RESTORING A KODAK No.1 POCKET FOLDING CAMERA

Having thought about it, I decided to try restoring this "Kodak Pocket No1 Camera" which as you can see is, in a very poor condition. I thought that as I buy and sell camera's I should learn more about them. This is something I have never attempted before, I still get baffled by some and how they open, so you could say that I am not even a 'novice'!

I had thought about restoring a different camera which was in a lot better condition, see previous post, but it looked too easy. As this was going to be my first attempt at "restoring a vintage camera", I thought I would choose something more challenging. Jump in at the 'deep' end so to speak.

This old "Kodak Pocket Camera" has been sitting on my desk for some time now; I had considered at one time or another to Ebay it. I even considered throwing it away; thankfully this is something I never do! I hate to see anything 'thrown' away. I guess that’s why I am surrounded by all sorts of 'junk'; my wife’s words not mine.

I should tell you about the camera first and its current condition, there's plenty of photo's, as you can see, showing the obvious signs of damage but there are some that you would not be able to see. The lens and shutter were in a good condition and look like they will not require much work. The door is seized in the 'open' position and the bellows unit is seized tight in the 'closed' position. I have forgotten the technical term for the view finder attached near the lens but as you can see, there isn't one! There's plenty of rust and missing paint plus the leatherette is not in the best of condition, forever the optimist. So, I guess its time to get started......... 

Firstly, I removed the lens case which came out nice and easy. In fact the lens is in a very good condition and the shutter action fires at all speeds. The lens just requires some cleaning and it should be as good as new.

The second job was to dismantle the rest of the camera and this proved difficult as the door and bellows were seized, as shown in the picture. Also, it did take a while to work out what parts came loose or were meant to. I did not want to force anything but everything seemed stuck, got there in the end though.

There was no way the bellows and lens was going to come out without a fight, it was difficult. I tried gently easing the sliding piece (what is the correct term for this?) along the track but it would not budge. A little bit of oil helped but I was unsure in case the oil would damage the bellows, I was hoping the bellows were going to be in a good condition.

The one job I did not fancy doing was replacing the bellows as this looks like a very difficult. I may be wrong and I was not convinced 'patching' the bellows, although would work, was a choice. I was hoping to retain the original bellows, in fact I hope to keep as much of the original camera.

Well, it was a fight but I won, the bellows and lens unit slides up and down the track, not brilliantly but it’s a start. Also, the bellows look in very good condition, bonus! I have given them a bit of a clean and checked if they leaked any light. Not one bit, not even a 'pinhole' and all looks really good. I still may have to remove the bellows though so that I can work on the rest of the camera.

I am dreading this part as everything looks fixed with some kind of rivet? I am sure there's an easy way or even a specialist tool for doing this, I guess I will have to do some research.

So, door opens smoothly now, the lens and bellows unit slides back and forth (not smoothly yet!), I will have to go and figure out what to do next. I did have a little 'play' around with the lens to see how all this 'fit' together. The one thing I guess I have learnt is that the lens, so far, is the easiest bit to remove. This is good to know especially when I see 'old cameras' for sale where the lens is broke.

That does remind me to start looking around for spare parts, I wonder if there is a somewhere out there a 'Kodak' spare parts dealer? Or do I have to buy another Kodak Pocket camera for spares? Defeats the object really as I don't think I will find another camera in a worse condition or if I did I may be tempted to restore it!
Since starting this blog, I have been recommended some very good reference books. I have put them on my 'christmas' wishlist,  I might be lucky. They are costly but a 'must' for anyone interested in buying/selling and restoring camera's, or so I am told.

If you wish to assist me with advice then please do as it will be appreciated.