in making small adjustments and testing the shutter to see if it had worked. It took three adjustments but success!!
I now had a camera that was fully working.
When I first started my experiment with film I had no idea that I would be opening up these complex mechanisms. But in doing so my appreciation for these instruments has increased greatly and I feel a deep sense of satisfaction / contentment in getting them working again.
arhphotographic 