PRONTOR-SVS REPAIR/SERVICE MANUAL

I recently acquired these manuals while looking for repair info for my Polaroid 110A shutter and finding only a little bit of info, I figure I would scan and upload to the net for everyone to share. These manuals are nice they cover shutter trouble, the cause of the trouble and the corrective action to be taken. They also have a parts diagram and list. I put Hyperlinks below each manual so click and enjoy.

The first manual covers the Prontor S, SV, and SVS shutters.

The second manual is a supplement to the first.

The seventh manual in the series covers the Prontor Press used in the MP4 and CU5.

 

GEORGE HARRISON WITH A POLAROID 100

George taking photos in the hotel room in Anchorage, Alaska with a Polaroid 100 in 1966. The Beatles had to stop in Alaska to avoid typhoon Kit while en-route to Japan on their world tour.   Ringo Starr checking out a instant photo with George in the last photo. Photos taken by Robert Whitaker which are available for sale at gettyimages.

Photo by Robert Whitaker

Photo by Robert Whitaker

Photo by Robert Whitaker

STANLEY KUBRICK ON THE SET OF...

2001: A Space Odyssey. The director with a 110A Polaroid taking pictures on set. You can see HAL 9000 in the back. LIFE MAGAZINE

Stanley Kubrick, Polaroid, 2001: A Space Odyssey.

INTERESTING USE OF A LENSBOARD

A interesting use of an old 210 lensboard, it's there for looks only it does not capture any images through the lens. A wireless printer to capture images from your computer screen. I like Impossibles Instant lab as it uses film and a working lens but their concept gives me ideas of salvaging old damaged beyond repair cameras and attaching them to Impossibles FPU back.



Polaroid Cacher from Adrià Navarro on Vimeo.


Polaroid Cacher: real time printing from Adrià Navarro on Vimeo.

Links to the creators site:
http://adrianavarro.net/projects/polaroid-cacher/
http://dongikshin.com/POLAROID-CACHER 

INTERESTING PATENT FROM POLAROID

 Filed on June 17,1974, a magazine camera back for the SX-70 to hold a multitude of film packs as many as 10 at a time and pack change was automatic or manual to eject the pack and reload the next, the magazine is also detachable to load a full magazine. 
 The bottom of the SX-70 was modified and part of it removed but leaving the contacts to power the camera. The rollers are no longer attached to the camera as they are attached to the rails as the rails moves forward the magazine moves with the rails, the empty pack ejects and is helped in the ejection process by the lower pack as it moves upwards and when you push the rails back in to home position it loads the new pack and the rollers are back in position.

Here's a link to the patent MAGAZINE CAMERA 3903535

IN 1979 POLAROID...

Produced their one billionth pack of Type 108 Land Film. First introduced in July of 1963 and by 1979 they had reached an impressive production mark, basically 62,500,000 film packs a year on average in the span of 16 years. The only reference I found online for their production runs was here an estimated 100 million packs of Polacolor in 1973. Type 108 eventually went through improvements in February of 1975 becoming Polacolor 2 with the use of anti-curl photographic paper (No more print mounts.) and the same SX-70 metalized dyes to be more fade resistant*. 108 would have a production run of almost forty years ending in the early 2000's.

With The Impossible Project producing their own instant film today I wonder how many packs are manufactured so far, will they reach this same milestone of achievement. I think they will make it, there is a lot of support of their instant film line and with their recent success of the Instant Lab it's going to happen.    

Stacks of 108 packs

Rows and rows of beautiful 108

*(The first thirty years 1948-1978
  A chronology of Polaroid photographic products)  

KRISTEN BELL PHOTOSHOOT WITH A POLAROID 180

Apparently Kristen Bell did a photoshoot with Rolling Stone magazine back in 2006 using a Polaroid 180. I wonder if that's her camera or a prop for the shoot. Here are some photo's of the shoot and some links to her site.

KICKSTART THE IMPOSSIBLE

The Impossible Project starts their new project off with Kickstarter to launch the Instant Lab. A digital to analog converter that transfers images from the iPhone display to instant film.

 

THE POLAROID POSTCARDER

The ability to take a photo in a instance and share it with friends and family around you is what Polaroid brought into our homes. Then Polaroid made their postcarders to allow you to share with people who where hundreds if not thousands of miles away even though it did not get there as fast as it developed. Friends and family were happy to receive these moments caught in time.

These do not show up that often for pack film, but plenty show up for roll film.

Simple enough instructions.

No self-adhesive needed, the picture fits snugly and will not fall out.

 

PHOTOMACROGRAPHY WITH THE MP-4

PHOTOMACROGRAPHY WITH THE MP-4, a set on Flickr.

PDF LINK: PHOTOMACROGRAPHY WITH THE MP-4

REMOVE & CLEAN YOUR ROLLERS IN PACK CAMERAS

Most people know how to clean the rollers by unlatching the red tab. I will show you how to remove them completely from the assembly when they are heavily gooped up. Especially when the rollers do not move freely and after cleaning they will move freely. There are two video links at the bottom to show exactly the steps involved.

You can see the goo build up. Not the worse I've seen.

The before cleaning picture.

Pulling the spring up and down will release it.

Remove this roller first.

To remove the second roller just push in the arm to release it.

Rollers completely removed for easy cleaning.

let the rollers soak in warm soapy water while you clean the camera.

Use cotton swabs dipped in the soapy water to clean.

Get all that goop out of those crevices.

Rollers wiped clean and dry.

Start with the roller with the raised ends and put back in the arms.

Insert the arms back in one side first the other second.

You will have to push in the second arm slightly to snap it back into place.

Place the other roller back into position start with the other end and this end will snap back in. Look how clean they are, this is the after picture.

Insert the springs back into position. Notice the tab in the middle of the spring.

Note the position on the open end of spring. On the top end you will see a tab that will sit on top (not below) the spring. Now look at the bottom open end it stops against the bracket. Using pliers squeeze the open end and using your other hand push the on other side of spring back in.

GRANT HAMILTON

GRANT HAMILTON, a photo by PhasmatisApparatus on Flickr.

Grant at the world premier of TIME ZERO posing with one of the many stars who were in the film. The movie was amazing I liked the beginning were everyone was talking about Polaroid film and how it touched and effected their lives, like it was part of their family and how emotional some got when they found out it was not going to be their anymore like a passing of a beloved family member. Then their are the heroes who said were not going to give up, THE SAVE POLAROID and THE IMPOSSIBLE TEAM who fought and struggled to save instant film. Instant film is not going to die because Polaroid shut down the machinery, simply because we have THE IMPOSSIBLE TEAM to write a new chapter in the legacy of instant film and because of that photographers everywhere can continue to write their or tell their own stories in the images they capture.

TIME ZERO CARD

Spotted one in Somerville.

SOMERVILLE THEATRE

Here today picking up TIME ZERO tickets for this Saturday.

Sommerville theatre, a photo by PhasmatisApparatus on Flickr.

SCRATCH

SCRATCH, a set on Flickr.

Had to do some tweaking on the SX-70 to get better results. The first four was just a hand to shield the film and the last four was the frog tongue and had to modify the tongue to get better results.