Loose-fitting GSN door?

[camperbc]

I recently purchased a lovely Electro 35 GSN which truly appears to have never been used. One thing I have noticed though is that the film door seems to have excess play; ie the latch side has 1-2mm of play in it when latched shut. (in/out, not up/down) When applying a little pressure to the door's latch side, it appears to be slightly too far in. When no pressure is applied, it appears to be not in quite far enough. (when compared to the hinged side)

The light seals appear to be perfect, so I'm wondering if this sloppiness is "normal" for this camera, or is something else out of whack? As this is my first Electro 35, I am not at all familiar with them. I wonder if I should just go ahead and replace the seals anyway, even though they look fine?

Any/all feedback would be greatly appreciated; I can hardly wait to start shooting with this beautiful camera.

Thanks,
Glen

 

[ColSebastianMoran]

This came up once before. Some play is normal. My GSN/GTN's all have a little play. But, 2mm sounds like more than I've seen.

In my experience, it's the hinge side where light leaks appear, not the latch side. See this thread, for example.

Let us know how the first film turns out.

 

[b1bmsgt]

To check the seals, open the film door and look for the long strip of foam on the door near the body of the camera. Rub your finger on the foam and see if it's solid. If the seals are original, it will invariably be either gooey or dry and crumbly. If this is foam is bad, you can probably count on the door groove seals being bad as well. 😱

What also happens is that the latch mechanism inside the camera that the hook on the door engages in can be bent, causing the door to have more in-out play than normal. I think probably some people don't know the proper way to open the door and end up trying to pry it open, bending the latch! :bang:

Russ