Rollei 35 LED - worth fixing?

[yossarian123]

I found what I thought was a good deal on KEH - an EX condition Rollei LED for $60. It was in the AS-IS section however, listed as meter inoperative. I figured I could live with a meter, no big deal so I ordered it.

I received it and verified the meter didn't work. Fired the shutter a couple of times, then the shutter completely locked up. So it's a paperweight - I took it to the local camera tech and he came back with a quote of $160 - $80 labor and $80 to fix the shutter and the meter.

So with this added cost, that puts me into $220 to get a working camera. I've never had or collected Rollei's before, so I have very little idea on what they're worth. Does that seem too much for this camera? $220 seems too high, I'm thinking it just turns into a $60 mistake and never buy anything from the AS-IS section again.

 

[john_s]

That was bad luck. I have one that I've had since new and the meter has failed. Lens is beautiful (Sonnar 2.8) but it is a rare technician that has the parts needed to fix the meter. Two have said mine is unfixable due to unavailability of parts.

Rollei is an example of a company which was superb at mechanical engineering and production but a little out of their depth in the brave new world of electronics. Yes I have some Rollei medium format gear that is unfixable too.

I would not recommending spending the money on a repair.

 

[Stelios]

Crap, and I just sold one two weeks ago on ebay, in perfect condition, only got £25 since I forgot to put a reserve. Had originally bought it for £60. Talking about losses... :S I put it on here a couple of times but noone was interested. Oh welll...

And yes, I think it's way too much for such a camera.

How can it be in EX condition and on the AS IS section?

 

[yossarian123]

Crap, and I just sold one two weeks ago on ebay, in perfect condition, only got £25 since I forgot to put a reserve. Had original bought it for £60. Talking about losses... :S I put it on here a couple of times but noone was interested. Oh welll...

And yes, I think it's way too much for such a camera.

How can it be in EX condition and on the AS IS section?

I spent some time going back and forth with KEH on this. Apparently it's in EX cosmetic condition but functionally it's as-is. Which means it doesn't qualify for their return policy or 6 month warranty service. I was pretty ticked off and told them so. But they wouldn't budge.

Maybe I'll look for one on ebay.

 

[batterytypehah!]

Sorry to hear but gosh, that is way more than you should have paid. The 35 LED is probably the least desirable model, as it is the lower-spec body with Triotar lens and was never made in Germany.

Are you sure it's not the collapsing mechanism acting up? With the Rollei 35, never try to collapse the lens unless the shutter is cocked. (You shouldn't be able to in the first place but the safety doesn't put up a lot of resistance.) Conversely, with lens collapsed, the shutter release is supposed to be locked.

 

[yossarian123]

Sorry to hear but gosh, that is way more than you should have paid. The 35 LED is probably the least desirable model, as it is the lower-spec body with Triotar lens and was never made in Germany.

Are you sure it's not the collapsing mechanism acting up? With the Rollei 35, never try to collapse the lens unless the shutter is cocked. (You shouldn't be able to in the first place but the safety doesn't put up a lot of resistance.) Conversely, with lens collapsed, the shutter release is supposed to be locked.

I can't say with 100% certainty, but I'm reasonably sure that I didn't collapse the lens with the shutter cocked. The problem really occurred when I tried to load film in it.

If I did somehow did do that (collapse the lens without the shutter being cocked), is there a way to fix it myself? Right now, the camera is stuck with the lens extended - the shutter button presses down but the shutter doesn't fire. And the lens refuses to collapse.

 

[David Hughes]

In your shoes I'd ask a few other repair people. I've had things sent back as past repair that worked when I tried them. Sometimes things stick and the post jogs them free, I guess.

Regards, David

 

[batterytypehah!]

If I did somehow did do that (collapse the lens without the shutter being cocked), is there a way to fix it myself? Right now, the camera is stuck with the lens extended - the shutter button presses down but the shutter doesn't fire. And the lens refuses to collapse.

I haven't had to work on mine (a B35 but that's mechanically the same as the LED) but if I needed to I'd probably start here:
http://photographic.co.nz/cameraworks/cameras/rollei35/

Which I found through this older thread at photo.net: http://photo.net/classic-cameras-forum/00HSdA

You could start by gently exploring (with a toothpick or such) the interlock mechanism. It's at the left of the lens, as seen from the back, see bottom photo in the first link above.

 

[petronius]

The lens of my 35 LED can´t be collapsed without cocked shutter.
I would start with pressing the rewind knob, if possible. This might set the advance lever free.

In my 35LED the interlock mechanism sits right by the lens tube, when looking from the back:

When preessing the relesase knob, the little pointed tab is lifted and sets the lens tube free.

 

[micromontenegro]

Maybe this can help: http://nelsonfoto.com/SMF/index.php/topic,14497.0.html

 

[petronius]

micromontenegro, thank you for the link!

 

[iamzip]

Looks like a good time to take up camera repair. One of my 35's had a broken spring in the shutter mechanism, so that the shutter blades would not always stay closed - sometimes they would bounce back open slightly. I replaced the broken spring with one I fabricated from a guitar string.

 

[yossarian123]

Looks like a good time to take up camera repair. One of my 35's had a broken spring in the shutter mechanism, so that the shutter blades would not always stay closed - sometimes they would bounce back open slightly. I replaced the broken spring with one I fabricated from a guitar string.

I agree, this camera is the perfect opportunity to test my camera fixing skills. The odds are very high that it remains a paperweight.

micromontenegro, thanks for the link. That will come in handy when I pick up the camera tomorrow.

 

[iamzip]

I should however note that I was unable to fix the meter - although I did not try very hard. I also attempted to fix a gear on a 35B that was mucking up the film advance, but that didn't work. However, I've got a regular old German 35 so I'm not too concerned about the other two.

 

[yossarian123]

Great news, I used the link referenced above (http://nelsonfoto.com/SMF/index.php/topic,14497.0.html), removed the top and was able to move the little doo-dad that kept the film from advancing. The LED is very similar to the Rollei C35 in the link, with the exception that there's a circuit board covering the white cog (which prevents the film advance lever from moving). The cog is just barely visible though, which means I was able to thread a tiny screwdriver through the circuit board and poke the white piece until I was able to advance the film. Once I did that, the shutter tripped and I was able to cock the shutter, collapse the lens, etc. Everything looks great now, the meter is still broken, but no biggie there. I've got some tmax 400 loaded up now, I'll get some pics up (hopefully) soon..thanks for the help everyone!

 

[petronius]

That´s great! Have fun with your Rollei!

 

[micromontenegro]

😀 Happy I was able to help!

 

[68degrees]

This is a recent shot with the Rollei 35 led triotar.