Anyone have strong opinions on Nikon MD-12?

I always used my FM2s with their motor drives. They handle great and I don't mind the sound. I also have an FA with its dedicated drive MD-15, and its louder than the MD-12s.
 
Strong opinions? The Nikon MD-12 is the single most unreliable piece of photo gear I've every bought.


That about does it.
 
20 years ago I used to shoot a lot with FM-2 and MD-12s and the damn things would jam every fifth roll or so for no reason, with 3-4 different set-ups, not just one lemon. I agree it is nice not to have to withdraw your eye when shooting action... so now that we have so many other options, I will venture to say that shooting FM/FEs is great but not for eyeball-glued-to-the-finder action.
 
That incredible, Frank, given Nikon's reputation. But if you experienced that first-hand, then I have to defer to your experience. I've already decided to give the motor drive a miss, but I just hate the fumbled extra couple of seconds required to wind on when you've forgotten to wind after a shot. And it's always those hasty get-the-shot-quick moments.
 
The MD-12 is built to a very high standard. It's heavy. It's somewhat loud.

I sure wish that I had one back when I was shooting sports.

For a casual trip, I'd probably leave it at home.
 
A follow-up to my comments earlier in the thread:

I returned my MD-12. I bought it for an FE2, for pretty much the same reasons — "fumbled extra couple of seconds," and also because i'm trying to train myself to make more exposures, even if they are only minutely different from each other....

Anyway, i decided the size and weight and noise just didn't make sense for me. Instead, i bought an F100 to use in situations when i would want a motor-driven body. I'm keeping the FE2 for when i don't need the motor or don't want the size/weight. The F100 is still pretty good for manual focusing. Okay, so that was that. Until i saw the F6.... Long story > short, i just returned the F100 because i found a 'reasonably priced' F6.... I'm not recommending you get an F6 to replace an MD-12. It doesn't make sense. It doesn't make sense. It doesn't make sense. And, yet, it's such an amazing camera, i had to get it.....
 
Frank Petronio said:
... and the damn things would jam every fifth roll or so for no reason
Click to expand...

Jammed, as in physically wouldn't fire, or was it electrical? I noticed two things with my two MD12s: One, it was necessary to clean the battery contacts every time I changed the batteries, otherwise corrosion (or something) would cause an intermittant loss of power. Cleaning the contacts cured that problem. Secondly, if I'd removed the MD12 from the camera and fired it for some reason, it was likely to be "out of sync" with the camera and required careful realignment of the drive prongs on the bottom of the camera. Advancing the film partway until the prongs could be seen to match those on the MD12 allowed me to re-attach it to the camera with no problem.
 
You'd put a new roll in and it would be frozen until I removed the drive and reattached it. This was with it securely fastened to the camera for the rolls prior.
 
css9450 said:
Jammed, as in physically wouldn't fire, or was it electrical? I noticed two things with my two MD12s: One, it was necessary to clean the battery contacts every time I changed the batteries, otherwise corrosion (or something) would cause an intermittant loss of power. Cleaning the contacts cured that problem. Secondly, if I'd removed the MD12 from the camera and fired it for some reason, it was likely to be "out of sync" with the camera and required careful realignment of the drive prongs on the bottom of the camera. Advancing the film partway until the prongs could be seen to match those on the MD12 allowed me to re-attach it to the camera with no problem.
Click to expand...

There is another cure for the out of sync problem and that is to lay a coin across the electrical contacts with the drive off. Then turn the MD12 on briefly then off again. The drive dogs on the MD12 should be aligned properly then. I suspect they get out of sync when the MD12 is removed from the body while still turned on.

Bob
 
Some info about the MD-12.... Seven pages(!), beginning here:

http://www.mir.com.my/rb/photography/hardwares/classics/nikonfeseries/fefmshared/md12/md12basic0.htm


"Important: Make sure when you perform this task of mounting the drive to your camera body, the power switch on the back of your camera is turn off to avoid possible electrical surge on wrong contact with the electrical terminals. The drive will advance upon wrong contact and since it might move 'violently' when it has nothing to hold onto, such action may damage the pins and cause unnecessary replacement/repairing cost. Although the MD-12 has a ground to protect, but it is still advisable to note this."

"Nikon recommends in the manual that, for continuous shooting, you do not use shutter speeds of less than 1/30 sec. The use of slower shutter speeds may result in erratic operation. If it is imperative to use shutter speeds of less than 1/30 sec., switch to single frame shooting."

"When your motor drive doesn't wind the film, don't panic and rush your MDrive for repair service. First, check the the shutter release pin which it must be in a retracted position when attaching the camera to the MD-11/MD-12. Detach the drive first, just mount the drive closely with the four electrical contact pin in contact with the metal surface at the base of the camera and this will activate the motor for a while and the shutter release pin will retract again if protruded earlier."
 
I used an MD-11 and an MD-12 and except for replacing a cracked housing piece on the 12 caused by impact damage, I never had any problems with either. Both extremely reliable, and rugged. As I said before, never leave home without 'em.
 
its fiddly to put on and off and you can quite easily break the shutter if you do it wrong. (done it myself) Other than that I found them to be trouble free, but my honest opinion is there are much better more reliable solutions to motorised film transport.. I would keep the fm2 naked and get an f801 instead for a motorised camera. These are just as quick, a smaller package, and rewinds the film also. I thought even the f301 was a more reliable than a fe2 with md12. Lets face it if the extremely unlikely happens and the f801s electronics fail, you will have the fm2 there too. Two cameras, same weight as a fm with md12, a motorised one and a mechanical one.
 
Even if one doesn't use the drive to advance the film, the motors make the cameras more ergonomic and simply easier to hand carry and hold especially with longer or heavier lenses attached. For that reason alone, for the few dollars an MD-12, MD-4 or MD15 cost, in my opinion they are worth buying and using if only as a light-weight "handle"without the batteries installed.
 
I've been using a MD-12 on my FM2n since 1993 and never had a jam or any other problem.

I prefer it mounted because it is more ergonomic, especially with longer/heavier lenses.

Yeah it's loud, but if I want quiet and discrete, I bring my Leicas; that's when RF's really shine.

JCA
 
ChrisPlatt said:
Planning to go digital? ;)

Chris
Click to expand...

Hi.
No, not really. I've already 'been' digital, with a 5D > 5DMkII. But, because i love film so much, i'm hesitant to use it.

I'm just trying to get away from the bogus notion of "the decisive moment" - i kinda believe that phrase has been perverted so that RF shooters think that 'real photographers' should only need to expose one frame.... I need to get back to the discipline i had when i was shooting fashion. We'd shoot for 8-10 hours to get only a handful of images. Burn a roll on a single pose, just because the scrutiny during review was so exacting. I'm always disappointed when i try to shoot too cautiously - there are always small details i feel are just 'wrong' in my pictures and i'm sure i make better 'editing' decisions after the fact rather than on the spot.
 
Frank Petronio said:
You'd put a new roll in and it would be frozen until I removed the drive and reattached it. This was with it securely fastened to the camera for the rolls prior.
Click to expand...

Mine has just started doing this after more than a decade of working fine. Trying to find a solution because I do love the way the grip feels on my FM2n.
 
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