reagan
hey, they're only Zorkis
Steve webOSUser's thread discussing Zorki.1's reminded me of a bit of a puzzlement I have sitting among my Zorkis.
Several-several years ago I bought a Zorki-Zorki.1b to add to my gaggle-gaggle of FSUs because, hey, a guy can't have toooo many FSUs.
At the time, I was searching serial numbers - looking for low serial numbers/older cameras. Just like humanoids, older is better ... #wink ... because there was more concentration on craftsmanship in the FSU camera building industry of the mid-50's than there was during the stamp-it-paint-it-ship-it mid-70's. That search yielded the afore-mentioned Zorki-Zorki.1b, serial #33795, for very decent money.
The camera arrived, I gave it a quick wipe off, dry fired it a few times and proceeded to load the first test roll ... with great effort. Once loaded, winding became difficult. So I unloaded, looked it over a little more, dry fired it again and again 20X and reloaded. Again, the goin' got tough. So tough, I felt the film tear. Ok, break out the screwdrivers. Tic, toc, tic, toc ... This is what I found.
Several-several years ago I bought a Zorki-Zorki.1b to add to my gaggle-gaggle of FSUs because, hey, a guy can't have toooo many FSUs.
At the time, I was searching serial numbers - looking for low serial numbers/older cameras. Just like humanoids, older is better ... #wink ... because there was more concentration on craftsmanship in the FSU camera building industry of the mid-50's than there was during the stamp-it-paint-it-ship-it mid-70's. That search yielded the afore-mentioned Zorki-Zorki.1b, serial #33795, for very decent money.
The camera arrived, I gave it a quick wipe off, dry fired it a few times and proceeded to load the first test roll ... with great effort. Once loaded, winding became difficult. So I unloaded, looked it over a little more, dry fired it again and again 20X and reloaded. Again, the goin' got tough. So tough, I felt the film tear. Ok, break out the screwdrivers. Tic, toc, tic, toc ... This is what I found.
- Wrong pressure plate. It should have a round pressure plate and springs. It had, uh, something else not round and not even FSU ... which was thrown and flown out the back door like a Frisbee and landed 40 yds. into the horse pasture where it remains to this day.
- Definitely old serial number, probably 1950 ... ish ... maybe?. Definitely old style tear-drop FED-like RF coupler. Definitely 1b flimsy body (3 screws in back). Definitely old style relief spring (FED-like.)
- It also has the brightest, clearest RF patch of anything I own and overall, a really clean camera. But then there's .....
- Shutter speeds? Shutter speed dial does not match a 1b (I think?). Though the shutter cocks and fires smoothly with a nice "schlep" sound, the dial reads B, 25, 50, 100, 250 and 500 when it should read Z, 20, 30, 40, 60, 100, 200 and 500. Right?
- Find [with luck] the appropriate round pressure plate, reassemble, ignore the shutter speeds and fire at will.
- Since the shutter is wrong, scrap the 1b project and use the shutter in another 1d I have waiting in the wings.
- Or ... ??? [insert your 2cents here]
