That camera show in Pittsburgh changed how I clean old shutters

I was at the Photorama swap meet back in 2019 when this old timer pulled out a Zeiss folder with gunk stuck to the shutter blades. He just dabbed a bit of naptha on a q-tip and worked it real slow... no compressed air, no fancy tools. I'd been using lighter fluid forever but it always left a residue. After watching him I switched to naptha and it's way easier on the old leaf shutters. Has anyone else found a trick at a trade show that stuck with you?

2 comments

2 Comments

taylorcarr1mo ago

My buddy Dave picked up a trick at a camera show in Philly where a guy showed him how to use a tiny bit of graphite powder on sticky shutter blades instead of oil. He said it worked perfect on an old Kodak he'd been fighting with for months, no more residue or sluggishness. Never would have thought of that on his own, just saw it in a five minute demo.

theawest1mo ago

Hmm I don't know if I'd trust that. Isn't graphite conductive? I mean maybe for some old mechanical shutters it's fine but that stuff can get everywhere and cause shorts or worse if it migrates into the electronics later on. Idk maybe it's just me but I'd rather deal with a little sticky residue than risk killing a whole camera with a bad fix. Plus if the blades are that gummed up already isn't the real answer just a proper CLA from someone who knows what they're doing? It's like using duct tape on a leaky pipe. It might work for a bit but you're probably just making the actual problem worse down the road.