Minolta Autocord Problem

[gliderbee]

I just bought a Minolta Autocord on eBay UK; have a look here:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260656442395&ru=http://shop.ebay.co.uk:80/%3F_from%3DR40%26_trksid%3Dm570%26_nkw%3D260656442395%26_fvi%3D1&_rdc=1#ht_500wt_928

Now, I received an email from the seller, stating:
"I was having a quick check over the camera this morning when I came to realise that the focusing lever is stiff and doesn't actually move. Is this a major problem for you? I am sorry I didn't post this in the description however I only found out about it today. Thanks"

I'm not sure he's telling the thruth: we emailed before about a BIN price, and he hoped for more (GBP 180) then he got (GBP 112).

Is the problem he's talking about serious ? Would it be easy to repair ? I might try to get a partial refund.

Thanks for your help,

Stefan.

 

[Keith]

Sounds like he's blowing smoke to me ... but then again checking his record he doesn't have a history of selling cameras so I may be wrong.

I'd put him to the test and say you want the camera but with a partial refund to allow for a possible repair.

 

[sar-photo]

Hi Stefan,

The seller was aware of the problem yesterday because I asked him about the focus lever. He sent me the following email...

Dear ukb375,

Hi, I have just noticed that it doesn't move so it
it is broken
- freddie9356

I asked him if he was going to update the auction page to reflect the fact that the camera was broken but he never replied and never updated the page.

I have researched the problem and it can be fixed. It is caused by the grease on the helical mount solidifying. You need to get to the mount and carefully apply lighter fluid or similar to break down the grease.

DO NOT FORCE THE FOCUS LEVER AS IT CAN BREAK EASILY!!

I suggest you ask for a substantial discount - about half of what you paid!

Cheers
Simon

 

[sar-photo]

For some reason the text colour changed in my previous post - don't know why 😕 I hope that it is readable!

Stefan, If you want to make a complaint to ebay I will back you up.

Cheers
Simon

 

[gliderbee]

Keith, Simon,

Thanks for your replies. I'll follow Simons' advice and I'll let you know.

Regards,
Stefan.

 

[sar-photo]

I was wondering how you got on Stefan - did it all work out satisfactorily?

Cheers

 

[gliderbee]

I was wondering how you got on Stefan - did it all work out satisfactorily?

Cheers

Oops, sorry: I forgot to follow up on this tread. After the sale, we exchanges some more messages (I proposed half of the price), but in the end we agreed to cancel the sale: I have enough cameras waiting for repair.
I'll find a Autocord sooner or later, but for now, I have a beautiful Yashica Mat-124 (not the G version, but the version before, that I like more: it's a real beauty) in perfectly working order 🙂