Topic: SX 70 Polaroid Sonar Repair question

[sapata]

I bought this camera several years ago and forgot about it after wasting quite a few packs trying to get a decent picture, in fact I never managed getting anything...

I believe either the shutter or the sensor is broken. The pictures came out totally white and the very few ones were either double exposures or the images were not properly recorded, I remember using fresh 600 film. I even bought from the extint polanoid shop the polaroid nd filter but nothing. The belows seems to be in perfect condition and the camera overall is in excellent shape.

Has anyone in here had this similar problem before?

I'm intending to open the front camera to check if there's something wrong, i don't know... maybe a losen wire, something simple I could fix myself.  I've downloaded the repair manual but there're some crazy machines in order to keep the camera "alive" while performing some tests.

I've got an empty polaroid cartridge but the battery has gone. Is there any other way to do some tests without using film/empty cartridge?

Many thanks...

[Mojave]

I think I have a spare empty I can send to you. It will take a while to get there but it would be worth the wait so you dont have to waste film. I can send the pack along with a dark slide. I just broke down most of my empties to send the batteries back to TIP, but I have one I can send to you. If you want it, just PM me with your addy.

I havent heard of this problem, nor experienced it myself but hopefully with an empty pack you can tell if the shutter sounds normal. 

[Miller]

I'm in London and can send an empty pack free if that's any easier than all the way from the USA...

Rgds

Mlr

[Francois]

I've got an empty polaroid cartridge but the battery has gone. Is there any other way to do some tests without using film/empty cartridge?

Not that I know of...

The hard thing is you need to close the roller transport to get the camera working... that means no wires sticking out of anything.

The easiest way to test it would be to listen to it (maybe record the noises with Audacity or Waveosaurus) and decipher the various clicks and whirrs the camera makes...

[sapata]

Erin... thank you so much for offering but I guess it the easiest option would be Miller since I'm in London too.

Miller, I really appreciate...I'll send you my adress if it's ok for you    please let me know the postage and I'll pay you back.

Thaks for the tip Francois, once I get the cartridge I'll pay attention to that as well, I've already got the Audacity in my computer...

[greenstphotography]

Once you get the battery you can do a quick and dirty test to see if the sensor is the problem.

Just take a few "shots" in bright sunlight and listen to how long from the time you press the shutter to when you hear the ejection sound.  Should be almost instantaneous.

Then go inside and take a few "shots" in very low light.  The SX-70 can do somewhere around 15-20 second exposures so you should be able to at least tell that the shutter is staying open longer inside, or more specifically that the camera is expecting the shutter to stay open.  You may have a sticky shutter.  The above tests will at least give you a warm and fuzzy that the sensor is working as it should (or not).

I know Impossible offers service if needed but I don't know what their prices are like.  Might be cheaper in the long run to just buy another camera if yours isn't working.

You can do a check on the shutter just by looking through the lens to see if you can see the shutter opening and closing.  It's a bit tricky to see (especially in low light).

And as already stated you need a working battery to check anything on these cameras.

[Mojave]

Any time Sapata, and good luck!

[Miller]

Cool, just PM your address and I'll send pronto...

Rgds

Mlr

[sapata]

Cool, just PM your address and I'll send pronto...

Rgds

Mlr

just sent...

Once you get the battery you can do a quick and dirty test to see if the sensor is the problem.

Just take a few "shots" in bright sunlight and listen to how long from the time you press the shutter to when you hear the ejection sound.  Should be almost instantaneous.

Then go inside and take a few "shots" in very low light.  The SX-70 can do somewhere around 15-20 second exposures so you should be able to at least tell that the shutter is staying open longer inside, or more specifically that the camera is expecting the shutter to stay open.  You may have a sticky shutter.  The above tests will at least give you a warm and fuzzy that the sensor is working as it should (or not).

I know Impossible offers service if needed but I don't know what their prices are like.  Might be cheaper in the long run to just buy another camera if yours isn't working.

You can do a check on the shutter just by looking through the lens to see if you can see the shutter opening and closing.  It's a bit tricky to see (especially in low light).

And as already stated you need a working battery to check anything on these cameras.

These tips will sure help Andrew! At least I can narrow a bit more the problem.

I might check just in case with IP (I didn't know they have this service...) about their prices to fix in case I can't fix myself. I'm expecting to be quite expensive but again... worth checking.

[moominsean]

i made an effort to repair a 680 once...

http://moominsean.blogspot.com/2009/04/project-slr-680-separt-one.html

[Mojave]

Holy smokes Sean, thats an extensive write up!

[sapata]

i made an effort to repair a 680 once...

http://moominsean.blogspot.com/2009/04/project-slr-680-separt-one.html

I guess I won't need the polaroid manual repair afterall...This is way better !

[sapata]

Just an update on my polaproblem... I just received the empty cartridge that Miller kindly sent it to me (thank you so much!) and I performed some of the tests Andrew suggested.

It seems that the light sensor is fine, the noise changes according to the light condition ( the interval between opening the shutter and ejecting the film is much longer in darker conditions than in normal light condition).

So I guess it is the shutter,  and I was wondering... when I open the camera, will I be able to "take a picture" to see the shutter working? It's impossible to see the shutter action through the lens...

[Francois]

Possible the leaf shutter doesn't work... or maybe is stuck open.
These things were long considered the most complicated piece of optics before the Hubble space telescope came along!

If you hear the clap of the mirror, it's a good sign. I know the rubber flap that's attached to it can fail. This lets plenty of light enter the film chamber.

Don't forget, if the film is white, it means light hit it (it's a positive process).