Passionate hobbyist, restoring the past, one old camera at a time. iPhone14 Max Pro - Sony A7II and about 80 others from the days of silver halide 📸 Main aim in life - Retirement
The loose hinge on the rear door has tonight had a two part epoxy resin glue put on it and is clamped for the next two hours to ensure it is sufficiently secured for usage. Fingers crossed this should work.
Door hinge repair
Also the original light seal on this camera was simply string. It was black originally but seeing I have no black available and in the interest of recycling what I already have I have replaced, in keeping with the original design like for like. Yep it’s red but it’s not going to be seen anyway, is more than up to the job and the new skin will have red on it anyway so it will be complimentary in that aspect of the renewal.
Installing new rear door light sealRear door light seal replacement
I don’t have anymore to do tonight, if this all works out well and the hinge is sufficiently strong enough then I can start reskinning and reassembly.
So tonight I have brought my smallest set of screwdrivers and other tools in to work to continue work on the old Halina project I have been immersed in. Tonight between jobs I intend to deal with the fungus issue on the taking lens.
Fungus removed with peroxide Halina A1 Reflex viewing lens
I have previously removed the camera faceplate and the two lenses are connected to this. On the rear of the faceplate is a brass connector that when removed allows you into the back of the taking lens into the shutter curtain and aperture curtain.
This allowed me to dry clean as such both curtains and I used a little graphite dust (tiny tiny proportion) to lubricate both curtains and finally after many years allowing the shutter to work as it should. A good blow with some compressed air dealt with any remaining dust.
With the setting on “B” I was able to access the lens element in front of the curtain, this was cleaned with a 50/50 mix of peroxide and distilled water to remove the offending fungus. I allowed this to dry and lightly polished the element with a cotton bud when dried. Again compressed air was used to finish.
Halina A1 Reflex Lens fungusHalina A1 Reflex taking lens minus fungusBefore and after
I repeated the above for the other two elements of the lens (this is a three element lens) and then did the same with the viewing lens.
When reassembling it’s important to ensure the elements are fully dry. The elements were all wiped over before reassembly and given a last blow prior to being resealed and checked with a bright light.
Fungus removed from Halina A1 Reflex
This was the job I was most concerned with but thankfully it went well and I am pleased with the outcome. The fungus issue has now been eradicated and hopefully it will stay away. Just a couple of little jobs to do now prior to reassembly of the camera and we can then put the new leatherette on the body.
Working tonight, and between jobs I’ve managed to do a few of those little tedious jobs that still need to be done on this camera.
I’ve cleaned pretty much all the parts again, used some isopropyl to really get the old ingrained dirt away and have retouched with either a gloss or Matt paint depending on what part of the camera needed touching up.
Halina A1 Reflex black paint touch up Halina A1 Reflex film box
I’ve also replaced some light seal and still have a bit to do on the roll film door. I’ve also reassembled the mirror assembly after each little part of it has been thoroughly cleaned.
Halina A1 Reflex new light sealHalina A1 areflex mirror reassembly
The smell of age that has always been an issue with this camera continues, however I have had a bit of a breakthrough today with the camera itself, it’s a strange one but it seems to work. Once the painting has been done I’ve used a cloth soaked in black shoe Polish to coat all metal areas of the body. Once this dries I buff up with a dry cloth and hey presto not only does the retouched paintwork come up lovely it now has a polished smell that has taken the dank smell away from the bodywork. Hopefully fingers crossed this can be used to combat the years of damp smell that has accumulated on this piece.
Shoe shine….All the silver bits cleaned
Finally I have taken every shiny piece including screws and cleaned these as well, I must say the cleaning works and these parts have all come up lovely.
The case still needs attention, I’m fighting years of damp and staleness with that and hopefully will have an acceptable solution for it soon.
I still have to get into the lens and sort the fungus issue out, there is a hinge on the roll door that needs fixing and I then need to use the templates I created last week to cut out the new leatherette for the camera. Still a small amount to do, but I hope to be able to reassemble very soon.
Found this on my doorstep when I arrived home from work today. After making some enquiries it transpires that a family member donated it to me as they haven’t used it in about 20 yrs. Knowing that I mess with cameras at the cheaper end of the spectrum he thought that I may find a use for it. I have gratefully accepted this gift.
After speaking with the donor he doesn’t remember there being any issues with it, he wasn’t aware there is already a film in it so I will process this for him and see what if anything comes of it.
