I finally had to choose between fixing a shutter or replacing the whole curtain assembly

A customer brought in an old Nikon F3 with a sticky shutter, and I saw the curtain ribbons were fraying. I could either try a full curtain replacement, which is a big job, or just clean and adjust the mechanism, which is faster. I picked the full replacement, and it took me about four hours to get the new curtains seated right. Has anyone else found a good trick for aligning those tiny ribbon ends without going crazy?

3 comments

3 Comments

mark_mitchell10d ago

Oh man, fine tweezers are key, but I also put a tiny bit of beeswax on the tip to hold the ribbon end just long enough to get it started. Lets you let go to adjust your grip without it flying away. Still a huge pain, but it shaves off some of the swearing time.

the_eric15d ago

Honestly, a good set of fine tipped tweezers was the game changer for me. It still takes patience, but having the right tool to hold the ribbon end steady makes alignment possible. That four hour fight sounds very familiar.

cole99414d ago

Tweezers just make me drop the ribbon more.