[greyred2]

Hi
As a total 35mm Pentax newbie I was blown away by an old SV that my son recently picked up. (I've been a Nikon/Medium format user in the past). Georgous build, solid as rock!

My question - I checked over this SV and saw that it's in great cosmetic condition, even the door light seals look sound and were probably replaced in recent years. However there does not seem to be any form of mirror bumber foam in the mirror box and no obvious trace of any foam having being there in the past.
Inside the mirror box there do appear to be a couple of levers either side that appear to act as a braking mechanism for the reflex mirror. Is this all correct or should there be some form of foam based mirror dampening?

The shutter releases with a very impressive "thwack" reverberating through the camera to the hand! Would this be correct? It's just that to me it seems that the mirror is missing some form of dampening.

Thanks for any advice/thoughts.
Jon

[Kim Coxon]

Hi
As a total 35mm Pentax newbie I was blown away by an old SV that my son recently picked up. (I've been a Nikon/Medium format user in the past). Georgous build, solid as rock!

My question - I checked over this SV and saw that it's in great cosmetic condition, even the door light seals look sound and were probably replaced in recent years. However there does not seem to be any form of mirror bumber foam in the mirror box and no obvious trace of any foam having being there in the past.
Inside the mirror box there do appear to be a couple of levers either side that appear to act as a braking mechanism for the reflex mirror. Is this all correct or should there be some form of foam based mirror dampening?

The shutter releases with a very impressive "thwack" reverberating through the camera to the hand! Would this be correct? It's just that to me it seems that the mirror is missing some form of dampening.

Thanks for any advice/thoughts.
Jon

Yes there should be a strip of foam to damp it. Even with it, you will still get a very satisfying thump. The "best" kits used to come from Jon Goodman though I'm not sure he still sells them.

[monochrome]

Jon Goodman has withdrawn his kits and Profile from eBay several years ago. As recently as 2015 a Forum member posted the email address JGood21967@aol.com regarding having an LX refoamed by Mr. Goodman.

You might also consider a full CLA from Eric Hendrickson at Home-Pentaxs.

[greyred2]

Many thanks for the replies, will certainly consider sending it over to Eric.

In the meantime I'm assuming then that the foam strip goes at the top of the mirror box just in front of the focus screen (the commonly seen position seen in SLRs) - correct?

Jon

[grux]

Many thanks for the replies, will certainly consider sending it over to Eric.

In the meantime I'm assuming then that the foam strip goes at the top of the mirror box just in front of the focus screen (the commonly seen position seen in SLRs) - correct?

Jon

I’ve never looked where the foam actually goes, so I just checked my SV that Eric serviced earlier this year and yes, I see the foam at the front of the screen. As noted above, the “thump” is satisfying
The SV sure is a beautiful camera and a joy to use!

[stevebrot]

In the meantime I'm assuming then that the foam strip goes at the top of the mirror box just in front of the focus screen (the commonly seen position seen in SLRs) - correct?

The mirror bumper on the SV is behind the deep baffle at the front of the mirror box and consists of two short strips of foam on either side that are not real obvious. Placement is difficult due to the location. Jon Goodman may well have a kit for the SV,* but I would expect that there is a trick to replacing the mirror foams that may require partial disassembly.

As for Eric, he did the seals on my SV and I was pleased to see that the door seals were done with black twine rather than foam. That approach is so very old-school and indicative of the quality of his work.


Steve

* Yes, Jon is still making kits and selling via e-mail referral only. As noted above, his kits are the best. His email is still JGood21967@aol.com (as of Summer 2018) and his prices were still $10 USD, shipping included.

[greyred2]

Thanks everyone, it makes sense now
Jon

[Kim Coxon]

I am just glad that I still have a very good stock of Jon Goodman's material. I know he supplied the 2 best Pentax service people in the UK. Sadly Robin from Harrow technical is partially retired and Michael has long retired. Jon's solution for the rear door channels was a specially cut neoprene strip which worked beautifully. The mirror foam is not that difficult to replace on the SV. If you look at the parts list or the service manual for the S3, It is in 2 parts because of the cutout in the front of the mirror box.

I don't wish to tread on anyone's toes or break Forum Rules but if any member in the UK has a problem along these lines, I would be happy to try and help.

[stevebrot]

The mirror foam is not that difficult to replace on the SV.

Does one have to remove the baffle first as with the LX? The mirror bumper on my camera is scarcely visible due to the baffle.


Steve

[Kim Coxon]

I'll have a look later. I need to dig mine out. It's been a while since I did mine.

[greyred2]

Well that was short lived this SV body has now failed on us!

Having checked it over a few days ago and seen that it was all functioning OK, today I decided to run a short test roll of film. Placed it on a tripod, fired three frames and then zilch.

The wind-on lever cocks the shutter, however when the release button is depressed the reflex mirror flips up normally and the shutter apparatus moves from right to left as expected but the shutter does not actually open i.e. the blind/slit does not open and there is no exposure. This is at all speeds selected including the "B" position.

I'm not a tech and have no intention of opening it up, but two things come to mind:
a) It's related to placing it on the tripod. Perhaps I over tightened and warped something in the base of the camera (not likely in my view).
b) The shutter curtains and/or curtain tape has malfunctioned.

There are a couple of repairers here in Aus that I have used in the past, but they are pretty expensive and I need to have some confidence that it can be fixed before I commit. As I understand it, if the curtains or curtain tapes are broken then the parts are not available for repair and so we have a brick.

We still have the option of a refund from the seller but as it's in such good cosmetic shape it would be great to get it running again.

