My original example of this camera was the bane of my life. It just never worked. A friend tried to fix it, but it jammed again. I paid a professional to fix it…but it jammed again. Eventually, I took off a few parts, like the battery cap, and gave it away as a bag of parts to someone who fixes cameras for a living.

BUT, me being me, I could not stop looking for another. Finally, I found one for sale that was missing…the battery cover! Before I invested in a new lens to replace the awful 35mm one I had, I wanted to test it with film. I loaded and expired Vision 800T ECN2 film.

Well, what an awful lens, but the camera seemed to work. Yatta! At long last, I had an FTn that worked. I bought a 50mm lens and when it arrived a couple of weeks later, I tried to load a film…the camera had JAMMED!!!!! I will not repeat the words I said.

OK, time to try out a new-to-me repair service. I got it booked in, sent it off and waited. A week after I sent it off to be serviced, it was returned. I loaded an expired Ilford Pan 400 which I intended to push to 800asa.

It…JAMMMED!!!!!!!!!

Goddamn it, what is with this camera?? If I had a naughty list for cameras, this would be at the very top by a country mile. I could have bought a friggin Leica Barnack for the money and effort I had used to own this model of Nikon. To be fair, the second repair shop did say they would fix it again, but I didn’t see the point in spending more money on postage, or more time. I am not linking to any repairer right now as neither was a successful experience and I don’t want to damage anyone’s reputation over cursed cameras.

So, I left the camera on the side while pondering what to do with it. I thought back to my original one and it jammed when the shutter blades got stuck, it unjammed when I flushed it with lighter fluid. Maybe I should just soak the whole area in tonnes of the stuff over and over and over again??

So that is what I did, over and over again until they started to move freely every time. I reloaded the Ilford 400, took some photos around my house and then headed to Kirkstall Abbey.

It worked for the whole roll.

Did it continue to work?

NO!!! I left it for a couple of weeks and went back to it, sticky shutter again. Sod it!!! I sold it and vowed never to buy another. BUT, now I have a 50mm lens and no body to use it with.

I looked around the usual places for a Nikon…and there was a very rough-looking, very cheap …FTn 🙁

FINE, once more unto the breach.

It could do with a very good clean and a seal change. The light meter didn’t not work, but it fired correctly on all speeds and best of all…it didn’t jam!!

So I loaded it with a roll of Reflx Lab 800 and got to wandering Blackpool, where I developed tonsilitis…honestly, this camera is cursed. It came on so quickly, that I didn’t even have the energy to stay for the actual lights that I wanted to photo. When I recovered, I took it for a walk in the rain near my house. Then I sent it off to Photo Hippo, who took longer than usual to send it back as they were sick too! CURSED!!! They were still quick, but a shop of sick little hippos 🙁

Anyway here are the results.

Well, that worked. Even the flash sync worked. There were some light leaks on the film but given the state of the seals I am not surprised. If I do use it again, I will change those.

The film is amazing, look at those colours.

So I finally have a working, slightly ugly Nikon FTn.

Yippee