Lubricating movements on MPP Micro Technical mkVIII

[RobG]

Sorry if this should be in DIY - I wasn't sure as it isn't a home made camera.

Received my MPP mkVIII the other day and gave it the once over. She's a beaut. Some movements are stiffer than others. I have given them a clean with lighter fluid - should I be considering a very small micro-drop of lube anywhere, and if so, what kind? I have repaired sticky parts on 35mm cameras before with a tiny micro dot of silicone dry lube before, but I have read so much conflicting advice on this.

One particularly stiff bugger is the two sprung finger / thumb buttons that you press to release the mechanism to slide the front standard along the rails. Presumably the standard needs removing to do that - does it just come off the end of the rail?

Thanks

[Tin Can]

Don't use dry Teflon or wet Teflon

Now somebody will reply

[Yorkie]

Is it the 'stiffness' of the two thumb levers(see photo) that is the issue or sliding the standard along the bed?

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Bear in mind that the two levers have to overcome the strong springs that 'lock' the standard to the track rails and therefore need a bit of effort to do this.

[RobG]

Is it the 'stiffness' of the two thumb levers(see photo) that is the issue or sliding the standard along the bed?

228354

Bear in mind that the two levers have to overcome the strong springs that 'lock' the standard to the track rails and therefore need a bit of effort to do this.

Stiffness of the levers, but they are particularly stiff compared to my friend's mkvi

[Yorkie]

Ok, to get at the lever pivot points:
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Drop the bed to it's normal position then press the release levers again to lower the bed to it's full dropped position shown above.

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Squeeze the Standard release levers (you know - the stiff ones :) ) and ease the front Standard off the rear rails.

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Tilt the Standard backwards to reveal the lever mechanism

Lubricate the pivot points in your preferred manner and when satisfied reassemble the camera by reversing these instructions.

WARNING: Whenever you open/close and/or fully drop the bed, please be aware of the two curved track links that connect the front rails with the back rails in the camera body. Damage to these links will cause all sorts of problems, not the least of which will prevent you closing the camera.

Hope this helps.

Please excuse the quality of my phone camera shots.

[RobG]

Hope this helps.

Please excuse the quality of my phone camera shots.

That is a tremendous help, thanks Yorkie! You know, the release points are in a badly designed place on my mkviii. Instead of being front and centre they are right at the side - I end up catching the cam release wheel when pulling out the standard! Plus they are just more awkward to get to.

Thanks again for the really helpful answer and photos.

[Yorkie]

That is a tremendous help, thanks Yorkie! You know, the release points are in a badly designed place on my mkviii. Instead of being front and centre they are right at the side - I end up catching the cam release wheel when pulling out the standard! Plus they are just more awkward to get to.

Thanks again for the really helpful answer and photos.

In the interests of thread continuity these are similar images from my MkVII camera which does have the side release levers.

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Stowed position

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Standard moved off track as described earlier in this post.

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[RobG]

Yorkie, again, my heartfelt thanks for going to the trouble of showing me this. Many times I have had to repair cameras "blind", not knowing what to expect, and of course, a tiny spring or screw goes flying across the room. This gives me the information and confidence I need to undertake this simple bit of maintenance. Thank you my friend.

Do you find the side levers on the mkvii badly placed in relation to the rangefinder cam release wheel?

[Yorkie]

You're very welcome, glad to be of help. It can be a bit fiddly but I guess that's why the designed changed to the front levers, much easier.

[nolindan]

...of course, a tiny spring or screw goes flying across the room.

I always work on a large fluffy white towel - it catches most sproings. For the stuff that lands on the floor I use a neodymium magnet in a plastic bag and sweep. And, of course, the part lost on the floor is made from brass... Maybe I'll buy another big towel and put it on the floor. Luckily springs are almost always magnetic.

As to lubricant - it is a religious topic. People will jump up and down vociferously supporting their choice. Like religion, use whatever feels best to you - whatever you pick it won't kill the camera. Some suggestions: Mineral oil, turbine oil, gun oil (pretty much these three are the same, listed in order of increasing price), high vacuum grease. I've recently become enamored of Mobil 1 synthetic grease. Stay away from 'penetrating oil' - WD40, 3in1 etc. as they gum up with age and you will just have to clean it off with lighter fluid.

[RobG]

I guess that's why the designed changed to the front levers, much easier.

It was the other way round wasn't it? My friend has a MKVI with front levers, mine is a MKVIII with side levers

[RobG]

I always work on a large fluffy white towel - it catches most sproings. For the stuff that lands on the floor I use a neodymium magnet in a plastic bag and sweep. And, of course, the part lost on the floor is made from brass... Maybe I'll buy another big towel and put it on the floor. Luckily springs are almost always magnetic.

As to lubricant - it is a religious topic. People will jump up and down vociferously supporting their choice. Like religion, use whatever feels best to you - whatever you pick it won't kill the camera. Some suggestions: Mineral oil, turbine oil, gun oil (pretty much these three are the same, listed in order of increasing price), high vacuum grease. I've recently become enamored of Mobil 1 synthetic grease. Stay away from 'penetrating oil' - WD40, 3in1 etc. as they gum up with age and you will just have to clean it off with lighter fluid.

Good call on the towel!

Is silicone dry lube ok to use?

[Yorkie]

It was the other way round wasn't it? My friend has a MKVI with front levers, mine is a MKVIII with side levers

I have never seen a MkVIII with side levers but to be honest I don't know for sure. I understand that some parts from damaged cameras, including front standards c/w bellows, could be reassembled to form a hybrid whole. The MPP Users Club https://mppusers.co.uk/ is supposed to be the authority on all things MPP but my membership lapsed a number of years ago so I can't ask there.