This camera was circa 1989 and was a strange beast in that the programmable modes we take for granted on SLR cameras today, had to be purchased as individual plug in cards for this camera. I guess was kind of like VHS versus Betamax back in the day and as things developed in the market I guess Minolta put this idea back to bed as a non starter.
This camera looks in great condition apart from wear and tear dust/dirt and initial checks of the lens show no evidence of fungal damage, the camera does not have that musty smell associated with age so I can only presume it has been stored correctly.
These cameras also work off a 6v lithium battery the 2CR5. Still available it retails for around £6-8 gbp. Again Minolta could have used a rechargeable but this was probably just at the beginning of that technology becoming widely available.
2CR5 6v Lithium battery
Information regarding this camera can be found here Minolta Dynax 5000i courtesy of Camerawiki.org
So, apparently these cameras are popular in the Lomography world. I’m going to give it a good clean/overhaul get a new battery and run a film through it to test. Not a lot to do so hopefully I’ll fit it in somewhere along the line soon. Keep checking back to see how things progress.
I have processed the roll of Kentmere 100 at home today, it’s currently drying in the shower and I’m really pleased with what I’ve seen so far. The carriage of the camera is working well with even spacing, exposures look promising and no sign of fogging proving the new light seals are good.
Kentmere 100 through Olympus 35ECRKentmere 100 through Olympus 35ECRCheck my gallery’s to see these results
I’m yet to run the negatives through the scanner, still waiting for them to dry but when they do I will post a gallery here. Gallery – Olympus 35 ECR trial roll
The camera in my eyes is now in good working condition, all that I did with it has proven beneficial and I’m adding this into my personal collection.
Olympus 35ECR now in storage
I’ve now packed it in a bag with all the air extracted and a couple of silica bags to stop any potential moisture. I do this to all the cameras I store for their protection and to save me having to go through the whole process of maintaining them again.
I’ve enjoyed this little project and am now happy to say….
Just an update of what’s going on with the old Halina TLR.
Today I have tinkered with the ground focus screen, and hood and related springs and hinges. the majority are fine but I’ve found a hinge on the rear door that has a broken weld on one side, I discovered this as I began to clean the old light seal around the back door prior to putting some fresh seal in place. I’ve stopped at seeing this as I am going to put a repair in place so as not to stress the other side of the hinge that seems to be holding. Another head scratching moment whilst I seek a solution.
Halina A1 Reflex broken door weld
The focus screen required me to remove a couple of 60 year old springs, this went well, they are ok and I’ve cleaned them as well. The ground glass screen has been cleaned as well as all surrounding metalwork and hinges and all looks good. All went back together with no real issues.
Just preparing for cutting the new leatherette for the camera, today I have just made some templates and measurements for the eight pieces that need to be cut for this camera.
Halina A1 Reflex new skin templates
Stage one of ridding the case of the dank musky smell has begun today. It’s sitting in the sunniest place I can find on a shelf at work, and in a week or so I will be placing it in an airtight bag with some silica gel packets and some suggested fragrance for a further couple of weeks to see what happens.
Currently still awaiting the right time to open the lens up and start removal of that lens fungus.
I have used many brands of film processing chemicals over the years, mixing batches of over 500 litres right down to the smaller amounts used with Patterson tanks for home processing and that’s where I am today.
For the next few films I process at home I will be using a set of chemicals I’ve not really used before however I have heard some good things about them so I’m willing to give them a try. If it doesn’t work I can always default to my previous plan of using my old reliable setup I’ve used in the past.
Thinking of processing your own film? Check this link below at Digital truth to see process times for all kinds of films in all kinds of developers – it’s an incredible source of information for photographers of all abilities.
I batch mix my fixer a litre at a time as it stores well in collapsible bottles and I should be able to do a good few films and reuse the chemicals, you just need to monitor the time it takes for the fixer to clear the film as this indicates if it needs replacing or not. General rule of thumb is it should clear almost instantly on fresh chemicals, however give it at least 4 minutes to clear the film, and as the time increases to take between 8 – 10 minutes to achieve the same result, then it’s probably worth mixing a new batch. Disposal of spent chemicals should always be done responsibly following local guidelines.
