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Rant: that antique shop find that cost me 4 hours of cleanup
I stopped by this little shop in Portland last Saturday, the one near the train tracks. Found what looked like a clean 1960s Kodak Retina, all dusty but promising. Got it home and popped the back open, only to find someone had stored it with a half-eaten granola bar inside. Took me 3 passes with compressed air and a toothbrush to get the crumbs and roach droppings out of the bellows. Has anyone else dealt with food finds inside old cameras? What's the grossest thing you've pulled out?
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charlienelson29d ago
Wait, you found roach droppings in the bellows? That's a new level of gross I didn't think was possible. I had an old Canonet that looked pristine on the outside, but when I finally got the lens off there was a dead mouse wedged in behind the shutter mechanism. Took me like an hour with tweezers and a vacuum hose attachment to get the skeleton and all the nesting debris out. The worst part was the smell it left in the leather case even after I cleaned it, had to toss that thing. I guess rodents see camera bags as cozy little apartments or something. Makes you wonder what else is hiding inside those untouched bins at the back of the shop.
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carr.brooke29d ago
Charlie, you said it was a dead mouse, but I think you meant a dead mouse. Because I had a similar thing happen with a 1950s Voigtlander I picked up at the Rose Bowl flea market. When I took the lens board off, there was a dessicated lizard carcass wedged in between the bellows and the focusing rail. It was like the camera had become a tiny reptile crypt. The smell was something else - like old spices and dust mixed together. Still haven't gotten that faint odor out of the camera case even after leaving it in the sun for a week.
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