red light button position and B shutter speed delay

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f1.0

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Hello.

Just got a Yashica Electro 35 GS. Changed its light seals which were deteriorating. I checked its meter with my other SLR camera and it appears as though its meter is working reasonably well. I am using a PX28 battery (6V, battery indicator lights up brightly).

There is one little quirk I am not sure I understand. When I press the shutter release button and the scene is too bright, the red light comes on. But it turns on with only a slight press of the button. If I press the button further, the red light goes off. The yellow light, however, becomes active (under appropriate conditions) only when I press the button deeper than in the case of the red light. So, is the behavior of the red indicator light the normal behavior?

Another question that I have is regarding the B speed. If I press the shutter button in B mode and release it after some time, the shutter does not close immediately upon releasing the button. It takes some seconds for the shutter to close. What's up with this?

Thanks.
 
The light meter behavior is normal. The "B" shutter behavior is not. It is most likely caused by sticky shutter blades at wide aperture, but could also be caused by dirty contacts or Pad of Death syndrome (not as scary as it sounds). Yashica Guy has an excellent Yashica Service and Repair Guide that is well worth studying.
 
The sticky shutter is most likely a lubrication problem. There is a release lever in the shutter mechanism that can cause shutter delays when the lubricant dries out. Accessing the lever is not so hard if you have the proper tools. I've tried dry-firing some cameras in the hope of loosening the parts, but it seems the more I dry-fire them, the worse the problem becomes. A fraction of a drop of oil in the appropriate place is all it needs.
 
Greyscale said:
The light meter behavior is normal. The "B" shutter behavior is not. It is most likely caused by sticky shutter blades at wide aperture, but could also be caused by dirty contacts or Pad of Death syndrome (not as scary as it sounds). Yashica Guy has an excellent Yashica Service and Repair Guide that is well worth studying.
Click to expand...

I read about the POD yesterday on the Yashica Guy's website (great site!) and also saw some better quality photos on flickr (Yashica Guy's photo are really horrendous in quality, unfortunately). When I click the shutter button and wind to next frame, the sounds I see are the following:
1. A click as the button is pressed and the shutter blades open and close.
2. As the shutter button is pressed a bit further, an other click but not as distinct and loud and the first one.
3. As I start to wind the frame, a deeper click, or a thunk.

Are the first two normal? The third indicates that the pad might still be in an acceptable state, or at least that it is not dead yet. Makes sense?

If the shutter blades were sticking, wouldn't they stay open at all speeds? I didn't notice them sticking when I was working the shutter before and after I changed the seals.

I haven't opened the top yet but intend to as soon as I finish my first roll in it.

Thanks.
 
Well, I opened up the camera. The pad appears to be intact, or perhaps the bad one has been replaced in the relatively recent past.

I shot a roll of 400 ISO negative color film in it. The day time shots appear to be over exposed at a stop or so; colors are not as saturated (but this was a drug store brand film, so could be that). Focus appears to be spot on, so no need to adjust the lens for any corrections.
 
1. A click as the button is pressed and the shutter blades open and close.
2. As the shutter button is pressed a bit further, an other click but not as distinct and loud and the first one.
3. As I start to wind the frame, a deeper click, or a thunk.
Click to expand...

Yes, these are all quite normal. The #2 click is the rewind lock lever rotating to the unlocked position. It is a small spring-loaded arm that is depressed at the bottom of the shutter travel, allowing the film wind lever to move again.

Russ :D
 
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