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[OM] OM-2S winder/shutter release problem

Subject: [OM] OM-2S winder/shutter release problem
From: Ray Moth <ray_moth@xxxxxxxxx>
Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 21:48:56 -0800 (PST)
Dear All 

I'd like to share some thoughts about the OM-2S and I'd welcome
other people's opoinions.  However, I'd like to ask, firstly, if
anyone has experienced the following problems and/or can suggest
whether they're serious enough to warrant repair. (I rather hope
that isn't the case because I live in Indonesia and reliable
repairs are not particularly easy to arrange!)

1.  I hadn't used my OM-2S camera for many months. When I began
finally to use it again, I found the shutter wouldn't fire after
the normal winder lever stroke: the winder had to be advanced
several times before the shutter release would engage. After
shooting half a film, it began to behave normally but there was
still a problem occasionally. It results in wasted film between
frames, as you'd expect, so the winder or winder lever is not
slipping.  

2.  The same camera seems to be emitting a lot of vibration
noise when the mirrors return to rest following an exposure. It
seems to making more noise than usual, though I'm not sure if I
recall accurately enough how it used to sound. I don't think it
would affect camera steadiness during a shot because it seems to
be happening after the important part of the firing sequence. I
just wonder, though, if it's a sign of something wrong? I can
best describe it as the sound of springs "twanging". 

My assessment of the OM-2S - Good
=================================

I bought the OM-2S in Wolverhampton, England, in 1975 (where it
was called the OM-2 Spot/Program), to replace my OM-2N. I was
attracted by a number of features, which I list below.  

Firstly, I liked the use of the OTF silicon blue (SB) cells in
the OM-2S for both meter indication and auto exposure control,
as compared with the use of a cadmium sulphide (CdS) cell,
reading light from the viewfinder screen if I'm correct, for
meter indication and SB for auto exposure control only in the
OM-2N. CdS has the reputation of adapting rather slowly to
changes in light level and could, theoretically, give different
results from the SB OTF cells. Since I mainly used slide film,
which demands more accurate exposures than negative film, this
seemed important.

Secondly, I liked the LCD type meter display in the OM-2S. I had
a problem with the OM-2N's fragile mechanical meter, which had
to be repaired.

Thirdly, the exposure modes of the OM-2S seemed to suit my needs
well. Spot metering in manual mode was a big plus, even if it
was only a single spot reading. It beats the weighted average
metering used in manual mode on the OM-2N hands down. Also,
though I'm not a lover of program mode, I think it's handy to
carry the camera in this mode for "point & shoot" use if
unexpected opportunities arise. Sure, if there's time, I change
to a mode giving me more control but program mode has its
advantages and I'm not too proud to use it when it suits me.
Incidentally, the exposure accuracy of the camera seems
excellent in all three modes (program, auto and manual/spot) and
when using OTF flash with the T-32 (in auto mode) too.

My assessment of the OM-2S - Not so good
========================================

I also have a few minor gripes about the OM-2S:

The first is its well-known heavy use of battery current (mine
has the green LED flash indicator so that makes it worse because
it uses the camera's batteries). I have experienced some pretty
frustrating times, owing to the fact that I wasn't aware that
this was a particular problem with the OM-2S and thought it must
be my fault or teh fault of Indonesian retailers selling old
stock. I just couldn't figure out why alkaline batteries were
useless after only a couple of months - less if I used flash a
lot. After, all, according to the camera manual, while silver
oxide batteries were preferable, alkaline batteries were also
OK. This turned out to be untrue but I only got the clear
picture after reading the Olympus Mailing List. My experience is
that Alkaline batteries can be used if there's no other choice
but they are inferior in terms of longevity and voltage
stability - once they get tired, the voltage begins to drop and
the light metering of the camera becomes inaccurate. I have a
problem obtaining silver oxide batteries in Indonesia. Alkaline
batteries abound but I've never seen silver oxide here. I get
someone to send me some SR44 occasionally from the UK.

Then there's the fact that it's very easy to forget to reset the
delay lever to the normal position after taking a delay shot.
This can be maddening!

I must agree with other List subscribers that the controls on
the OM-2S are not as smooth and pleasant to use as on the OM-2N.
I think the winder and shutter speed ring deserve particular
criticism in this regard, being stiff and gritty to operate. The
shape of the rewind handle on the OM-2N was also better.

Conclusion - a great camera!
============================

All in all, though, I still like my OM-2S. While not wishing to
malign other great cameras, I strongly believe that the OM-2S
was the best 35mm TLR camera on the market in its price bracket,
at the time Olympus launched it. Not being enamoured of
autofocus, I wasn't concerned at the lack of this feature. I was
certainly glad to buy it at the time and I've obtained some
excellent photographs with it since, provided, of course, that I
played my part properly. 

Best regards to all Zuikophiles (don't forget to send Valentine
cards to your Zuithearts)


Ray

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