Hi-Matic 7SII Blues

[ToddHarding]

Hello RFF,

I’m brand new to this forum and had hoped that my first post would be to proclaim the fabulousness of my new rangefinder and ask some questions about how to maximize usage of my new best friend – a Minolta Hi-Matic 7SII.

I just recently bought the 7SII in ‘as is’ condition from a seller online. Yes, yes, a fatal mistake, I know. The camera came a few days ago and I’ve spent the weekend playing with it. There are (at least) two problems immediately apparent: (1) the meter appears to be dead – I’ve tried putting in a new 675 (1.4v) hearing aid battery to no avail and (2) the shutter will not open wider than f/8 in manual mode. It will close down when I move to f/11 and f/16. It will also open wide when I set the camera to Auto and depress the shutter release button partially. I’ve spent a fair amount of time moving the aperture lever back and forth hoping that I would shake the shutter blades loose but this hasn’t happened yet. The light seals also need to be replaced but I expected this beforehand and was not disappointed when this turned out to be true.

Only the positive side, the two-piece case is in really good shape and the flash (Minolta Auto 25) works and looks brand new!

While I suppose the best strategy would be to take my limited budget and spend it on something that actually works, the problem is that I’m really fond of this broken camera. I like the way it looks, feels, sounds, and I’m excited by the prospect of taking pictures with such a small camera. Do I have any repair options or am I stuck with a very nice looking paperweight?

Regards,

Todd

 

[dogberryjr]

I'll take it off your hands! But a real answer: maybe keep working the action; chances are it's been sitting untouched for a while.

 

[camera.bear]

Hello RFF,

(1) the meter appears to be dead – I’ve tried putting in a new 675 (1.4v) hearing aid battery to no avail .

Regards,

Todd

Todd,

Congrats on the 7s II; I really enjoy mine. Have you cleaned the battery contacts with vinegar? I always clean each camera that I get; These cameras usually have been sitting around unused for quite a while. Sometimes there is a buildup that you can't see that is enough to prevent contact. This has happened to me with my Pentax PC35AF. There was no visible corrosion, but I had to clean and air dry the terminals 4 times on both the camera and autowinder before I got a solid contact. Haven't had a problem since. Good luck.

 

[nksyoon]

When I bought mine I found that a solder join on the internal lead to the battery compartment had broken. After resoldering this the meter worked. No answer for your aperture blades problem though.

 

[ToddHarding]

Todd,

Congrats on the 7s II; I really enjoy mine. Have you cleaned the battery contacts with vinegar? I always clean each camera that I get; These cameras usually have been sitting around unused for quite a while. Sometimes there is a buildup that you can't see that is enough to prevent contact. This has happened to me with my Pentax PC35AF. There was no visible corrosion, but I had to clean and air dry the terminals 4 times on both the camera and autowinder before I got a solid contact. Haven't had a problem since. Good luck.

Thanks for the tip. I'll give this a try tonight.

 

[ronaldj23]

Hi, I have a 7Sii that I bought on the Bay and is very similar in "problems" that you describe. Insofar at the meter, I contacted Mark Hama in Georgia (the Yashica specialist) and he said that he would do a CLA, including the meter repair for $114 plus shipping (I think I'm remembering the amount correctly). I sent him a Yashica GX that needed some work and he turned it around quickly, and gave me a personal phone call to discucss the work he'd done. Very credible and nice guy (and expert at rangefinder repairs). So, if you're willing to spend a little cash, go for it...if the body is otherwise in excellent shape, you'll have a wonderful, usable camera.

My shutter reacts exactly the same but here's how to tell if it's really a problem: Look into the lens with the shutter cocked...yup, if you move the aperture, it won't open past f8 BUT...do this...set to f1.7 and actually fire the shutter...mine opens to the correct setting only when the shutter fires...this is without battery. And just in case you didn't know...the camera is fully usable without the meter or battery...you'll just have to wing it or use a handheld meter (or spring for the CLA from Hama, which I intend to do). You have a marvelous camera...I hope you keep it in action by spending just a little hard earned dough on it...and I hope my comments are helpful to you...Ron Johnston

 

[vidgamer]

The problem with the 7Sii is that it's so popular, at least in these auctions, that even "as is" cameras go for crazy prices! If money were no object, I'd say sure, do it and plan to have it serviced. It's supposed to be one of the better cameras of its type. It's a bit too much for me to justify, though. OH well.

 

[conradyiu]

one at ebay but it now for 350 something

 

[reiki_]

My 7s should be arriving next week. Makes me happy.

 

[Joe Vitessa]

Todd,
Essex Camera in NJ will service this camera for $80, which includes return shipping and calibrating the meter to be accurate with alkaline batteries. They do great work, as you'll read online. Good luck. The camera is certainly worth the effort.

