Tin Can
With 3D scanning and printing, some of the mechanical parts can be made, in fact turbine blades for jet engines are 3D printed and I cannot think of much more severe applications than that.
However, obsolescence of electronic bits remains an ongoing issue, certainly in general industry and likely to plague our photo interests....
ND filters and hats.
Good old fashioned lens in barrel and a good lens cap then count...
Bernice
Obsolete electronic shutters need not apply.
It should be more than obvious that Randy was talking about Copal/Compur/etc. mechanical shutters.
I highly doubt modern Copal shutters will be a problem in my lifetime, and I'm much younger than most of you.
I like the odds of well-maintained, simple mechanical leaf shutters working 40 years from now and long after. My own parochial view encompasses only Alphax and Betax shutters, and earlier this year I serviced a few large Betax shutters from 1923. There was nothing wrong that a simple CLA couldn’t fix, and I couldn’t see anything to stop these shutters from working for decades into the future.
Alphax shutters have an even simpler mechanism and improved materials. The stamped metal parts are quite durable, springs can be fabricated if necessary, and spare parts are common for these shutters mass-produced over five decades. While I’d warmly welcome new shutters arriving on the market, I’m confident that the well-made tools of the past will continue to serve us far into the future.
The problem with the no-moving parts shutters are plenty. Total dark is an issue, not easy (or economically possible) to achieve with LCD or optical cell technology. You lose 1-2 stops by inserting those and they are driven by electronics with a shorter lifetime than mechanical shutters.
Yes, I play with the things I just described.
Cheers,
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