My TLR smells

[mrisney]

This probably ranks up there with some of the silliest. But here goes. I recently came across a very nice Autocord, in great condition from an estate sale. I had it cleaned up and re-lubricated by Karl Bryan in Oregon, highly recommend, he is a wealth of information on the engineering aspects of the Autocord, and why it's such a fine camera in general.

I have it back, it focuses very well, everything is smooth and it seems to be just about the perfect TLR for me (love the underneath focusing lever).

As my title indicates, it smells. Of what ? I do not know, maybe the previous owner was a smoker, maybe a musty old house in Northern England (where it came from). I should probably just put up with it, but when I peer down the focusing chimney, the thing really smells, in an unpleasant way.

I feel like a fool for even bringing this up, but it's bugging me, and makes focusing not an entirely pleasant experience.

Any remedies for such a situation ? What about letting it sit in a ziplock bag with some baking soda for an evening. Any suggestions really appreciated.

 

[loquax ludens]

You might email Karl and ask him. He may know.

You probably want to keep chemicals away from it. Maybe leave it out in the sun for a few days. Shield the lenses and ground glass, of course. Honestly, I don't know if that is safe advice, so you might wait for corroboration from someone else.

 

[FrankS]

I wipe down new old cameras with rubbing (isopropyl) alcohol. Not the lens glass.

 

[Dan Daniel]

Ask Karl first. Find out if he was inside the mirror box. I've found bugs, grease, tobacco scum in the mirror box. Well, this usually means that the mirror is a mess so Karl probably fixed that part.

If it has the original focus screen setup, the top surface is glass. So wiping the inside of the hood area would be safe. Do not let liquids drip down, though- there is a fresnel lens plate below the ground glass, and getting water in between the two means disassembling the screens. If you are comfortable removing the hood- simple, four screws (over a towel so they don't bounce away) and rock the unit up and out- you can wipe down the interior of the mirror area. Do not touch the mirror! Again, keep liquid away from the fresnel/ground glass area. And alcohol isn't good the plastic.

 

[Pherdinand]

wrap it in newspaper for a while.
It really helps.