Meopta Flexaret VI shutter cocking and film advance

[funkydog]

How is the shutter cocked on a normal functioning Flexaret VI? My camera used to only cock the shutter when there was 120 film in it. Is that normal? The camera has a Metax shutter.

Aside from a very stiff lever on the right that the film doesnt run over, I don't see anything inside the film chamber that cocks the shutter. Or does the film advance do that automatically once it's been turned a number of times?

I ask because I loaded up the camera yesterday with 35mm film using the adapter but the shutter doesnt cock. There are no external levers beside the taking lens.

I received this camera ten years ago with a dodgy film counter. It would sometimes skip counting frames but otherwise functioned well for the three rolls of film I put through it before it went into storage.

[MartinP]

For the shutter to fire, there has to be film (or a backing paper when testing) running over the roller that works the frame-counter. What is probably happening is that the frame-counter roller thing is sticky and the double-exposure prevention interlock is stopping the shutter from firing. The actual shutter-cocking part of the wind-on action is the very first thing that happens when turning the film advance, and seems pretty reliable.

I don't have a 35mm adapter set, but that must use the same frame-counter mechanism somehow (maybe with a different diameter roller for 35mm instead of 55mm). Can you try it with a 120 backing-paper to see if that will successfully turn the roller. Note that the film/backing must be tight in order to have a good amount of friction on the frame-counter roller.

[funkydog]

Thank you. I will try with 120 backing paper. Might still have some around the home.

[funkydog]

It's taken me this long to find a junker roll of 120 film to try on the Flexaret. No joy. The winding action doesn't cock the shutter. The camera is kaput. What a pity. The Belar lens makes very nice pictures. Maybe someday I will attempt to transplant the optics onto a junker Seagull TLR.