Pen-EE aperture/red flag problem

[Autoluminescent]

Hello,

Today I got hold of an Olympus Pen-EE (appears to be the earlier version, with only one shutter speed for both flash and auto) but it has one problem; the aperture always opens fully to 3.5 regardless of light conditions, and the red flag interjects seemingly at random. The aperture closes down fine when choosing them on the flash option.

Any ideas for why this could be, and how it could be fixed? I'm guessing it's something sticky somewhere, but doesn't seem to match the descriptions for "sticky aperture" problems that I have read. Have googled and found a variety of pages, but none with quite this problem.

Also, if necessary, any recommendations for good repair places in the UK (preferably South East England or South Wales)?

Thanks! 🙂

 

[02Pilot]

I'd suspect the selenium meter is failing, and there may be a wiring or mechanical fault with the mechanism as well. On my EES-2, the mechanism was accessible once the lens assembly was removed. It's a fairly easy camera to work on, as there aren't a lot of other complications to get in the way.

 

[Autoluminescent]

Thank you for your response 🙂

Would you recommend me taking it apart and having a look to work out whether the problem is wiring or a faulty part then? Is it possible to buy a replacement selenium meter?

 

[kbg32]

Those cameras haven't been made in 40 years. Finding a replacement selenium meter would be pretty difficult.

You might find some info here - http://www.subclub.org/

 

[02Pilot]

Yeah, replacement meter is going to be a problem. I understand there's a way to use a solar cell (as in from a solar-powered calculator or similar) to replace a dead selenium meter, but I've not tried it. Personally, I'd use it as a manual camera and call it a day, but if you want automatic operation, you're going to have to do some tinkering or pay for a repair (if it's even possible).

 

[Autoluminescent]

Thanks both, I wondered given the relatively large following that Olympus Trips have, whether someone somewhere might be producing new or refurbished selenium cells for those, and similar for these things...

@kbg32, thanks for the link, I shall have a look!

@02Pilot, I had thought about doing that, may finally learn to use Sunny 16 properly 🙂