Glen Lowry wrote:
> What I need to know is, to begin with, whether the OM-4 is a good camera.
> Or should I keep looking for a 2s? Also is the 4t a significant
> improvement over the 0M-4? Should I spend the extra cash?
<snip>
George S. added:
>My opinion- yes, the OM-4 is a good camera. I had one which performed
>very well and did not have the battery drain problem. I don't know, but I
>wonder the percentage that do. I wish I knew if it was 10%, 50%, 75%?
<snip>
I often wonder about that too. I didn't know about the circuit problems
when I bought a used OM-4 seven years ago. It has been an excellent camera
for me (knock wood). It has the original circuit and does not eat
batteries. I installed a new set of 357's last October and they're still
going strong. The only quirky problem it has is sometimes when I press the
spot button, it beeps twice, taking 2 spot readings very quickly when I
only wanted one. I can work around this by pressing the clear lever and
starting over - a minor inconvenience. Would I buy another OM-4? IMHO
probably not, given what I know now about the circuit problems. I consider
myself lucky to get a good example. But, as a fellow list member once
said, the bad cameras have probably worked themselves out of the market so
only the good ones survive. If you find a good example that works well,
especially in hot/humid conditions, keep it.
The OM-2S, IMHO, is a much riskier investment. I bought mine new 13 years
ago. It developed a horrible problem last year. I got the film back from
processing and was shocked to see that pictures I thought I took were blank
(clear) frames on the negatives. At first it was only one frame per roll
then worsened to 4 -5 random frames. A photographer's nightmare, the
shutter sounds like it's firing but no picture was taken. Fortunately, it
was not a bad circuit, just wiring gone bad, and was fixed. The OM-2S is
not as well sealed from the elements as the OM-4 so it probably doesn't
take the humidity too well. My trips to Florida, Hawaii, & Singapore
probably did it in. The OM-4 (T, Ti) have been praised for their o-rings
and gaskets to keep moisture out. I hear the reason the OM-4 (T, Ti) is
1mm taller than the OM-1,2 was to make room for the gaskets. The OM-2S is
also 1mm higher but alas, no gaskets. Since my OM-2S was repaired, it's
once again become my camera of choice but I hesitate to take it where the
humidity is high. YMMV.
Bill Rice
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