Collapsible film chemical bottles
I’m not too concerned if the new setup doesn’t get the desired results, I’m using some old film to test the old cameras I’ve fixed, so I’m happy to go back and reshoot some pictures if I have to, it’s a classic case of suck it and see.
The developer I will be using is Bellini Hydrofen, (comparable to Kodak D76 or Ilford ID11) I mix this as and when needed in quantities of around 300ml (for a single 35mm film) as it doesn’t store, and needs to be used on the day as such. I don’t usually use a stop bath as such I just use some water. I will also be using their photo flow as a uniform drying solution but to be honest this isn’t really necessary.
New processing chemicals
The fixer I will be making in a 1L batch is Adox Adofix P, it’s a simple enough mix so I’ll quickly go through it with you.
Developer
Mix is 1-39 so if I need 300ml I just divide that figure by 40 (300 / 40 = 7.5) so I know I need 7.5ml of solution and then just top up to 300ml with water in the measuring jug. Simple – that’s the developer made. Just ensure it’s at 20 degrees centigrade temperature wise.
Stop bath
Simple, just water – let’s move on
Fixer
Again this is easy. I have a pouch of powder to make 1L of solution. Put approx 700ml of water at a temperature between 20-26 degrees Celsius in your measuring jug, mix in the powder and when this has dissolved just top up with water to the 1L mark. Simple – then decant into your storage bottle and the job is done.
So that’s the chemistry done, now to put it all into action to process the first film I have used to test a recent camera I have worked on. The camera is the Olympus 35 ECR and the film will be a roll of Kentmere 100 B/W that expired about 4 years ago. I will cover this in a later post. Thanks for browsing my ramblings 👍
Yes. You are right the picture is of a chocolate box and not an old camera. However today in a quieter period I have dismantled in it’s entirety the Halina A1 Reflex camera – the smelly one that’s right 👍
Halina A1 Reflex in a chocolate boxCamera in a chocolate box
The lovely thing about this camera is that it is easy to dismantle right down to its original body shell as most of the parts are held together by screws and not rivets. This has allowed me a lovely scope for putting new leatherette on the body as I’ve been able to move all winders, locks and strap holders giving me a naked body as such to work on.
Halina A1 Reflex shell Halina A1 Reflex shell Stripped down to the body shell, minus leather
However the old leather has been kept to be used as templates for the new skin that will be attached. Firstly though it’s clean, clean, clean to remove the old adhesive and to replace some light seal within that is literally just two black pieces of string, I will upgrade this with some new up to date light seal though. I will clean everything removed today and only then will I attempt reassembly.
The lens assembly is going to have to be opened and recalibrated as I need to get inside to treat that fungus that was reported in earlier posts.
Halina A1 Reflex old leather panels
I have damaged a couple of small screws here that I will need to replace, couldn’t be helped as they’ve probably not moved since the day the camera was assembled. Nice to be able to do this project in small chunks due to the ease of disassembly. May need to get another sheet of leatherette as the sheet I have may not be sufficient for this task.
Only problem is still the stale old smelling case…but I’m looking into it and will share what I do with it at a later date.
The little Olympus I’ve been working on is now ready to be tested. It’s all working as well as I can see and has new battery adaptors and a new light seal around the camera. Has been cleaned as best as I can however now is the time to give it a proper run out. I have a roll of Kentmere 100asa B/W film that expired about 3-4 years ago so hopefully I’ll get something from this barring disaster.
Sunbury on Thames
Going to be in Sunbury on Thames for a few days so I’m hoping I can get some nice pictures of the Thames and surrounding areas.
When I get back I’ll develop the film at home and scan it myself for results. Fingers crossed 🤞 it all performs ok, if not then it’s back to the drawing board.
Managed to get the shutter firing after a while of blasting with compressed air and constantly cocking and firing the mechanism until it clicked into life. Probably stiff due to not being used for a number of years and left in storage. When I get the unit apart I will help it along with a little clock oil.
Halina A1 Reflex lens fungus
When shining a light through the back of the camera with the shutter open the fungus issue on the lens is most apparent, this is a three part lens I believe so it’s going to take some time and patience to achieve, but it’s do able, but it will have to wait a while.
Shine a light for all to see…..fungus
So I’ll leave you with this for today, the smell of years of dampness invades when ever I get this camera out of its box and to be honest I think that will be my biggest challenge with this unit. Any ideas and tips on how to assist with this problem gratefully accepted 👍
Foxes Den 
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