Kiev 4AM pressure plate - plastic???

[ssmc]

Hi all,

I just got my first FSU camera, a black Kiev 4AM which looks to be in pretty good condition and has a decent matching leather case. It came with a Helios 103 which looks like it could use a bit of a clean but the RF seems accurate and the shutter speeds seem okay (using the ol' Mk. 8 Calibrated Eyeball 😉). In any case I have another Helios 103 which is really nice (from Fedka) but is a slightly loose fit in the mount so maybe I can sort something between the two lenses.

Anyway, I got a bit of a shock when I removed the back - the pressure plate is thin, flexible plastic! Is this normal for the -4? It also appears quite marked up (maybe "scuffed" would be a good way of putting it). Some of the marks on the plate appear to be contamination so I'm thinking of cleaning it. Is the plastic plate likely to be a problem in terms of film flatness and/or scratching? Is there a replacement? I have never in my life seen a plastic pressure plate before so I'm not sure how to proceed.

TIA,
Scott

 

[wolves3012]

I've never seen a 4AM in real life to know if it's normal but they are the last of the models. It may be that they used plastic to reduce costs, certainly the ones in my Kiev 4 and 4A appear to be alloy.

Plastic isn't necessarily inferior, I'll be interested to see other opinions and replies. It does mainly have to hold the film in the guides and against the rails.

 

[fanshaw]

I have a 1982 4AM plus a 1979 model. Both have metal pressure plates.

 

[ssmc]

I stand corrected - it is in fact metal - some sort of light alloy! I only found this when I removed it and saw the reverse side with the casting flash, finishing marks and some exposed alloy. It really does look and feel like plastic from the front though. The impression of flexibility was due to the fairly weak springs.

The scuff marks did not budge with anything I dared try on it. They appear to be embedded in the paint and (strangely) a lot of them are vertical, as if they were produced when removing and replacing the back. So... do I attempt to re-finish the paint on the film-facing side? I was thinking of flattening it off on a piece of plate glass with some ultra-fine wet-or-dry (like 2000grit). But I have no idea what sort of paint to use afterward, or if I should even try this.

One other thing: around the underside of the upper part of the body there is a "light seal" that looks a lot like a piece of blackened twine jammed into the groove. Any ideas what to use to renew this? Bits and pieces are flaking off inside the camera. It is definitely not foam or felt.

Thanks,
Scott

 

[sevo]

In general, the film we use today has quite low sensitivity from the rear due to the anti-halation backing. In my experience, scuff marks on the pressure plate don't show on any of the films I use even if they are bright silver.

Paint flaking off into the camera certainly would be worse than scuffing on the pressure plate. And finding a small enough amount of suitable paint and making it stick will not be easy, and could mean plenty of experiments until you hit on the right amounts of etching, baking and anodizing - you might even need go through several plates until you succeed.

You'll probably save a lot of time and money if you simply buy a second Kiev with black plate if you ever intend to shoot the Efke "halo" IR film, duplicating films or some other odd film without AH backing (redscale?).

 

[sevo]

One other thing: around the underside of the upper part of the body there is a "light seal" that looks a lot like a piece of blackened twine jammed into the groove. Any ideas what to use to renew this?

Black twine, again. You won't get foam in there without running into problems with its adhesive backing.

 

[fanshaw]

One other thing: around the underside of the upper part of the body there is a "light seal" that looks a lot like a piece of blackened twine jammed into the groove. Any ideas what to use to renew this? Bits and pieces are flaking off inside the camera. It is definitely not foam or felt.

Thanks,
Scott

I find black knitting wool, secured with some contact adhesive is good for this type of light seal. It is easily compressed so it makes a perfect seal.

 

[ssmc]

Thanks for the replies guys!

I will leave the plate alone, and I like the idea of the knitting wool - it's cheap, available in different gauges and if it doesn't work out I ought to be able to remove it easily enough. I also have a ball of twine around someplace but from memory I think it might be too thin. I'll check it out and maybe try blacking it with a Sharpie.

Regards,
Scott 🙂

 

[sevo]

The original seal is more felt like than modern knitting wool, and sometimes claimed to be yak wool - but if so, that is more likely because the USSR had an excess of that at some time or because it was not good for anything better than technical use.

A bit of thick home-spun knitting wool would do nicely. If it should be too fluffy, do what your wife generally does not allow and wash it in hot water, and it should develop a nicely felt-like consistency... ;-)