[jackbyo]

So i got a pentax mz-50 for free the other day. It has a macro lens which is sweet because I wanna do a bit of macro, but didnt wanna buy a macro lens for my other camera.

however the mirror is locked up. This camera does NOT have a mirror lock up function. If I take the lens off I can push the mirror back down but it springs back to the locked up position

How much you reckon it'll cost to fix that, if possible?

Or would it be cheaper to buy another mz-50 or another cheap pentax body to fit this lens. I just want to get some sweet ass macro of my brothers frog to be honest. Other than that I'm not sure i'll be doing any other macro... but who knows I might love it

cheers

[VF-19]

It'll be cheaper to just get another MZ (or another series) body. Just hunt on here, Craigslist, Kijiji, ebay... You get the idea. Deals can and will be found.

[Tom in Delaware]

So i got a pentax mz-50 for free the other day. It has a macro lens which is sweet because I wanna do a bit of macro, but didnt wanna buy a macro lens for my other camera.

however the mirror is locked up. This camera does NOT have a mirror lock up function. If I take the lens off I can push the mirror back down but it springs back to the locked up position

Does it have a fresh battery in it? I have resuscitated two cameras lately (Ricoh XR-10 and an Olympus OM-PC) that had mirrors in the up position after putting in a fresh battery.

[Steve Beswick]

My zx-50 (same camera as mz-50) did this all of a sudden one day. There is a tiny plastic gear inside the camera that breaks which causes this problem. I highly suggest just buying a new body, as the mz-50 is not worth what it will cost to repair it.

[titrisol]

Yep, dead camera
get another body, try getting single digit MZ/ZX (Zx-5, 7, etc) which are better built and have more features.

[Dangermouse]

I'll agree with the "buy another one" - MZ-50 bodies go for next to nothing at the moment, particularly with the kit zoom lenses. I have found a mint one with a 35-80mm zoom for £10 before now.

However, if it has the slipping drive cog problem then there may be a fix. If you have a nose around on the internet you'll find a set of instructions for stripping and repairing the camera with a new drive gear/motor assembly.

The next part will probably horrify the purists but it seems to have worked! A few months ago I bought a tidy but non-functional MZ-50 on ebay for £5. It had the slipping/split cog problem, and I was all set to use it for parts as the replacement motor assembly would cost more than the camera (plus I didn't rate my chances of desoldering and resoldering the electronics to swap the parts). However, inspired by repairing similar problems on model trains in the past I tried the following:

Dismantle camera just enough to see the offending part (the repair instructions mentioned above were very helpful here)

Using a tiny screwdriver, slide the cog to the tip of the driveshaft (you do not have to remove the motor, just remove the camera body panels so that you can reach it)

Using a very fine wire, put a miniscule drop of cyanoacrylate "superglue" on the shaft.

Slide the gear back (important, do not push it tight against the motor as the glue may be pushed into the bearing)

Allow the glue to harden

Reassemble the camera

Amazingly this worked perfectly! I cannot say whether it would work for everyone and I have yet to try putting a film through the camera, but it behaves exactly as my other MZ-50 (bought for the lens attached to it) so I assume all is well. Obviously use the smallest quantity of glue and finest wire you can, and keep the glue away from the motor bearing or other moving parts.