[séamuis]

ok, so as the title says, I need some help opening a spotmatic's rear door. the trick is, the film rewind knob that you use to pop open the door isn't in the camera. any ideas on how to get the door open, short of disassembly or sending it out for repair? also, would it be possible to put a rewind shaft back into the body without disassembly? I have what seems to be an otherwise functioning black SP, and I have some spare parts to replace the shaft and crank handle, but I don't know if I can get it open. any ideas?

[TomB_tx]

It's not that hard. The "head" of the rewind shaft normally contacts the flat surface of the catch on the underside of the top, and lifts it when pulling up on the knob. Take a stiff wire (maybe a LARGE paperclip) and bend a tight hook in it so that it just fits through the bushing into the body. Hold it with pliers and shift it to the side so that it catches the underside of the latch and pull up with the pliers.
There is a chamfer on the underside (0.03-.04"), so if the hook doesn't reach far enough to the side it will slide back up the chamfer.
I just tried this on a parts SP, and it worked.

[séamuis]

worked like a charm! thanks mate. but now that I have the back open, is there any way to get the rewind shaft back into place? it doesn't seem to fit back in the same way I suppose? it came out. I was given this camera, so no I didn't remove it, but I assume it was taken out by simply pulling it down. however, I can't get the spare piece I have to go in past a certain point. I don't have the necessary tools for disassembly, so thats out of the question.

[vladimiroltean]

I have to say first that the rewind shaft of the SP is different from the SPII, the latter being taller than the former. They are compatible though, if you don't mind the difference in height (assuming you have an SPII or SPF replacement). Now what I usually do to reinsert the shaft: there's a catch in there that's keeping the shaft from being completely inserted. From the camera top, insert a needle in the rewind hole and push the catch sideways while simultaneously pushing the shaft upwards from the bottom. It should take a couple of minutes of fiddling, but it should work.

[séamuis]

I have to say first that the rewind shaft of the SP is different from the SPII, the latter being taller than the former. They are compatible though, if you don't mind the difference in height (assuming you have an SPII or SPF replacement). Now what I usually do to reinsert the shaft: there's a catch in there that's keeping the shaft from being completely inserted. From the camera top, insert a needle in the rewind hole and push the catch sideways while simultaneously pushing the shaft upwards from the bottom. It should take a couple of minutes of fiddling, but it should work.

you were correct, and I got it pretty much right away with a tiny safety pin. thanks, both of you!