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My old Canon AE-1 shutter completely froze up on me at the worst time
I was at the lake last weekend, ready to shoot the sunrise over the water with a roll of Portra 400. I went to take the first shot and... nothing. The shutter button went down but the mirror didn't move. My heart sank! It was a camera I got from my dad, so I really didn't want to give up on it. I took it back to my shop, got my smallest screwdrivers, and very carefully took the top plate off. Found a tiny bit of old, gummy grease on the shutter speed dial mechanism. A drop of lighter fluid on a q-tip and some gentle working back and forth got it moving freely again. Took me about an hour being super careful. Has anyone else had a similar shutter jam, and what was your fix? I'm just glad it wasn't a gear strip.
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brian_murray1mo ago
Man, taking the top plate off an AE-1 with basic tools is a wild move. You said you used "a drop of lighter fluid," but that stuff can wreck old plastics and leach into places you can't see, drying out seals. You might have just set up a bigger problem for later. For a camera with that much sentimental value, that's a huge gamble. A proper tech would have the right solvents and know the exact points to lube after cleaning. You got lucky this time, but that's not a fix I'd ever tell someone to try at home.
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