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I bought an old 35mm film camera online. I loaded the film, turned the knob that advanced the film. Looking at the dial on top, as I turned the knob, it turned past one, went to two, went to three, never stopping at a number. I can advance the whole roll of film.

Shouldn't it be stopping when it gets to a number? When I press the button to take a picture, it presses down, but the shutter doesn't snap or take a picture.

lomo lca

Does anyone know what this issue could be? I was looking online and couldn't find anything with my exact problem - it's not that the film doesn't advance, it just doesn't stop advancing. The rewind lever does move when it's advancing, and the little wheel moves the film correctly. It's an old Russian Lomo LC-A camera, so I'm not able to send it back to the manufacturer or anything. The manual is not very helpful for this issue.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Got the correct battery? I recall those being battery dependent... \$\endgroup\$
    – Zeiss Ikon
    Jan 5 at 18:12
  • \$\begingroup\$ Can you trip the shutter without film in the camera? (most cameras will) If the shutter doesn’t work without film, it’s probably malfunctioning, \$\endgroup\$
    – Mike Sowsun
    Jan 5 at 20:05
  • \$\begingroup\$ What does the camera look like from the back with the film door completely open? Can you provide a photo of that? (Wind whatever film you've got in it back into the cannister, being careful not to let the lead-in get wound completely into the canister before opening the back.) \$\endgroup\$
    – Michael C
    Jan 6 at 3:01
  • \$\begingroup\$ @ZeissIkon Yep, the batteries are working - it lights up in the viewfinder when i press down the button. \$\endgroup\$
    – buyingcamerasonEbayisagoodidea
    Jan 7 at 7:18
  • \$\begingroup\$ @MikeSowsun The shutter does not trip without film in the camera. I would think that even if the shutter didn't work that the frame counter would stop when i advanced the film, so I don't really think that's the issue. \$\endgroup\$
    – buyingcamerasonEbayisagoodidea
    Jan 7 at 7:20

2 Answers 2

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It sounds like the film is not properly engaged with the film advance gear labeled as part #29 on figure 5 that appears on page 10 of the linked manual. Either that, or the film advance gear is not properly connected to the shutter cocking mechanism.

I'd try to rewind the film into the film cannister, being careful not to wind too far and loose the lead-in into the cartridge. I'd then open the back (you may want to do it in a completely dark room and feel to be sure the film has rewound), remove the film cartridge, and try rotating the film advance gear towards the film take-up spool on the right and see if it cocks the shutter.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ If this were the case, the frame counter wouldn't advance. There may be a mechanical failure, but there's more to it than just a misload. \$\endgroup\$
    – Zeiss Ikon
    Jan 6 at 13:21
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The manual does not mention anything about the film advance wheel stopping when the film is advanced sufficiently.

Mind you this is a very simple camera. It might very likely be that the camera depends on the user to not advance the film further than is necessary.

I recommend winding back the film into the canister. Do this slowly and listen carefully. When you feel and/or hear the leader snap free from the take-up spool, stop winding and open the back. If this roll is not, load the cheapest film you can find and shoot it as you would normally, advancing the film each time until the next number shows in the frame counter window. If the camera is faulty (either due to a bad film transport system or something else), you will not have lost anything precious.

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    \$\begingroup\$ Did you miss the OP mentioning that the shutter also doesn't fire? \$\endgroup\$
    – Zeiss Ikon
    Jan 5 at 19:45
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    \$\begingroup\$ Based on page 13 of the linked manual, I'd say it does imply that the wheel should stop when the film has been advanced one frame and the shutter cocked. \$\endgroup\$
    – Michael C
    Jan 6 at 3:15
  • \$\begingroup\$ @ZeissIkon yes I did \$\endgroup\$
    – timvrhn
    Jan 6 at 13:12

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