( U*P*D*A*T*E This is admittedly one of the least essential entries in the history of this blog. Really. )
On a trip to Map Camera a couple of weeks ago I picked up a modular data back for my Contax T3. The rear doors are easily changed and I was interested in seeing what it would be like to see what kind of work I’d make with those little numbers imprinted in the lower right corner. A week later, I took the T3 on a short trip to Hong Kong. Leaving the Leicas at home I loaded the T3 with black and white Fuji Presto and shot some color film through a Fuji Natura Classica and this weirdo Fuji HD-M I picked up from the junk bin at a camera fair.
Of the 12 rolls of Fuji Presto, 10 went through the T3. All ten of these came off the reels out of the wash showing several scratches on the emulsion side of the film down the entire length of the rolls. (The two rolls shot with the HD-M though, were fine.) This T3 had been serviced for a faulty take-up spool back in September of 2011, with similar, yet intermittent scratches from a few rolls before it went out of commission.
Since the film I shot with it post-repair has all been scratch-free, it could have only been the fault of the new data back. As I test I loaded an expired roll of color film and fired off about six frames. After rewinding the film and pulling out the tip with a film picker, I was able to see the same kind of scratches in the same place in the emulsion. Next I changed the rear door back to the original one and repeated the experiment with another fresh and expired roll of film. No scratches were to be found with this second test roll.
The culprit (other than my own lack of checking new used gear before traveling abroad) might have to do with the battery in the data back. The date function is powered not by the camera but by a flat battery which fits snugly in a shallow compartment under the metal film rollers that you can see by the red arrow in the photo below. (The stock film door is attached to the camera in this photo.)
What I think happened is that after inserting a fresh battery I didn’t tighten the two small screws that hold both the battery cap AND rear roller assembly down tight enough. Therefore the springy rollers pushed down with enough force to scratch the film as it was wound both ways first out and then back into the canister.
Eh, I’m not too angry or devastated or anything. When you mess up, you mess up. And Hong Kong is definitely a place I’ll be returning to sometime soon. What an amazing city. Color is likely the best way to go about it, anyway. Some scans of those prints will be up here soon.
