Evaluating Spuds

[Paul Talbot <ptww@xxxxxxxxx>]

I've soaked up as much as possible the various discussions
of Spud problems and how to fix them up.  Now I have some
questions applying all that info to my first Spud.

Regarding the internal reflections: I want to have some
before and after shots to show the difference in the
pictures from adding the flocking paper.  What kind of
shot would make a good sample shot?  And what should I
expect to see in the "before" photo that is evidence of
the problem?

Regarding the self-timer: Do these things ever work?  ;-)
When I borrowed Sam's Spud the self-timer didn't work,
Brenda says hers doesn't, and now mine doesn't seem to
work either.  Is there any trick to using it?  I just
cocked the shutter and engaged the self-timer.  It winds
down but doesn't trip the shutter--as though it doesn't
have enough "strength" to overcome the resistance of the
shutter mechanism.

Thanks,
Paul Talbot