Shutter repair shop, possibly in SF/ Bay Area?

[Marco Annaratone]

Hi folks,

I just bought on Ebay a monster Schneider Symmar-S 360mm and the shutter needs CLA. I am not thrilled to ship this beast all over the Country so I was wondering if you know a shutter repairperson around San Francisco you can recommend. It would be great if I could just take it in, as opposed to ship it.

Alternatively, can you recommend someone besides the usual SK Grimes? My search has only turned out relatively old posts.

Thanks a bunch

[CXC]

In San Francisco, I have had good service from Advanced Camera, or possibly Advance Camera, on Columbus near Jackson. Won't be cheap, but estimates are free.

[James E Galvin]

I have had good service from East Bay Camera Exchange, on Broadway at about 20th in Oakland.

[Carol Flutot]

Hi Marco,

I'm in Los Angeles and I would be happy to CLA your shutter, you can
find me at http://www.flutotscamerarepair.com

[Kevin Crisp]

Marco: Unscrew the lens elements from what I assume is a copal 3 shutter, I don't think that lens uses any spacers but look for them, pack the shutter so that nothing can poke in the hole and damage the shutter bladers or aperture leaves and ship it. With the glass attached (won't help the repair technician one bit) it is an incredible heavy lens. This way you also eliminate potential damage to the glass in shipment. And Carol would be happy to fix it and will do a great job, in my experience.

[Marco Annaratone]

Thanks for the answers so far!

Kevin, I thought about shipping just the shutter but I am unable to unscrew the front part of the lens. It is stuck solid. Is there some magic I am not aware of?

The lens---and I assume the shutter (Copal 3 silver ring)---are from 1977.

[Kevin Crisp]

Well, when they're stuck I just turn harder. I guess that isn't very helpful. My approach to all mechanical challenges is more or less along the same lines.

[Steve Feldman]

Marco,

Another vote for Carol. Real craftsmanship.

Kevin - Brute force and ignorance works for me.

[Scott Davis]

Marco-

if you have a rubber jar-lid gripper, try using that. Also, go look for a set of filter wrenches - you can find them at most decent camera stores. I think BKA makes them. You could use one to grip the front element, and twist the shutter with your other hand. If nothing else, it will give you more leverage.

[Kevin Crisp]

The main harm is bending the little levers or ears that stick out on the copal 3, be careful where you put the hand you're not turning with. The flat rubber jar openers do help.

[Bob Salomon]

Keeble & Schuchat has a repair shop on the second floor of the main store in the darkroom department. Just drive down their, Palo Alto, with the lens in the shutter and show them what you need. No shipping problems and you talk directly to the technician.

[Capocheny]

Marco,

I assume this is the humongous 360 f6.8 Symmar that you're referring to... :)

My Copal 3 shutter was lacking the f-stop scale for f6.8 and there wasn't one to be had in all of Canada. So, I sent mine down to S.K. Grimes lock, stock, and barrel. They managed to engrave the scale onto the shutter and get it back in my hands within a week! That's efficiency!

BTW... I live in Vancouver, British Columbia in Canada. :)

The elements do come apart from the shutter but, when I was having mine done by S.K. Grimes... they insisted on sending the whole lens down (wasn't sure why but they did mention something about calibration?) So, unless you take Bob's suggestion (which makes a lot of sense)... you should call whomever you decide to send it into. They may want the elements along with the shutter too.

Good luck... it's a fabulous piece of glass albeit.. it DOES weigh a ton! :)

Cheers

[Marco Annaratone]

Yes, it is the humongous one.

Inspired by our governator I was able to unscrew the front portion of the lens with my bare hands...and the shutter is still intact (and so are my hands).

Indeed, the Keeble and Schuchat option would have been a most appropriate one, but I left enough money there over the years that I won't feel guilty to go elsewhere :-)

The shutter is on its way to Flutot's.

Thank you all!!!!!!!

[John Rodriguez]

I just screwed up my speed ring trying to adjust my aperture ring tension, I was turning the scalloped ring when I heard a pop and the speed ring moved up a mm or so. Now I can barely feel the stops.

Anyways, Advance Camera doesn't have a storefront anymore, East Bay Camera Exchange is gone and Flutot's has a waiting list according to the site. Is Keeble & Schuchat the last game in town for a shop you can walk into? It's pretty far for me but I'll drive down there if I have to.

[David Lindquist]

I just screwed up my speed ring trying to adjust my aperture ring tension, I was turning the scalloped ring when I heard a pop and the speed ring moved up a mm or so. Now I can barely feel the stops.

Anyways, Advance Camera doesn't have a storefront anymore, East Bay Camera Exchange is gone and Flutot's has a waiting list according to the site. Is Keeble & Schuchat the last game in town for a shop you can walk into? It's pretty far for me but I'll drive down there if I have to.

There is International Camera Technicians (ICT) in Mountain View. See http://www.ictcamera.com/About/about.html
David

[seawolf66]

Yes, it is the humongous one.

