The thing I don't like about the Press shutters is that when the lens is open using the preview lever, the aperture is automatically set to full open. This means you can't stop down to check your depth of field while viewing the ground glass (unless the shutter is set to B and held open with the cable release, which to me is a pain).
Then you have never used the Prontor Professional series of shutters.Originally Posted by JimL
Prontor Pro shutter works GOOD !
Bernice
Shutters should be tested for shutter speed accuracy with a calibrated shutter tester. This is the only way to really know if a given shutter is good, bad or needs service. Sound and function are not enough if the goal is exposure accuracy and consistency is a requirement. Run a bunch of shutters on a good shutter tester and one will discover how much shutter speed variation can be between shutters or some shutters have remarkable accuracy and consistency.
Regardless of brand, age and all that test the shutter in question with a certified accurate shutter tester.
Bernice
How and where can you get a shutter tester? Is this good ?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOcGn07YUpc
"I have never in my life made music for money or fame. God walks out of the room when you are thinking about money." -- Quincy Jones
I bought that from the original maker in the video. Now 7 years ago.
No it's not certified.
But it works good enough for me.
Don't forget shutters are 'allowed' to be plus or minus 20% of a set speed.
A big window.
Some shutters beat that. Some shutters are easier to fix as they are either simple, or modern and if parts are available.
Shutter repair people want gifts of shutters to raid for parts.
I have never paid for or tried to DIY fix any shutter except Packards. I am also against magic solvents as they are dangerous.
Soon shutter repair people will be even more rare, it's a lost art and fading business.
Really expensive watch makers may be the next step.
They make the parts at very high cost.
Tin Can
I've heard those acoustic shutter speed testers can give problems on certain shutters, as there can be a lot going on other than just the sound of the shutter blades. I've never used one though, so I can't say anything for sure.
I have, however, built my own shutter speed tester using a phototransistor, battery, capacitor, resistor, a few wires, and a box. It's easy and cheap to make is you have a soldering iron. It works by using an audio editing program to measure the time the shutter is open. The trick to it's accuracy lies in the speed of the phototransistor and your ability to interpret the results. There are lots of DIY tutorials out there for how to make them.
There are also commercially produced dedicated units that are designed to give you fast, accurate readings without any of the headache of interpreting the results. They cost a good bit more, but some people find the convenience worth it.
That link is about a light behind the shutter and a photo sensor as switch plugged into the audio in.
No actual sound is used. Maybe a couple clicks created by circuitry inside the dongle.
Tin Can
I'm actually seeing it go the opposite way. More and more people are learning to do this work on their own instead of sending it out to have a professional do it. Thanks to the internet as a source of free information and sourcing obscure parts, there's a growing class of people who are far more inclined to take on difficult repair projects. It's especially true for the younger generations, since wage growth hasn't kept up with inflation for decades now, they're being forced to attempt DIY projects previous generations would pass on since they can't afford to send things out to expensive professionals or throw it out and buy a replacement when it breaks. Plus they tend to be more experience oriented, and what is a DIY project, if not an experience?
Oh. Well in that case, it's probably the same as what I had made.
A shutter testing tangent. I've a Calumet shutter tester, bought new probably close to 30 years ago. It works perfectly. Recently, after acquiring a used lens, I went to check its shutter performance. Something was amiss; the tester wouldn't register past a certain count when aligning things with the shutter preview lever open. My dense brain woke up after a couple of attempts. The lamp's bulb had recently been replaced with an LED substitute. Screwing in the old incandescent bulb instead restored proper tester function.
Every time that LED's switching power supply cycled it off, my Calumet tester started counting again. Keep at least one incandescent bulb handy if you're going to check shutters.
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