OM 1n questions

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atlcruiser

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Back in 1981 or 1982 I bought an OM1n with a 35/2.5 (?) and a fast 50 (1.4?). I used them all the time until I sort of switched to digital in 95/96 or. This was my first "real" camera and I loved it.

About 2 months ago I was cleaning my shop and found the above in a dusty old box long forgotten! Cleaned it all up and I think, when the new battery arrives, it will work jsut fine.

I guess the big question is what do i need to look out for? What goes wrong on a regular basis with the OM?


Last night I dug out prints and negs shot 25 years ago from that camera; I am excited to get it back into service 🙂
 
The shutter speed dial can become stiff after long periods of disuse: but if so it might free up with exercise.

The correct (mercury-based) meter batteries are no longer available. Weincells are adequate substitutes, but tend not to last long--the best thing is a "Criscam" adapter which enables the use of silver oxide batteries.

Regards,
D.
 
I'll go with Beemermark. Check the foam seals--they deteriorate over time and if that's the case, you'll have bad light leaks. Also, some of the early OM-1s had foam padding as part of the assembly holding the pentaprism in place, and as it deteriorates, it turns into a muck that can damage the silvering on the prism.

The guy who can help you with this is John Hermanson at Camtech Repair (e-mail: omtech1@verizon.net). He worked in Olympus' service dept for years, and he has nursed three OM-2s to health for me...
 
Don't know if it's got the same (plastic) aperture setting ring in the mount that sets the aperture from fully open to the proper setting after the shutter button is pressed as on my OM-2n. That one had become oval after 20 years of sitting still and got stuck. I had it replaced by a metal ring by a Olympus remair man in Germany.
Foam needs replacement indeed. Make sure you don't smear it on the prism. The prism itself is also encased in foam which deteriorates to a slimy mass with age.
 
Mirror and door foam should be maintained like with any other classic camera. Easy to do.

However, in addition, the biggest issue with many OM1 bodies is prism foam deterioation, causing etching on the prism roof. When you look through the prism, at the borders, you can recognize this etching by something that looks like beginning separation.

Some OM1 bodies don't have prism foam at all. For the ones that do, I very much recommend cleaning it out. Not too difficult to DIY, but requires top plate removal. If you don't take care of this, you have a time-bomb. Seriously, that foam after 30 years is some disgusting stuff, don't leave it in there.
 
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Sorry I can't help with the technical stuff relating to this camera...but I think it's so neat that you found it after so many years...it's sorta like Christmas or a birthday...
Hope it all works out and you're able to get it going again...
 
The only real problem that comes up is the prism foam deterioration. Otherwise, I have found my multiple OM-1 bodies very trouble free. The OM-1 (and OM-1n) are well made camera bodies.
 
I have been all over it and looked into it, no foam issues that i can see and the prism looks fine but lots o dust on it. Eventually it will need to be sent back and cleaned.

I ordered the battery adaptor a few days ago but todya I got 2 wein cells to tyr the meter out.

Tomorrow will be the first roll in at least 14 years through it.

Here is one neat thing: there was an old roll of kodak gold in it exposed. It was already respooled. I had it souped at the costco and scanned....not great but what a neat window into my own past. PICs of the '96 olympics, friends long gone, ex wife long gone 🙂....film does last!
 
If your OM-1 serial number is above 1,110,000 it is probably built withOUT prism foam. All 1N have prism foam. As a rule plastic coupling rings don't go oval on their own, it is usually caused by mounting a lens that has no "stop" screw. John
 
Most 1N & 2N I see now still have no prism damage, but it is inevitable and looming. Get that prism foam removed. As I said ALL 1N and 2N have it. John
 
Most late models N series should have a plastic barrier between the prism glass and the foam. Even so, I recently removed the foam from my 1n. And it was a gooey mess!
 
The problem I had with an older OM-1 was that under low light situations the meter did not work correctly with the modern voltage batteries. I needed an adaptor to correct the problem.
 
The plastic barrier on the prism only covers part of the prism and it does not extend under the prism foam. 1.55V 625A or 625U alkaline batteries cause a 2-3 stop error in the OM-1/1N. Worse is the fact that that battery causes non-linear meter results. If meter is calibrated to those batteries, meter will not be accurate at all light levels. John
 
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