Inspired by our governator I was able to unscrew the front portion of the lens with my bare hands...and the shutter is still intact (and so are my hands).

Indeed, the Keeble and Schuchat option would have been a most appropriate one, but I left enough money there over the years that I won't feel guilty to go elsewhere :-)

The shutter is on its way to Flutot's.

Thank you all!!!!!!!
you will not be sorry : she done a few for me :

[Roger Thoms]

Another good shop is ICT Camera In Mountain View. http://www.ictcamera.com/

Roger

[Leigh]

Another vote for Carol Flutot.

No personal experience, but she has an excellent reputation.

I do my own repairs, but if I were to send anything out, it would go to her.

- Leigh

[Dan Fromm]

Leigh, how do you get Mrs. Miller to respond? [yes, I can read, you do your own repairs]

Last year I sent her an e-mail, asked her to put a shutter in the queue and tell me to send it when she was ready. No response. > 6 months later I got an e-mail telling me to send it now. And of course I'd broken down and sent it to grimes the week before I heard from her.

I sent her a mail on Mar 1, this time asking her to put two shutters in the queue. No reply yet.

I think she's dead. Or, perhaps, she has a list of favorites and I'm not on it.

[BrianShaw]

An old friend of mine used Carol exclusively, but I've always opted for other options - quicker and no waiting. I'm sure she's worthy of her reputation but ...

I sent mine to Steve Choi, Steve's Camera Repair in Culver City CA.

[Jan Pedersen]

Carol is very much alive and kicking but does not work full time. Why don't you call her if you don't get a response to your emails?

[John Rodriguez]

I sent mine to SK Grimes. Seems pricey compared to some but their turn-around time is fast and they've been quick to return emails; that's worth it to me.

[Dan Fromm]

Jan, when I go to http://www.flutotscamerarepair.com/Services.htm I see this at the top of the page:

Important.

Please read this message (click here) before sending anything to us for repair.

Clicking here gets a popup:

SHIPPING AND TURNAROUND

Due to our heavy backlog, (in part due to illness), we have instituted a waiting list. Send us an email (from the Contact Us page) to get on the list. Waiting list call-back time will depend on the length of the list at the time your name is added.

All I want -- and I asked for it explicitly in my mail of Mar 1 -- is confirmation that my message has been received and that my shutters are on the list.

John, I'll probably take a couple of items up to Woonsocket tomorrow. The work will require machining, not just a shutter overhaul. Turnaround. based on experience < 1 year old, will be around 6-8 weeks. Its good to know that they do shutters more quickly.

[Leigh]

Guys,

A word about turn-around... It takes time to do a repair properly.

Back when I was doing repairs for other folks it wasn't unusual to have a backlog of two months or more.

Carol is certainly doing a much higher volume than I ever did.

- Leigh

[BrianShaw]

You're right, Leigh. My turnaround history with Steve Choi has been: metal lensboard machining and lens mounting - 2 days; shutter overhaul - 3 weeks; email response time - generally within the hour if during business hours; telephone answering - immediate if during business hours. I'm satisfied with that. I would be less satisfied being put on a wait list, but I understand why Carol does that.

[Marc B.]

I see that a seven year old thread has been revived here.

The past reputation of Carol's father, and now Carol Flutot, is well known throughout the pages of photography sites.
That lead-in on Carol's website, referencing delays due to illness has been there two years, maybe more.

However, does anyone have recent, personal experience with turn around time from Carol at Flutot's.
(By recent, I mean in the last six months or so).

1) Time on waiting list to send shutter for repair?
2) Turnaround time, once you were OK'd to send the shutter?
and, of course,
3) Were you satisfied with the repair, and the price of repair?

I have two shutters that I want repaired. One I could wait 1-2 maybe 3(?) months. The other, I'd really prefer sooner.
Four to six months, or more, I'm afraid that wouldn't be acceptable for me at this time.

Marc

[Peter Mounier]

I asked Carol about a shutter repair (or cla) last Nov. 14th. At that time Carol said there would be a 3 month wait before she could start on it. 3 months later (Feb 14th, this year) she asked me to send it in to her. I sent it in, and it's been 4 weeks now, so I'm waiting to hear from her. So the timetable on her website is still accurate.

Peter

[Jan Pedersen]

I sent a copal 3 to Carol last week after being on the waiting list for about 2 months so i obviously can't comment on the return time yet but from past experience it was usually around 4 weeks.
Carol's CLA price is very reasonable and much lower than the only other repair service i have used Camera Wiz who once lost a shutter and really didn't care much about trying to find it again. After daily phone calls for more than two weeks he finally came up with the shutter but what agony that was. (Not recomended)

[Marc B.]

Jan and Peter, Thank you for your timely replies.
I think I'll get my Ilex repaired/serviced by a local firm, then consider waiting for Carol on servicing my Compur shutter.
The local folks may get the Compur, too, if all goes well with the Ilex service.

[John Rodriguez]

Follow up on SK Grimes: from the day they signed for the package to the day they shipped my shutter back out was a total of 13 days, not bad at all.