In the late 1970s' I bought a Hodaka 100cc Super Rat from a local motorcycle shop. I paid a hundred usd for it because it wouldn't start and the shop didn't want to invest the time or money to fix it. Two of my close friends and I took on the challenge of making it run. We did everything our limited knowledge led us to believe we had fixed the problem. My father was a life long mechanic and had the ability to fix any number of thing, small engines being his speciality. He watch the three of us, kicking the starting crank till our legs were sore, then pushing it back and forth trying to bump start it. After about a half hour of this merriment, he walked over with a beer in hand and asked us to kick the starter once more. We obliged, he took a long drink from his beer and stated in a matter of fact tone, "Broken key on the crankshaft." then walked away. We learned how to split the motor casing and sure enough, the key that engages the crankshaft with the magneto was split in half and would drift just far enough that the magneto would only produce an intermittent spark. We found a replacement key and the bike started on the second kick. Today, my wife took our 120 year old mantel clock in for repair. The gentleman behind the counter looked it over and pushed on the shaft the hands ride on. He looked at my wife and stated it was a great old clock but the gearing was worn out and no amount of adjusting or lubricating would change that fact. He suggested a full restoration and it would take about eight months with a final, "Don't call us, we'll call you when it's ready." My point being the ability to diagnose a problem take years of experience. I'm lucky enough to live in a city that has multiple camera repair shops. I have had work done by Don Goldberg and Youxin Ye but much more by the local techs. The shops are always looking for someone to learn the trade and the work on a wide variety of both digital and analog cameras. I often have told the new technicians, the key to success is not just being able to fix your own mistake but correcting the work of others. The older tech have seen thousands of cameras and often know were to look for a problem. I asked my fater how he knew what the problem was and he told me about encountering the same problem on a small engine and it took him several days to find the problem. We want new blood to come into the field and learn how to keep the analog cameras running for the next generation but they also need time to learn.
