Had a real wake-up call at a camera show in Chicago last month

A guy brought me a Leica M3 with a sticky shutter, said he'd 'fixed' it himself with some household oil. The whole curtain assembly was a gummy mess. I spent 6 hours cleaning it, replacing two ribbons, and had to charge him way less than the job was worth just to save the camera. Now I always ask point-blank if a camera's had any DIY 'repairs' before I even open it up. Anyone else get burned by a well-meaning but clueless owner?

2 comments

2 Comments

green.victor18d ago

That Leica M3 story is brutal. What's the worst DIY "fix" you've actually been able to salvage, or was that one the total low point?

henry10118d ago

You think that Leica story is bad? Honestly, sometimes a DIY fix is the only way to keep a classic camera alive. What if the owner couldn't afford a pro repair and just wanted to shoot with their grandad's old camera? A botched job that gets it working, even poorly, beats it sitting dead in a drawer forever. The real low point is letting gear become useless art on a shelf because you're scared to touch it. Trying and failing is still better than not trying at all.