How To Replace Light Seals On Olympus OM-2n 35mm Film Camera

The light seals on my Olympus OM-2n camera had completely worn away so I decided to replace them with a small kit I bought from ebay.
Tools needed
Rubbing Alcohol - amzn.to/2zFd87f
Cotton Buds
Small Wooden Stick (chopstick, match etc)
Light seal replacement kit - ebay.to/2zCdlbI
Music by - brockbeats.ban...

[@RonnyKohlmann]

TIP: When applying the seal to the camera groves. Make sure a tiny bit of rubbing alcohol is applied to the sticky part of the new seal. Doing this will prevent the seal from sticking to the wrong place and you have a couple of minutes to make sure it is aligned properly. The alcohol will dry and the adhesive is active again. Thanks

[@ThisDesignedThat]

good tip, thanks for sharing Ronny

[@ryan_pencil9811]

I saw a cool trick where a guy would saturate the adhesive with rubbing alcohol so that as he installed the foam it wouldn't stick to the sides. and as the alcohol evaporated the adhesive would stick to the desired surface

[@EuanPreston]

Have to thank you for this tip. I just replaced the seals on all four of my OM bodies, and you saved me a tonne of frustration.

[@geofff6671]

A trick to stop the seal sticking as you put it I is to wet it with saliva. The saliva acts as a lubricant and stops it sticking until it dries.

[@MichaelAddlesee]

A tip at 5:00, cover the shutter area so you don't get any muck in it, but avoid touching the fabric shutter.

[@hsbutoy]

"Then it should be pretty easy from there" famous last words 😂 You can also make the foam a little wet which gives it weight so it stays in the right place and helps stop it from twisting. Just need to let it dry overnight before closing.

[@davewebster6945]

A few years ago I had to replace the foams in a few cameras I had and had the same problem as you with the glue backing sticking to everything but the bottom of the groove its meant to stick too 😑. Looked on the net and a fella advised that once the strip covering the glue was removed he put the strip in his mouth for a bit so it was wet with saliva 😮 and said it was super easy to put the strips in and you had time to move them about to get them right and then leave to dry overnight once all done 🤔. It sounds horrendous but I was at my wits end with the sticky strips so I tried his method and it worked an absolute treat 🤗. I know have an OM2n that needs the seals replacing but may try the dip in isopropyl alcohol first as it sounds far more hygienic 😊.

[@mikefreelandphoto]

dave webster instead of saliva just wet it with alcohol because it will dry even quicker than spit and not ruin the adhesive👍

[@rugerluver1]

First class tutorial great film work .A pair of needle nose tweezers helps with the placement of the door edge foam you can actually place the foam in the trough with them . Also if you crush a cotton bud and soak in lighter fuel you can get in to clean out the trough Great work .Thanks

[@ThisDesignedThat]

Thanks for the comment and tips. Glad you enjoyed it

[@simonlawrencefilms5862]

That was so helpful, thank you, I now have two OM1's to sort out, and thanks too to all of you with additional tips in the comments section.

[@ThisDesignedThat]

Glad it helped!

[@JamesE707]

I've replace the light seals for several Olympus OMs and Nikon FE/FM cameras. I had similar problems in getting the sticky edge to 'seat' properly, then I decided to get some light seal foam WITHOUT the glue base - and it works!!! Why? - simple, the door edges forces the foam in and make a *general compressed seal*, which is working fine on all my cameras. It doesn't pop out or even try to. Go try it, no glue to worry about.

[@ThisDesignedThat]

excellent advice James and makes sense that it would still hold in there tight without the sticky side. I'll definitely try out a non sticky version next time I replace

[@TheAgeOfAnalog]

I haven't used glue in the channel seals since my first few cameras, and I've done a couple dozen since. Cutting the 1.5-2mm foam rubber at the perfect width can be tricky, as can pushing it into the channels without twisting it, but I've yet to have one fail or fall out.

