Hi i have the BL model that at this stage doesn't need a service just yet. Light meter very good for it's age. I'll keep this vlog if I ever Need it hopefully not. Thanks for your great program again. 👍🥂
Hi Chris, thanks for this video series - it's given me confidence as a tinkerer to fix the slow shutter and timer issues with my recently acquired Vito BL. The internal construction of the Vito BL lens is somewhat different from the B, more engineered I'd say, so much so I've had to order a lens wrench in an attempt to remove the lens/aperture assembly. I'm hoping that's all that is needed as I don't see another way to remove the shutter speed selector ring. Great series with lot of useful tips.
Well as it turns out, with the BL although it looks like the large diameter brass ring would unscrew with the wrench, this isn’t the case. What you have to do is unscrew the steel aperture pin - use needle nose pliers to gently get it out. Then unscrew the whole lens assembly including aperture mechanism. This will reveal a black ring that does in fact need the lens wrench to loosen as it was quite tightly on on mine. The brass lens mount can then be lifted off, followed by the shutter speed selector ring revealing a mechanism almost the same as the B as shown in this video.
Thanks to Chris’ video I was able to service the drivetrain of both the shutter release and the self timer back to working condition. The biggest obstacle to reassembly of the BL was the lens and aperture assembly - basically the helicoid screw needs set *just so* before the fine lens thread is engaged with the holder. This is because the helicoid wants to unscrew as you screw in the lens - too much then lens impinges on the shutter, too little the assembly won’t engage with the alignment rails. Very entertaining lol! I now just have to clean up the body and leatherettes, reattach them and I’ll have a beautiful, working Voigtlander Vito BL.
Thanks for the info I needed to take of the top plate to get to the veiwfinder lenses as they had film dirt making looking throught the veiwfinder misty - thanks for showing two screws hot shoe and film chamber although I did not remove the rewind wheel I had just bought this Vito B from a boot sale for £2 everything else works _ h- bargain eh ?😊
I really do like watching you working on these old cameras. A lot of very good information. If I can make a request. When you have time maybe show us how to properly install the light meter assembly and gear train on a Bessamatic. From the repair manuals I have it seems to require a special alignment tool that no longer exists. Maybe there is a work around to get the light meter properly installed and calibrated.
Really liked your video and it inspired me to try to restore my dad’s bessamatic from the ‘60s. I have the camera half taken apart but can’t quite figure out how to get the shutter to work as the film advancing lever appears to be stick and pressing the shutter does nothing…
I will probably do a series of videos on the Bessamatic later this year, but I do have a series already on a Bessamatic M I serviced and modified for a customer. This is the link to the playlist... th-cam.com/play/PLDDcV5sY4JWIcor6rU5HB0G_o7EpqBZ8K.html
For a simple camera, this is a nightmare to disassemble. There are so many potential traps in trying to service the shutter or even relubricate the lens helical. I'm struggling with the same issues now. Plus, the aperture blades accidentally fell out. Ugh! The construction of this camera is unnecessarily complicated, compared with other German cameras from the same era.
My Vito b shutter seems to be working fine but noticed while hand cranking the film gear that the shutter would slow if the gear was pushed too far, is this normal?
Where is the Aperature housed? I have one but when i turn the aperature ring i dont see it open ir close just stays wide open. The shutter on mine works but i dont see the aperature work
Hello, Chris. I have a number of cameras from this era, and I have been looking for a cleaning solution to use on the chrome parts that have writing on, something that will leave the writing alone. I find rubbing alcohol will erase any writing. I watched a few of your videos and you use naphtha. Is Naphtha the same as kerosene, benzene or lighter fluid? Will that leave writing on a camera body alone?
Do you think that I can also heat up a SLR with a hair dryer? The film advance lever of my Bessamatic is not going as easy as it should and it is also not automatically returning to its regular position.
Most likely your camera has serious problems related to dried-out grease and dust in that film advance. It will have to be taken apart. Heating it up with a hairdryer isn't going to help much if at all. The hairdryer trick can be useful for seeing if a 'stuck' shutter just needs to be serviced, and if it makes no difference, then perhaps something is actually broken.
got a vito b, worked when i got it, shot half a film, about half way through the shutter stopped working. if i charge it i see the shutter closing then opening again when fully charge and nothing happens when the button is pressed. i get the shutter to almost close on higher speeds, the button still does nothing. would love some guidance as I am new, most everyting seemed to work on the camera before this happened (note this happened while the camera was a bit cold, i am wondering if maybe just re greasing it would fix it, and if so, what the best fool proof way to do so cheaply in norway would be).
@@ChrisSherlock thanky you, i had a think, dared to open up the camera, it seems to be the part you specify in the video is the issue, the timer for the shutter, the gear train. I seem to have fixed the issue, but now speed 4, 8 and 15 (sometimes 2) wont reset. I will have to find out how to fix this. so far for a camera i paid about 8 gbp for, the glass is in very good condition with little to no rust. wonderful videos!
Do you know if it is possible to remove the lens to clean it inside? Because I cleaned both the lens above and the one below but I see some dirt inside
In that case, it probably needs to be serviced. The fault may lie in the shutter itself, or perhaps the body. This one certainly had problems with both. Shutters of this type were expected to be serviced every decade or so.
I've been waiting for this one for a while, thank you.
mine exactly the same type as yours. My dad bought it at 1976 and it's still working well
Hi i have the BL model that at this stage doesn't need a service just yet. Light meter very good for it's age. I'll keep this vlog if I ever Need it hopefully not. Thanks for your great program again. 👍🥂
Thank you for your videos, they help me alot and are very informative and enjoyable
My B stopped working about 15 years ago. This is fascinating.
