Pen F "Gothic" shutter speeds slow

[crawdiddy]

I have a couple of Olympus Pen Fs, and they both have the same problem-- slow shutter speeds. I understand these beasts use a rotary shutter, which is completely different from focal plane 2-curtain type shutters. Are these shutters prone to lubrication issues, such that the 45 year old bodies have mostly slow shutters in them now? I looked through the half frame forum thinking someone would have started a thread for it, if it was a common problem, but I found no other complaints.

After I bought the first F and discovered overexposed frames, I found another on the bay for a good price, and sadly it suffers from the same issue. Is this easily repaired? Should I consider tackling it myself? Has anyone else run into this issue? I love the Pen F, and would like to use it without having to guesstimate the exposure.

 

[zuiko85]

Warning: The following is offered without warranty and strictly at your own risk.

Ok, here goes. I also have an older , 'Gothic f' Pen F and when I obtained mine about twelve years ago it had the same problem. (The slow speeds were very slow) I took a chance and removed the bottom cover. Then I used Zippo lighter fluid to flush the mechanism (levers, gears and such) that was visible without any other disassembly. There was a lot of gunk that came out. Then I used a very (VERY!) lightweight oil to lightly lubricate any area I could reach.
Since that time my sample has worked OK, the slow speed seem about right.

Pause here; I did not turn the camera body upside down to do this, I held it upright and just kind of squirted the solvent into the works and let gravity drain it out. I did lay the camera flat on it's back to lube the mechanism. I also worked the shutter while cleaning and applying the oil.
End pause.

At this point it is important to note that even a Pen F that seems to be operating close to correct can be a stop off on the high speeds when tested on a shutter speed tester. ie., 1/500 could very well be 1/300 or 1/275 and this could apply even to late model.

If you do send it out and a part needs replacing be aware that there are NO parts available so even a competent repair person might not be able to fix it back to factory spec.

 

[crawdiddy]

Thanks for the advice and user experience. You’ve given me just the encouragement I need to undertake it. I mean undertake the task. If it fails, then I get to undertake the camera body, as it were. I’ll let you know how it turns out.

Again, thanks for the comments. —Dan.