[@JamesE707]

Cutting the non-sticky foam a little too thick is probably the best way, it all gets compressed anyway. It's worked 100% so far, no problems. Thanks for your reply!

[@JamesE707]

Yes, we can even cut the strips a little too wide, and again, it doesn't matter if the strips become 'twisted' - they simply fill-out the seal space effectively. It's worked for me 100% on several cameras. Thanks for your reply! :o)

[@ThisDesignedThat]

thats a good idea actually, you are right, the space is so small that it would never work its way out.

[@markschneider3915]

I've had decent luck with using yarn in the narrow grooves. No light leak anymore on my OM-2.

[@ThisDesignedThat]

That's a great alternative

[@f1remandg]

Well done for being so honest and also for persevering, I would look at manufacturing a wooden tool from a chopstick or those ones that they use in burgers, to give a flat edge that won’t damage or mark the metal. 🤙

[@ThisDesignedThat]

great tip!

[@jacovanlith5082]

A greater tip as well ? A body cap . Take the lens of the OM body. Cover the opeing with a body cap, Protect the shutter curtain by taping a piece of 35 film over the 24x36 mm frame.

[@rogerwalker3201]

I would suggest beveling the wood stick(s) with sand paper, to help get into those tiny crevices.

[@ThisDesignedThat]

great tip

[@andrzejjelen6410]

Great tutorial, many thanks. My OM2n is fixed now 🤝

[@jacovanlith5082]

A body cap . Take the lens of the OM body. Cover the opeing with a body cap, Protect the shutter curtain by taping a piece of 35 film over the 24x36 mm frame.

[@hooterbutt]

If you dip the light seal in Isopropyl alcohol it will neutralize the sticky back until dried. This allows you to put the light seal in the groove easier.

[@ThisDesignedThat]

amazing tip, thankyou!

[@huyhuy-id3pn]

so touching for an excellent video

[@michaelbuckley8986]

Thanks for this review.👍

[@ThisDesignedThat]

No problem 👍

[@acidsnow5915]

this is super helpful thanks for sharing this!

[@tommarnk]

takk for videoen, thanks for the video in norwegian :) this video should work for most old school film cameras, like Nikon FE, just different cuts

[@ThisDesignedThat]

yep, the principle is the same regardless of make and model. Its just a case of sealing the edges

[@seamanjive]

Have you taken some shots? Did your replacement work?

[@ThisDesignedThat]

yes it fixed the banding issues

[@tikkathreebarrels]

It would be really good if you replaced the small, really fiddly bits.

[@oldgittarist]

Very helpful, thanks!

[@IsraelPrivateGuide]

Well done. Very helpful, indeed.

[@stephenpattenden2003]

Nice vid but your better off buying sticky back foam and cutting your own seals its so much cheaper .

[@ThisDesignedThat]

Thanks for the tip

[@TheGeorgedl]

where buy to Cotton Yarn? thank you!

[@TheRandalljburke]

great video. thanks for sharing

[@ThisDesignedThat]

Thanks for watching!

[@RAZEN_EXCELSIOR]

Im having trouble looking for light seal kit for my Nikon FG-20 can i use some evafoam single tape as the alternative ?

[@ThisDesignedThat]

EVA foam may be too rigid and not compress to be able to shut the film door. It will work, and any foam will do the job, as long as you can get the thickness just right

[@BurningPandama]

Is the camera sealed after your repair?

[@ThisDesignedThat]

ye the seal is now good and i can feel it making contact with the foam as I close the back panel

[@tonyrigg9182]

I have Question for you is there a foam seal missing from the film door latch end or isn't there supposed to be one there ??

[@ThisDesignedThat]

Not too sure. I haven't seen another om2n so can't compare

[@matejpalla817]

hi tony, yes you are right. there should be another one short strip of the seal. check kameradoktor.de

[@EuanPreston]

Relaly helpful, Paul, thank you.

[@ThisDesignedThat]

My pleasure!