Welcome to the list!
Been sitting a long time, works for a bit, then 'locks up'. Classic dead
batteries.
The battery check on the OM-4 series is pretty useless, except to see if
there are batteries in there without taking off the battery cap. It
doesn't test under load and operating the shutter magnets is a
considerable, if brief, load. If the camera detects insufficient voltage
under load to assure an accurate exposure, it locks with the mirror up.
this is an intentional design choice (the REAL battery test), but
unfortunate, because it leads to people deciding the camera is broken
when it is just the batteries.
The camera is designed to work properly only with silver oxide
batteries. They have the advantage of holding their voltage right until
the end of their useful life. The disadvantage is that the camera can go
from working perfectly to dead from one shot to the next (just had that
happen a bit ago). ALWAYS carry a TESTED spare set. Occasionally a
battery in its lovely new bubble pack will be defective, don't let it
fool you. Any silver oxide battery of the correct size will work better
than any other kind of battery. The best of the lot seem to be Energizer
357 High Drain. Anybrand of 357 or SR44W should be first rate.
When used with the wrong batteries, alkaline or lithium, camera behavior
can become downright weird. The problem is that these batteries lose
voltage permanently gradually with age and use and temporarily from use.
Thus, the batteries may operate the shutter several times, then lock up.
A few minutes later, after you have fooled with several things to get it
going again, the batteries have recovered and it works again... for a
while, so you assume it wasn't the batteries, but it is. As the
batteries age, the problem gets worse.
Moose
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