Repairing a Bell & Howell 240ee

[Aaron Martin @ OH]

Hi.

 

After many years of faithful service my beloved B&H 240ee up and croaked. I wound the spring, released the trigger, it whirred a little and then nothing. I had originally though the camera had jammed, but when I opened the door all was well.

 

Here's the thing: everything on the camera will still move properly, except the spring. When I release the trigger I can turn the sprocket wheel by hand (not freely, there is some resistance) and this will in turn move the spindle for the take-up reel.

 

My question is, what happened? My guess is that there is something between the trigger and spring that won't release the spring. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? I'm especially interested to know if my camera can be repaired or if I an now the proud owner of a paperweight.

 

Thanks for your help. I'm happy to answer any questions if it will help find an answer to my problem.

 

Aaron

[Dom Jaeger]

Hi Aaron,

 

I've pulled a lot of wind-up cameras apart, but not that one (yet), so this is just generic advice.. :)

 

If you can still inch the camera via the sprocket wheel when you press the release trigger it suggests the clockwork isn't jammed by debris in the gears or a bent shutter etc. It also suggests the problem isn't the trigger, since it's allowing the mechanism to turn over.

 

What sometimes happens with spring motors is that the connection at one of the two ends of the spring breaks and the spring can no longer drive the mechanism, but in that case the winding handle will just keep turning without tensioning the spring, or it winds up for a bit and then the tension slips. If that's happening then it's not really worth fixing.

 

If the spring seems fully wound and the winder won't turn any more, inching the camera by hand for a while should relieve the spring tension and let you wind it up a bit more. In this case, the problem could be fixable. You might just need to clean and relubricate the mechanism. Or possibly the gears that stop the spring before it slows down have slipped and are stopping it early. Get out your screwdrivers and have a look.. could be a fun weekend project!

 

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions about the procedure, I might be able to help.. or not! But I have a lot of time for people who still value their old wind-up film cameras. :)

[Aaron Martin @ OH]

Dom,

 

Thanks for your reply. Based on your suggestions I reexamined my camera and I'm now fairly certain that there is something that is keeping the spring from moving, perhaps the gears you mention.

 

How can I fix this? I do value my wind-up camera but I value my eyeballs and fingers more. Can I safely remove parts of this camera without having the spring fly out at me?

 

Thanks again,

 

 

Aaron

[Dom Jaeger]

Well like I said I haven't pulled one of these down, but with spring cameras of this era it's a safe bet the spring is cased, so it can't do you too much damage (as opposed to B&H Filmos). Worst case it's fully wound and when you undo enough screws the thing will suddenly make a big whir noise and vibrate as it escapes the gearing. If you're worried you could inch the camera by hand for half an hour and relieve any potential spring tension. Isn't there an indicator window on that camera showing how wound up the spring is?


 

With these sort of cameras you can often remove the mechanism intact from the housing by undoing the winding lever, removing the front, and undoing the big screws in the film chamber. There are probably screws hidden under the front label plates. Sometimes a bit of oil in the bearing pivots is enough to free things up, sometimes the speed governor is gummed up and won't let the mechanism turn freely.


 

You can probably get another one of these cameras (or something like it) for a hundred bucks or less, so it's only worth pulling it apart if you're curious.

Edited November 30, 2012 by Dom Jaeger