Old freezing trick fixed my leaf shutter jam everyone said was toast

Found a Mamiya RB67 lens with a stuck leaf shutter that two shops in Brooklyn said needed a full rebuild. Tried the usual stuff like lighter fluid and gentle heat with no luck. Then I threw it in a ziplock bag in my freezer for 3 hours on a whim. Popped it out, the blade freed right up after a tiny tap. Has anyone else used cold like this on stubborn shutters or am I just lucky?

2 comments

2 Comments

irishenderson12d ago

Yeah I've done similar with a couple old Polaroid roll film cameras that had sticky shutters. The cold makes the lubricant contract and sometimes breaks that gummy bond without damaging anything. I learned that trick from an old timer who worked on Graflex cameras in the 50s. He said it's all about the differential expansion - metal contracts more than the old oil so it cracks the bond. Three hours in a freezer is actually pretty standard from what I've read online too. People worry about condensation but the ziplock bag handles that fine as long as you let it warm back up slowly. Ive had it work on shutters that lighter fluid and heat couldn't touch so I think there's real science behind it.

abby_carr5712d ago

Three hours in a freezer sounds intense for an old camera though.