Well I know we are mostly Pentax shooters here I know there are those that play and tinker with other old medium and large format cameras, or know people who can repair them. I have
an old Walzflex 500 6x6 range finder that I inherited but needs attention desperately. I would make an attempt myself at it but after looking at things and digging only lightly it looks like someone else has been at it before and didn't know what they were doing. To me this is a clear sign that I should stop since while I am mechanically competent and can figure things out if they aren't really messed up if they have been screwed up by others my chances of success go way down. By this I mean that after going through the correct procedure for removing the focus knob (focusing is stuck) and getting it off I found tool scrapes under it which indicates incompetence from others. To ensure no loss of parts I reassembled it.
From what I can tell the following would need addressing:
1. The focus is stuck. This is likely due to the old grease drying out and hardening which is common on these cameras.
2. The focus knob will turn freely but this is because the bushing that looks like it should be pressed into the isn't. this seems like a minor issue that can be resolved by properly tightening the nut inside the focusing knob. I put it back together loose to prevent damage but don't think there is any currently
3. The shutter is sticky at speeds below 1/25 and will stick open a 1/10 and longer.
4. The main lens looks like it really needs cleaning
5. The lens for focusing seems off. By this I men that the group that threads in the front seems like it threads in way too far and seems loose.
6. The ground glass and or mirror needs cleaning
7. The frame counter reset system seems slow to respond and sometimes doesn't rest all the way.
8. The leatherette is old so removing it will result in it having to be replaced.
9. In the instruction booklet there is a pin taped to one of the pages. I don't know if this came from the camera or not but it seems likely.
I think a number of these issues are the result of it needing a CLA but other are a sign of the age and/or neglect.
My understanding is that these are fairly decent cameras and since it was the last functional camera my grandfather had (he had others acquired later that didn't last as long) so I kind of want to restore it to a functional and fairly good state.
So if someone is competent with thises things or knows who I could contact about it
Originally posted by Denver 
Post #2 by Denver
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