Zorki 1 from Oleg.

[SCOTFORTHLAD]

My Zorki 1 arrived from Oleg yesterday,in an almost perfect string tied parcel!

The camera is a little beauty,shutter sounds extremely quiet and smooth ,and the camera looks and feels great in the hand,.Already we feel good together.(I will put up some photos of the Zorki and my two Fed 2's in the next few days).

The vulcanite on the Zorki is not pristine,and felt slightly tacky,I have cleaned it off,and it now feels ok,but it could do with some treatment to bring it back to life.Short of stripping back and painting or even recovering,are there any other
treatments which could give it a lift?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Brian.

 

[ZorkiKat]

The vulcanite on the Zorki is not pristine,and felt slightly tacky,I have cleaned it off,and it now feels ok,but it could do with some treatment to bring it back to life.Short of stripping back and painting or even recovering,are there any other
treatments which could give it a lift?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Brian.

Brian

Painting over the old, weary vulcanite is one way of improving it. You could use spray paint, brush on enamel, or even self-polishing shoe polish lotion. All these methods give the original vulcanite a new, snappy coat. This new coat will also preserve the vulcanite (assuming that the paint used will not make the vulcanite deteriorate) by sealing it in.

Vulcanite, being based on rubber or some rubber-like material, goes bad with age. It loses colour, dries and cracks, or sometimes does the opposite by becoming soft and tacky. I don't think that there's an equivalent which you could use for it which would recondition its state, just like there are restorative balms for leather.

Give the vulcanite a good cleaning first before painting. Scrub off the dirt of the ages 😀 with a good, soft brush. An old, worn toothbrush will do.

Jay

 

[SCOTFORTHLAD]

Thanks Jay,
Your description 'weary' is most appropriate for the vulcanite on the ends of the Zorki,in particular to one end ,where there are a few small raised patches.On one of these patches the top black surface rubbed off when I was cleaning it last evening,to reveal a buff coloured substance, like a hard dried putty, underneath.On the other raised patches the buff undercolour is showing slightly

The front and back of the camera are fine,colour quite dark, and feel very sound,and the tacky feeling has gone from all of the coated areas.I initially used a face cleansing wipe to clean off the vulcanite,and then cotton wool in warm water.Hopefully that was the right thing to do.

Cheers,
Brian.

 

[DaveP]

Use STP Son of Gun on it, it will kook like new, and wont be slick or sticky. Apply some with a cloth and let sit, may take a few applications but it will look great.

 

[SCOTFORTHLAD]

Use STP Son of Gun on it, it will kook like new, and wont be slick or sticky. Apply some with a cloth and let sit, may take a few applications but it will look great.

Hi Dave,
Thanks for the tip.I'm not familiar with the material you mention,is it available in paint stores,or would it be a motoring product.
Cheers,
Brian.

 

[DaveP]

I dont know where you are, but this is an American product available in any automotive or hardware store.It is used to clean and rejuvenate rubber and vinyl, works perfect on cameras.......

 

[SCOTFORTHLAD]

I dont know where you are, but this is an American product available in any automotive or hardware store.It is used to clean and rejuvenate rubber and vinyl, works perfect on cameras.......

Hi Dave,
I'm in the UK,but I'm sure that I've seen STP products in our auto stores,so I'll keep my eyes open for this,it may have a different brand name,but it's probably available.
Brian.

 

[Ash]

Good luck Brian, I know the Zorki-1 isn't the Leica, but let's hope it'll scratch the itch 🙂

 

[JonP]

Brian
They sell STP stuff at Halfords, Motor World and A1 Motor Stores over here in the UK.

 

[comp_wiz101]

Would spray-on, quick-dry enamel be safe for use on vulcanite?

 

[SCOTFORTHLAD]

Good luck Brian, I know the Zorki-1 isn't the Leica, but let's hope it'll scratch the itch 🙂

Thanks Ash,I'm sure that Oleg has done his work well,so it will all be down to me,Should be great fun !!!🙂

 

[SCOTFORTHLAD]

Thanks for the thoughtful advice everyone---I'll let you know how it goes.
Brian.

 

[ZorkiKat]

Would spray-on, quick-dry enamel be safe for use on vulcanite?

Apparently, yes. I've used th quick-dry spray-ons on many a camera vulcanite already. None deteriorated.