The secret to fixing stuck shutter blades on old Minoltas

I've been fixing old cameras for about 10 years now and I always struggled with sticky shutter blades on Minolta SR-T models. Last month I finally found out that it's usually NOT oil residue like everyone says. A guy from a repair forum in Chicago posted a test showing it's actually oxidized lubricant from the shutter mechanism itself. I tried his trick of using a tiny drop of naptha on a q-tip and gently cleaning the blade edges. It worked on THREE cameras in a row that I had sitting on my shelf for years. Has anyone else tried this method or do you stick with the standard dry cleaning approach?

3 comments

3 Comments

sarah53121d ago

I have to disagree that it's always oxidized lube-naptha spreads gunk around more than it removes and can make things worse if it seeps into the pivot points. How many of those three cameras are still working a year from now?

piper_burns20d ago

I mean honestly that's a fair point, most of those cheap repair jobs don't last.

anthonymurray20d agoMost Upvoted

Naptha works fine if you're careful, but you gotta make sure it doesn't pool on the pivot pins or springs. I've had better luck using lighter fluid on a fiberglass pen to scrub just the blade edges with a dry cotton swab right after to soak up the residue. Let them sit open for a day after cleaning before you even test fire the shutter again.