Has anyone else here encountered this type of shutter issue, got any thoughts?

Thanks
Jon

[monochrome]

EDIT: Please read Kim Coxon’s post below. It might just need a simpler CLA and repair.

Eric Hendrickson reportedly once fabricated shutter curtains and tapes for an S1a (same camera minus the self timer), but he might not be up to that now. Making these old cameras work is expensive and technicians are retiring. There don’t seem to be any apprentices interested in carrying on.

[Xmas]

Well that was short lived this SV body has now failed on us!

Having checked it over a few days ago and seen that it was all functioning OK, today I decided to run a short test roll of film. Placed it on a tripod, fired three frames and then zilch.

The wind-on lever cocks the shutter, however when the release button is depressed the reflex mirror flips up normally and the shutter apparatus moves from right to left as expected but the shutter does not actually open i.e. the blind/slit does not open and there is no exposure. This is at all speeds selected including the "B" position.

I'm not a tech and have no intention of opening it up, but two things come to mind:
a) It's related to placing it on the tripod. Perhaps I over tightened and warped something in the base of the camera (not likely in my view).
b) The shutter curtains and/or curtain tape has malfunctioned.

There are a couple of repairers here in Aus that I have used in the past, but they are pretty expensive and I need to have some confidence that it can be fixed before I commit. As I understand it, if the curtains or curtain tapes are broken then the parts are not available for repair and so we have a brick.

We still have the option of a refund from the seller but as it's in such good cosmetic shape it would be great to get it running again.

Has anyone else here encountered this type of shutter issue, got any thoughts?

Thanks
Jon

There is a limit on penetration of tripod screw in the user handbook!
Asahi Pentax SV and S1a instruction manual, user manual

[Kim Coxon]

Eric Hendrickson reportedly once fabricated shutter curtains and tapes for an S1a (same camera minus the self timer), but he might not be up to that now. Making these old cameras work is expensive and technicians are retiring. There don’t seem to be any apprentices interested in carrying on.

I suspect it is more a case of the mechanism rather than the shutter curtains themselves. It may be it is the curtains but if they fail usually the shutter is open all the time.

---------- Post added 10-07-18 at 05:37 AM ----------

Well that was short lived this SV body has now failed on us!

Having checked it over a few days ago and seen that it was all functioning OK, today I decided to run a short test roll of film. Placed it on a tripod, fired three frames and then zilch.

The wind-on lever cocks the shutter, however when the release button is depressed the reflex mirror flips up normally and the shutter apparatus moves from right to left as expected but the shutter does not actually open i.e. the blind/slit does not open and there is no exposure. This is at all speeds selected including the "B" position.

I'm not a tech and have no intention of opening it up, but two things come to mind:
a) It's related to placing it on the tripod. Perhaps I over tightened and warped something in the base of the camera (not likely in my view).
b) The shutter curtains and/or curtain tape has malfunctioned.

There are a couple of repairers here in Aus that I have used in the past, but they are pretty expensive and I need to have some confidence that it can be fixed before I commit. As I understand it, if the curtains or curtain tapes are broken then the parts are not available for repair and so we have a brick.

We still have the option of a refund from the seller but as it's in such good cosmetic shape it would be great to get it running again.

Has anyone else here encountered this type of shutter issue, got any thoughts?

Thanks
Jon

If the shutter is not opening on B, it sounds would seem that the first curtain is not travelling. Open the back, cock the shutter and fire it. Then slowly cock the shutter again watching the curtains. You should see both curtains being wound. You should see the metal bar on the second curtain moving across. But as that passes across, you should be able to see the first curtain also moving. If it isn't then that is the problem. It is unlikely to have become detached if you can still see it but more likely to be jammed.

[Eyewanders]

As for Eric, he did the seals on my SV and I was pleased to see that the door seals were done with black twine rather than foam. That approach is so very old-school and indicative of the quality of his work.

I had the same reaction when I received my H3v and H1a back several months ago. Quite a bit more longevity than foam stripping I'd have to imagine as well.
When I do my own seals I cut foam simply because it's so cheap and easy, but the twisted black wool sure is more professional looking.

---------- Post added 10-07-18 at 11:10 AM ----------

I suspect it is more a case of the mechanism rather than the shutter curtains themselves. It may be it is the curtains but if they fail usually the shutter is open all the time.

---------- Post added 10-07-18 at 05:37 AM ----------




If the shutter is not opening on B, it sounds would seem that the first curtain is not travelling. Open the back, cock the shutter and fire it. Then slowly cock the shutter again watching the curtains. You should see both curtains being wound. You should see the metal bar on the second curtain moving across. But as that passes across, you should be able to see the first curtain also moving. If it isn't then that is the problem. It is unlikely to have become detached if you can still see it but more likely to be jammed.

This was my first thought as well. My S1a suffered the same issue. The advance mechanism is likely partially jammed. This is accessible from the bottom plate - there was a thread that involved this issue back in spring that I can try to locate, but at the end of the day even if the OP frees the mechanism a CLA is still in order or it is just as likely to happen again shortly down the road. And that said, ALL of these S-series Pentax should see a CLA if you wish to shoot them regularly and reliably - they're all just too old at this point to rely on them if you don't know the service history specifically. My guess is this issue would easily be remedied by a proper service, which would also prevent it in the future.

---------- Post added 10-07-18 at 11:15 AM ----------

Here is the thread I mentioned. See the great video post by @ctrout midway down. A different issue at hand, but the advance mechanism is shown clearly.
SV jammed advance lever - PentaxForums.com