Light leaking Realists

[P3D John Slivon <frogs@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Geez, 

I thought that light leaks in Realists were normal. I solved the leak on my
first Realist by gluing a very thin and narrow strip of leather, about .25
mm thick, 3 mm wide and 34 mm long  to the extreme right ledge fuzzy side
up. The leather strip and the method were supplied by Jeff at the Photo
Emporium in Chicago. This formed a quasi gasket that filled the space
between the camera body and the back cover at the place where the two form a
verticle seam when the back is on the camera. (the side where the focus
wheel is.) This worked on that camera. On my 2nd Realist I merely bent the
metal arm that engages the locking cam to make a tighter seam between the
camera body and the back. Once again, problem solved. My third Realist, the
dog converted to 7P, has a slightly twisted back, and rather than risk
really messing it up, beyond modifying it radically, I solved it's light
leak by gluing a .5 mm thick x 12 mm wide x 35 mm long piece of somewhat
stiff leather (used on violin bows for the thumb piece) to the camera back
in such a way that the leather strip overlapped the seam by about 4 mm and
also overlapped the seam along the top of the back. This piece of leather is
of the same color and texture as the leather covering on the camera and so
to me is not a problem, especially on that particular camera. And, it solves
the problem. However, if you do not want to mess up a pristine Realist, do
not glue the wide leather strip to the back. Try the "gasket" method
instead. The leather must be very thin. Otherwise you risk a light leak from
a different source, namely, the top seam along the back. Does anyone want to
re-design this camera and get it right? Here is another possibility, though
not yet tried by me, for cameras with a slight twist in the back (resulting
in a tapered seam). Use black silicon seal. Proposed method: Apply a release
agent (wax dissolved in paint thinner) to the entire area of the inside back
immediatly adjacent to the seam. This will(should) keep the silicon sealer
from adhereing to the back. Thoroughly clean with alcohol the ledge that
normally would accept the "gasket", and let dry. Mask off all areas of the
camera body that you do not want this black stuff to mess up. Apply a tiny,
and I do mean tiny (1/16 " thick), bead of the black silicon seal to the
entire length of the ledge. Let it set for about a minute to lose some of
its tack and then put the back on and let sit for 24 hrs. With any luck, the
camera back won't become permenently attached to the body (forget my name
and e-mail address if it does) and the leak will be fixed. After the 24 hr
wait, remove the back and clean off any of the release agent and if
necessary, trim away any excess sealant with a very sharp exacto blade. I
should have thought of this sooner. Be advised that you try this method at
your own risk. The silicon sealer should be available in small tubes at your
local hardware store. Anyone trying this method, and succeeding, post the
results so that others can fix all those leaks out there. I'm on my way to
the hardware store. 
John R. Slivon


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