Joe

 

[Bill58]

It's one of the best compact RFs ever made, so if you got the $$ and think you'll use it enough, it's worth getting overhauled, the meter repaired and having new foam light seals installed. However, get somebody who's competant to do it.

 

[Brian Legge]

Interesting. I picked up a 7sII with the exact same behavior as a donor camera. The meter was dead and in manual when hitting the shutter, the aperture was in the range 8-16 or so - I couldn't open it up all the way.

I opened the camera up and have been exploring. The battery connection cable was corroded and disconnected - that would be an an easy one to fix.

Looking at the back of the shutter, it looks like the auto exposure trap which catches the rotating aperture control lever always engages, even when the camera is firing in manual. I'm still trying to sort out why - a failed repair attempt or a malfunctioning part?

I'm on the fence now about which of my two dead 7sIIs to use as a donor and which to repair. I think its going to be something of a split down the middle. 🙂

 

[dbarnes]

Rehabbing a 7sii

Rehabbing a 7sii

I loved my 7sii's small size and quiet operation but I wasn't impressed with the rangefinder. Just too dim to be usable on occasions when I wanted to actually use that swell f1.7 lens wide open!

The camera in fact is not known for a great viewfinder. I'm not sure what its potential is. But in a CLA of a 7sii, I'd sure ask the camera tech to check out the rangefinder and clean it if need be.

Personally, I sold the 7sii and moved on to a Bessa R. Wonderful viewfinder! Bigger, heavier and louder camera, tho.

 

[Brian Legge]

Figured it out.

The back end of the metering needle is suppose to catch the a mechanism that suppresses (or controls the behavior) of the auto exposure mechanism. The back end of the needle doesn't extend far enough to engage block the movement, resulting in the aperture closing down unconditionally to somewhere between f/8 and f/16.

Options to deal with this are relatively straight forward:

- Emulate the needle by putting in your own obstruction. This would keep the auto exposure mechanism from ever engaging. Firing while on Auto would meter correctly but would always expose full open.
- Try to repair the needle by soldering on a replacement piece of metal. The needle actually has a little slot for the tiny bit of metal to go - but the soldering would be a challenge as we're talking about something extremely small.
- Replace the needle unit with a good one.

On the positive side, disassembling the camera to this point isn't bad. Take off the top and bottom, peal back the leather, remove 4 screws and the plate comes off cleanly. Trying to resolve the issue though.. that will be a bit of a challenge as none of the four options above are great ones.

 

[Brian Legge]

Here is the back of the needle on a defective 7sII:

Here is the needle on a working 7sII. Note that the slot above has a metal bar soldered in to it:

A few more shots and description here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/cannelbrae/sets/72157624508226403

It looks like this issue is rather common with the 7sIIs. I've seen several 'the aperture blades are stuck/don't open/etc' posts while researching this. I'm willing to bet that a large number are actually this issue.

 

[pghumphrey]

This seems like the best thread to post this question.

I just bought a 7sii and Auto14 flash. Never dreamed deciding on a fixed lens RF would be a harder decision than getting married. Just kidding. The wealth of info on RFF certainly help. Thank you.

Flash and camera are clean. Aperture working, speeds sound correct. Needs new seals, but that's to be expected. Light meter is not working. Battery compartment shows no apparent corrosion, so I'm trying camera.bear's multiple cleaning technique. If that does not work I thought I'd open it up to look for anything obvious. Those of you that have worked on the 7sii, does it specifically take JIS type S drivers? The 000 that I have seems a tad loose in the head. Also do you know the size of the screw heads at the bottom of the battery compartment? I want make sure I have all the possible tools before opening it up. If there's nothing obvious I plan on using it without the meter for a while and then sending it off.
Thanks in advance.

 

[milosdevino]

I have had similar problems with this camera and my solution can be found here
http://www.kyphoto.com/classics/forum/messages/2/21038.html?1307363101
The meter now works fine, but I still haven't put the camera back together again because I had a cardiac arrest and with the resulting memory loss can't quite remember how it all went.
Yes, the screws are JIS. I think when they changed from slot to cross point it was adopted, so from mid 60's on I guess.
Didn't know they came in blue, I thought only black and silver.

 

[ColSebastianMoran]

Hi, I have a 7Sii that I bought on the Bay and is very similar in "problems" that you describe. Insofar at the meter, I contacted Mark Hama in Georgia (the Yashica specialist) and he said that he would do a CLA, including the meter repair for $114 plus shipping (I think I'm remembering the amount correctly).

I second the recommendation for Mark Hama. Most of my cameras of this vintage have needed more attention than I can render. After Mark's work it will function "good as new."

 

[dbarnes]

Had a 7sII and loved it!

Just remember that used Bessa R bodies are in the $200 range and head-and-shoulders better in viewfinder and metering. You would, of course, need to put a lens on the Bessa body.