After recently getting some experience shooting with a lomo lca i decided to take the plunge and buy one. After watching a few on ebay i placed a few bids and ended up snagging one for £41 which based on others i watched is a great price.
The seller said it hadn’t been used in years and couldn’t guarantee that it worked and also added that the light seals were falling apart. I think this may have scared off quite a few bidders, however having recently replaced the seals on my Olympus XA2 I know this is a minor, simple job to do if that was all that was wrong with it. The fact that the seller had owned it from new (1990), had the instructions and said he’d stored it with the batteries taken out for the last ten years convinced me to take the risk.
Replacing the light seals on the lomo was a relatively simple task. I bought some new light seals from Japan and when they arrived simply followed the instructions here. It is basically just a case of scraping away all of the old gunky decayed seals with a cocktail stick (Using a bit of lighter fluid dabbed on a cotton bud helps this cleaning process). Once cleaned up and dry it is a case of simply sticking the 3 pre cut seals in place. You just need to take your time and ensure the seals are stuck in place straight and untwisted.
Having replaced the seals I was keen to get a roll of film through it in order to see if it worked ok. Well I am glad to report that there are no issues with light leaks and the lca seems to be in fine working order. Here is the first shot out of it…
I intend to use mainly colour slide film with the LCA and get it cross processed. Both of these shots were taken with Agfa Precisa 100 film cross processed at my local Snappy Snaps.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
hello there i came across your post while searching for LC-A light seals as i have just brought one with damaged seals from ebay (for £41 no less). As you seem to have done a good job with yours i was wondering if there was any advice you could give me before i take the plunge.
thanks
john
john – just be patient and take your time to clear all of the perished seals and gunk out before fitting the new ones. oh and make sure you have a nice sharp craft knife on hand to cut the seals. good luck and enjoy your lomo!