Camera Repairs & Servicing

All servicing and repairs start with an inspection of your equipment.

This allows us to provide you with a more accurate cost and confirm whether the camera is repairable and if it requires any replacement parts based off an initial inspection.

A non-refundable inspection fee of £45 is applicable for all repairs/servicing. This fee is payable when booking your camera in (we will send you a link to pay via our website), this secures your slot in our schedule.

This £45 fee is deducted from the total cost of the repairs/servicing should you decide to proceed after receiving your personalised costs. (This fee does not apply to Health Checks & Light Seal Replacement)

If you decide not to proceed, or if we deem the equipment is not repairable, the inspection fee is still payable.

When it comes to servicing, we only do a full service. This servicing is substantial and in-depth!

This is due to many cameras now being of an age where they require a much deeper level of disassembly to service them appropriately.

Additionally, partial services often don’t address issues that have resulted from old lubricants, oxidisation etc, this means that faults can often have multiple causes that need addressing.

Full services include (but are not limited to): significant disassembly, cleaning, appropriate lubrication, shutter adjustments (manual and auto modes), light meter adjustments, internal foam replacement, and much more.

For cameras such as the Nikon FM2, we also completely disassemble all of shutter mechanisms to replace essential components in every service - this is much more than a ‘CLA’!

We have included some example servicing costs below, which will be confirmed once an inspection of your camera is completed for you to approve.

We cover too many cameras to list, so please get in touch to discuss pricing for your camera if it’s not listed below!

• Nikon F3 (including Standard/HP prism exterior optics cleaning) - £255

• Nikon F3/T & F3 Press Model (including Standard/HP/Press prism exterior optics cleaning) - £295

• Nikon FM2/FM2n (including full shutter rebuild) - £255

• Pentax K1000 - £190

• Pentax SPF - £190

• Pentax ME Super - £190

• Pentax Spotmatic - £190

In the event a camera requires a further repair not covered by the service, this will be charged at an additional cost (however, we will always discuss and agree this with you prior to doing any additional work)

We undertake repairs on a wide variety of makes and models, these start from £45 + any parts required.

Once an inspection is complete, we are able to advise of the cost of repairs/parts for you to approve.

In the event the fault requires significant disassembly or something that would be addressed by a service, then we will advise you of this and discuss options.

If you decide not to proceed, or if we deem the equipment is not repairable, the inspection fee is still payable before the return of your equipment.

If you’d like to understand how your camera is functioning, we offer a ‘Health Check’ service. This is perfect for checking a camera you’ve recently purchased or where it’s been unused for a period of time.

This includes:

• Checking of manual & automatic shutter speeds (where applicable) on professional grade testing equipment (to check your camera is exposing your images correctly across all speeds)

• Checking of the inbuilt light meter (if applicable) to confirm it’s accuracy across different light levels

• Replacement of mirror bumper foam & rear door light seals as required, all with hand-cut Japanese foam

• Exterior clean and mirror clean

Prices range from £85-100, please contact us for more accurate costs.

Old light seals degrade and allow your film to be exposed to light (in places where it shouldn’t be!).

We replace mirror bumper foams and rear door light seals with hand-cut Japanese foam seals to ensure many years of light-leak-free shooting!

Prices start from £50 for 35mm cameras.

Light Seal replacement is also done as part of our ‘Health Checks’, please click the heading above for more details.

We also offer light seal replacement for Hasselblad V series film backs for £50.

Accidents happen, things crop up - but what if you could get your camera repaired or serviced even quicker?

We now offer an Express Service. This means (subject to availability) we will prioritise your camera's repair or servicing.

Currently this is available specifically for Nikon F3 and FM2 cameras, however we are able to offer some smaller repairs to other cameras too under this service.

This service attracts additional costs, if you would like to find out more, please email us directly: hello@southwestcamera.co.uk

For Nikon, we specialise in Nikon F3 and Nikon FM2 camera repairs and servicing in the UK.

For Pentax, we specialise in Pentax K1000, Pentax Spotmatic, Pentax SPF, Pentax ME Super camera repairs and servicing in the UK.

In addition, we cover a wide range of other makes and models for repairs and servicing too, including (but not limited to):

• Nikon F2

• Leaf shutters

If you would like to discuss a repair/service, please contact us via our ‘Contact Us’ page, or via email: hello@southwestcamera.co.uk

If you would like to discuss a repair/service, please contact us via our ‘Contact Us’ page, or contact us via email: hello@southwestcamera.co.uk

Prices vary dependent on the type of service/repair, and the condition of the camera (plus any parts required).

Please see the services section below for further information about our costs.

The customer is responsible for sending and return postage costs (usually in the region of £13-15) via Royal Mail Special Delivery to UK mainland.

Our ‘Full Service’ comes with a 60 day warranty as standard, however as our ‘Full Service’ is so comprehensive, we expect your camera to be capturing precious moments for many years to come!

Specific repairs come with a 30 day warranty on parts and labour for the issue that has been fixed.

Nothing lasts forever - sadly this also applies to our beloved cameras, however they can often be used for parts to keep other cameras alive!

In the rare event we deem your camera irreparable, we are happy to discuss waiving the inspection fee and retaining the faulty camera for spare parts.

For Nikon, we specialise in repairs and servicing of the Nikon F3 and Nikon FM2 cameras in the UK, offering deeper and more in-depth servicing than ever before.

We also offer Nikon F3 LCD Display Screen repairs and replacements, this resolves missing segments and a faint display.

For Pentax, we specialise in repairs and servicing of Pentax ME Super, Pentax K1000, Pentax Spotmatic, and Pentax SPF in the UK.

The servicing and repairs of these Pentax cameras are undertaken by an experienced and talented technician with decades of experience repairing Pentax cameras.