How to repair Olympus Pen EM "Half-Frame" Film Camera Battery Door? *Pictures
Found this amazing Olympus Pen EM Film camera at a thrift store.
However, the battery door seems to be missing its latch or the battery spring seems to be missing. Please see attached photos of the battery compartment.
Whenever I put 2x AAs into the camera, they fit loose.
How can I find parts, or repair this neat little half-frame camera?
Thanks a lot!
However, the battery door seems to be missing its latch or the battery spring seems to be missing. Please see attached photos of the battery compartment.
Whenever I put 2x AAs into the camera, they fit loose.
How can I find parts, or repair this neat little half-frame camera?
Thanks a lot!
On a complete one, the whole of the inside of the battery compartment door is filled with a plastic assembly containing the battery contacts, contacts to the little "nubs" that can be seen on the body near the hinge and the sliding door catch. I think they were just glued in place, looking at one of my non-workers on which the battery contact block is detached and the catch missing.
Undoubtedly, the only way you'll get replacements is to find another camera that may be cosmetically poor but still has a complete battery door. Before doing that, though, it wouldn't be a bad idea to see if the camera does seem to work to determine if it'll be worth the effort. You could try jury-rigging the connections to do this. The batteries both go in with the positive end up (towards the door) and the contacts in the (missing) plate feed straight to the corresponding contact on the body, i.e the positive end of the battery nearest the front of the camera feeds to the contact nearest the front and the rear one to the rear. It doesn't need film loaded to work, nor does it need the film compartment door closing.
However, don't build your hopes up. These cameras, the first Japanese cameras to have electric film advance and rewind, are now 56/57 years old and were only made for some 14 months before being withdrawn due, undoubtedly, to the frequent problems encountered with the motor drive and the very thin wiring.
Of the four that I have, one works but sounds "tired", one partially works and the others are totally dead, bought in the as yet unrealised hope of swapping bits to get another worker - they are more than a bit complicated inside, I much prefer working on the original Pen and Pen EE models, which are fascinatingly simple mechanisms.
Undoubtedly, the only way you'll get replacements is to find another camera that may be cosmetically poor but still has a complete battery door. Before doing that, though, it wouldn't be a bad idea to see if the camera does seem to work to determine if it'll be worth the effort. You could try jury-rigging the connections to do this. The batteries both go in with the positive end up (towards the door) and the contacts in the (missing) plate feed straight to the corresponding contact on the body, i.e the positive end of the battery nearest the front of the camera feeds to the contact nearest the front and the rear one to the rear. It doesn't need film loaded to work, nor does it need the film compartment door closing.
However, don't build your hopes up. These cameras, the first Japanese cameras to have electric film advance and rewind, are now 56/57 years old and were only made for some 14 months before being withdrawn due, undoubtedly, to the frequent problems encountered with the motor drive and the very thin wiring.
Of the four that I have, one works but sounds "tired", one partially works and the others are totally dead, bought in the as yet unrealised hope of swapping bits to get another worker - they are more than a bit complicated inside, I much prefer working on the original Pen and Pen EE models, which are fascinatingly simple mechanisms.
Hi, if you have no luck with the part, I wonder if you could order one to be made by a 3D printer (for the plastic part ) and do some extra metalwork yourself with the springs or the connections...
Quote:Hi, if you have no luck with the part, I wonder if you could order one to be made by a 3D printer (for the plastic part ) and do some extra metalwork yourself with the springs or the connections...
It'd still be worth trying a jury rig connection first. If the rest of the camera is dead, then it wouldn't be worth the trouble getting the bit made.
