Originally posted by Joetitch Don't forget the flash pinion which also breaks and stops the spring from holding the flash up. Then there is the problem of the film winding gear that can also fail.
While I do like the MZ series, particularly the 3, 5, 5n, 6 and 7,
It seems that the plastic used for important bits was not designed to last. I don't know if you are intending to offer a repair service but I doubt that the MZ 30,50 and 60 would fetch a price to make it viable. However I am more than willing to be proved wrong 😊
Thanks for that - I was aware of the flash pinion problem (one of my MZ-50s has it). I hadn't heard of the film winding gear issue. I don't really know what my plans are regarding offering a repair service, I simply enjoy repairing cameras and noticed that the MZ-50s in particular were abundant, broken and cheap. And, when they work, they're great little SLRs - so I thought to myself, if I can come up with a fix then there might be an opportunity to make a bit of pocket money - possibly enough to support my camera addiction ;-)
The problems the MZ series have seem to be mechanical in nature - they don't seem to die electronically - so in theory fixing them should be within my skill range.
I should imagine that the same Polish company that makes the mirror gear can make the film winding gear. I'll look into the flash pinion...
At this stage I'm trying to figure out a step by step procedure to get to where I need to, make the repair, clean the optics and then successfully re-assemble. I have 4 MZ-50s and a MZ-7 to practice on and if I can come up with a fool proof procedure then I can probably get the repair time down to hours rather than days.
In terms of dollar value, I know that no-ones going to pay me more $100 to fix a camera that's only worth $150, but if I can pick dead ones up for $30 or so, then it might be worth spending a couple of hours repairing them and selling them on. But first I need to develop a repair method that gives me a camera I am confident will keep working for another three or four years (at least)