Fujica Half light seal size

[m_m]

Apologies in advance, I'm a newbie being lazy!

Just received my first Fujica Half from the 'bay. Happily everything works well, but the light seals are on their way out. Replacing them will be my first time embarking on any sort of camera repair.

Are Fujica Half seals the same thickness as any of the other commonly available seal repair kits? What should I ask for when ordering?

Thanks very much!

 

[xwhatsit]

Sorry, I'm not really answering your question here, but I will attempt to slightly confuse you even more:

I don't like the foam kits. They're a pain to install and 10, 20, 30 years from now they'll go the same way as the original. I use black wool. Now, I know I'm a New Zealander and all, and may have more of an attraction to woolly things than is usual (cue Australian response). But I find it does a better job, cheaper, and easier.

I notice all my older German cameras, like my 1930s Rolleicord, Agfa Record III, Voigtlander Vito II etc., used black wool or similar cord originally. They have all lasted excellently and needed no re-sealing from me despite their advanced age compared to most of my Japanese cameras with foam seals.

You might consider this instead. It's very easy; I use four-ply, and double it up at least once. You need less glue, so it's less messy. Twist the wool tight, then lay it in the tracks; it expands and holds itself in. And it will last for a good 70 years if my Rolleicord is anything to go by.

 

[pinkarmy]

never heard about wool...what if its tiny hair fall out and stick to the lens? or jamming the mechanic? and how about static...will it be problem?

and how about using soft leather?

 

[xwhatsit]

Tiny fibres shouldn't fall out, wool seems pretty good for that. Plus, there's not that much of it, and it's in the light seal tracks so it's hard for it to get to the lens. Static -- again, it's inside the light seal tracks.

Zeiss, Rolleicord, Agfa et al used it for decades without a problem.

Don't know about soft leather -- only thing is maybe it would dry out after a few years?

 

[m_m]

Just to follow up on this:
Jon Goodman (interslice) very kindly sent along an extra section of 1.5mm thick sticky-back foam with a kit I ordered for another camera. I cut the foam into 2mm wide strips, which seemed just right when laid into the grooves. The corners took two strip widths (4mm wide).

I didn't use yarn because I wasn't able to find a nearby store that sells Pliobond. Next time I'll look a little harder -- yarn definitely would have been less tedious to install.