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Voigtlander Bessamatic - Shutter problem
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PostPosted: Tue Dec 23, 2014 4:48 am    Post subject: Voigtlander Bessamatic - Shutter problem Reply with quote
I recently acquired a Voigtlander Bessamatic camera. I was playing around with it yesterday and it was working great. The shutter was accurate for all shutter speeds, and bulb kept the shutter open until I let go of the shutter release. But today I was firing it at some slower shutter speeds and the shutter has hung up on me and is acting in a strange way.

When I advance the film lever, the shutter opens and the mirror drops down (allowing there the be an image in the viewfinder). All is good up to this point. Now how the camera should work (and how it was working yesterday), when the shutter release is pressed, at a 1 second exposure for example, shutter should briefly close while the mirror should flips back up, and then the shutter should open for 1 second and then close again (thereby exposing the film for 1 second). This is exactly how it was working when I received the camera yesterday.

However, what happens now is that when the shutter release is pressed, the shutter immediately closes, the mirror flips back up, but the shutter stays closed and never opens again to expose the film. This happens at every shutter speed. Even in Bulb, when the shutter release is pressed and held, the shutter closes and remains closed (yesterday it would close, and open again, and only close once I let go of the shutter release).

Is anyone familiar with this camera and knows any way to fix this issue. The shutter was working great when I first received the camera yesterday. Seems really odd that the shutter would die on the second day given the fact that this camera is so old.

Last edited by verbatimium on Tue Dec 23, 2014 4:40 pm; edited 2 times in total


PostPosted: Tue Dec 23, 2014 8:44 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
There was never a Bassematic. Guess you mean Bessamatic?


PostPosted: Tue Dec 23, 2014 1:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
kds315* wrote:
There was never a Bassematic. Guess you mean Bessamatic?


Yes.

Anyway, I figured out the that little lever on the inside of the camera mount (on the left side) is not completing its cycle. When I advance the film lever, the small lever inside the lens mount moves all the way down (which is correct). When I press the shutter release, the small lever gets stuck about half way, and does not go all the way up. I can force the lever up with a small amount of force, the shutter finally completes its cycle for every shutter speed and Bulb.

Does anyone know why this happens? I have read online that some people use naphtha to fix similar shutter problems in the camera. Is this a good idea, and where exactly do I put the naphtha?

BTW this is Compur shutter system.

Last edited by verbatimium on Tue Dec 23, 2014 4:41 pm; edited 1 time in total


PostPosted: Tue Dec 23, 2014 4:24 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
OK, now I finally used my secretary skills and corrected the Bassematic ---> Bassamatic ---> Bessamatic Wink
Its is really bad with "these Germans" to use such strange names impossible to type Twisted Evil


PostPosted: Thu Sep 16, 2021 7:38 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
This is quite an old post, but I have an early Bessamatic with the same issue. Never did see any answer to the initial question??? Anyone have any experience as to a possible fix to this problem? It would be very welcome.
Regards, Gary
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