Hi Chris, thanks for this video series - it's given me confidence as a tinkerer to fix the slow shutter and timer issues with my recently acquired Vito BL. The internal construction of the Vito BL lens is somewhat different from the B, more engineered I'd say, so much so I've had to order a lens wrench in an attempt to remove the lens/aperture assembly. I'm hoping that's all that is needed as I don't see another way to remove the shutter speed selector ring. Great series with lot of useful tips.
Well as it turns out, with the BL although it looks like the large diameter brass ring would unscrew with the wrench, this isn’t the case. What you have to do is unscrew the steel aperture pin - use needle nose pliers to gently get it out. Then unscrew the whole lens assembly including aperture mechanism. This will reveal a black ring that does in fact need the lens wrench to loosen as it was quite tightly on on mine. The brass lens mount can then be lifted off, followed by the shutter speed selector ring revealing a mechanism almost the same as the B as shown in this video.
Thanks to Chris’ video I was able to service the drivetrain of both the shutter release and the self timer back to working condition. The biggest obstacle to reassembly of the BL was the lens and aperture assembly - basically the helicoid screw needs set *just so* before the fine lens thread is engaged with the holder. This is because the helicoid wants to unscrew as you screw in the lens - too much then lens impinges on the shutter, too little the assembly won’t engage with the alignment rails. Very entertaining lol! I now just have to clean up the body and leatherettes, reattach them and I’ll have a beautiful, working Voigtlander Vito BL.
Thanks for the info I needed to take of the top plate to get to the veiwfinder lenses as they had film dirt making looking throught the veiwfinder misty - thanks for showing two screws hot shoe and film chamber although I did not remove the rewind wheel
I had just bought this Vito B from a boot sale for £2 everything else works _ h- bargain eh ?😊
I really do like watching you working on these old cameras. A lot of very good information. If I can make a request. When you have time maybe show us how to properly install the light meter assembly and gear train on a Bessamatic. From the repair manuals I have it seems to require a special alignment tool that no longer exists. Maybe there is a work around to get the light meter properly installed and calibrated.
Really liked your video and it inspired me to try to restore my dad’s bessamatic from the ‘60s. I have the camera half taken apart but can’t quite figure out how to get the shutter to work as the film advancing lever appears to be stick and pressing the shutter does nothing…
I will probably do a series of videos on the Bessamatic later this year, but I do have a series already on a Bessamatic M I serviced and modified for a customer. This is the link to the playlist... th-cam.com/play/PLDDcV5sY4JWIcor6rU5HB0G_o7EpqBZ8K.html
For a simple camera, this is a nightmare to disassemble. There are so many potential traps in trying to service the shutter or even relubricate the lens helical. I'm struggling with the same issues now. Plus, the aperture blades accidentally fell out. Ugh! The construction of this camera is unnecessarily complicated, compared with other German cameras from the same era.
They certainly look simple enough on the outside!
Thank you so much for this video!
Thank you thank you thank you! 😊
Nice little brick of a camera!
My Vito b shutter seems to be working fine but noticed while hand cranking the film gear that the shutter would slow if the gear was pushed too far, is this normal?
Where is the Aperature housed? I have one but when i turn the aperature ring i dont see it open ir close just stays wide open. The shutter on mine works but i dont see the aperature work
Hello, Chris. I have a number of cameras from this era, and I have been looking for a cleaning solution to use on the chrome parts that have writing on, something that will leave the writing alone. I find rubbing alcohol will erase any writing. I watched a few of your videos and you use naphtha. Is Naphtha the same as kerosene, benzene or lighter fluid? Will that leave writing on a camera body alone?
Do you think that I can also heat up a SLR with a hair dryer? The film advance lever of my Bessamatic is not going as easy as it should and it is also not automatically returning to its regular position.
Most likely your camera has serious problems related to dried-out grease and dust in that film advance. It will have to be taken apart. Heating it up with a hairdryer isn't going to help much if at all. The hairdryer trick can be useful for seeing if a 'stuck' shutter just needs to be serviced, and if it makes no difference, then perhaps something is actually broken.
got a vito b, worked when i got it, shot half a film, about half way through the shutter stopped working. if i charge it i see the shutter closing then opening again when fully charge and nothing happens when the button is pressed. i get the shutter to almost close on higher speeds, the button still does nothing. would love some guidance as I am new, most everyting seemed to work on the camera before this happened (note this happened while the camera was a bit cold, i am wondering if maybe just re greasing it would fix it, and if so, what the best fool proof way to do so cheaply in norway would be).
You do not re-grease a shutter. It sounds to me that the shutter needs to be stripped down and serviced.
@@ChrisSherlock thanky you, i had a think, dared to open up the camera, it seems to be the part you specify in the video is the issue, the timer for the shutter, the gear train. I seem to have fixed the issue, but now speed 4, 8 and 15 (sometimes 2) wont reset. I will have to find out how to fix this. so far for a camera i paid about 8 gbp for, the glass is in very good condition with little to no rust. wonderful videos!
Do you know if it is possible to remove the lens to clean it inside? Because I cleaned both the lens above and the one below but I see some dirt inside
My vito B has the shutter stuck open, any throughts?
In that case, it probably needs to be serviced. The fault may lie in the shutter itself, or perhaps the body. This one certainly had problems with both. Shutters of this type were expected to be serviced every decade or so.
please help me I'm in Philippines