I think that when you're doing DIY, you always have to be clear about what you're doing, why and how. After all, it's a very time-consuming activity.
It would not only be presumptuous, but at least naive, to believe that you can service or repair a camera according to the only valid standard - that is the former factory standard.
A look at any repair manual
The necessary training from the manufacturer, original spare parts (except those taken from other devices), the range of lubricants for cameras and lenses that were precisely tailored to the respective model, measuring and testing methods, the necessary equipment and work routines are missing. To see this, you only need to look at any manufacturer's repair manual.
These manufacturers either no longer exist or they have long since stopped supporting their older products.
Only limited professional repair options
This leaves service providers who usually only undertake repairs to a very limited extent.
Often the search for a workshop is unsuccessful or the estimated costs are uneconomical and can only be justified by enthusiasts. In addition, there is usually no insight into what is being repaired and how, so an order remains a matter of trust.
I speak from long experience.
Only DIY remains
So if I want to continue working with this camera or that lens for which I cannot find any or no acceptable repair option, my only option is to take the initiative and do it myself as a DIY job.
And there are many things you can do yourself.
Many things - most of them - are not.
Or the risk of damaging the device further when attempting to repair it would be too high. You then have to weigh up whether one chance is better than none.
Only reusability counts
I know that I cannot achieve the factory standard. But that is not my goal. The only thing that is important to me is that a defective device can be used again.
I say goodbye to every photo device that I put on my work table beforehand. Since it is my own device, that is the end of it, since I am not working on behalf of a customer.
Examples from my inventory are:
- Nikon F3/T, unused: defective LCD replaced, thus the material value of the camera is also restored.
- Canon T90: defective main display replaced, the camera is fully usable again.
- Nikon F4: defective aperture control restored in two copies. Extensive disassembly and lubrication. Both cameras are fit again.
- Tokina zoom with foggy optics and broken plain bearings revived. The lens was partially unadjustable.
- Leica R3: sluggish mirror mechanism restored, extensive disassembly and lubrication.
These repairs would/were either not accepted by workshops or only at costs that I have no budget for.
Not including the fun of doing the work yourself
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