Something I learned was that you will probably have to make tools, unless you have a really good optical wrench. Fortunately tricks like filing down pliers to make very small tips and filing in-between cheap screwdriver flats work really well. Years of SMT work finally paid off as some cameras require desoldering certain parts to get into the depths. The biggest risk is scratches where the OEM tooling otherwise fits perfectly, but I'm not that prissy over a 50 year old SLR. The repair guides from the manufacturers are pretty opaque and serve only to show where things go. Often they list tons of bespoke equipment and calibration tools that you won't have.
I switched to servicing musical instruments. It’s a much bigger market, much less collector focused, and often $1000 is not a lot for a musical instrument but a lot for a camera.
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I agree.
For me, the details of the Fix Old Cameras videos were less important than the approach and attitude applied to the problems.
But like I mentioned, I am not down the camera repair rabbit hole anymore. In part because of the intractability of many camera repairs.
Something I learned was that you will probably have to make tools, unless you have a really good optical wrench. Fortunately tricks like filing down pliers to make very small tips and filing in-between cheap screwdriver flats work really well. Years of SMT work finally paid off as some cameras require desoldering certain parts to get into the depths. The biggest risk is scratches where the OEM tooling otherwise fits perfectly, but I'm not that prissy over a 50 year old SLR. The repair guides from the manufacturers are pretty opaque and serve only to show where things go. Often they list tons of bespoke equipment and calibration tools that you won't have.
I don’t doubt it.
I switched to servicing musical instruments. It’s a much bigger market, much less collector focused, and often $1000 is not a lot for a musical instrument but a lot for a camera.