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[Elroustom]

I'm tyring to fix an Oly Trip 35. Got the aperture working, but I don't trust the meter. Any suggestion on testing it, or whether these things die all of a sudden. If it reacts to light does it work, or does how it works vary based on age?

[Brianshaw]

Check it against the Sunny 16 rule.  Othewise, check it against a known good meter.

[Lucas]

The meter dies slowly as with all selenium lightmeters as the selenium degenerates.
With the aperture ring set to A, cover the selenium cells around the lense with your hand. Press the shutter, a red panel should become visible in the viewfinder an

[Arnoldharris]

I'm not at all certain anymore about selenium cells dying even slowly. I have 59 Voigtlander Vitessa-T 35mm rangefinder cameras, plus number 60 on the way from eBay. All have selenium cell exposure meters. All are 47-50 years old. Only about three of

[Elroustom]

I'm not at all sure I have what I can call an answer here - since I've gotten a yes, a no, and a maybe. But I thank you all for your contributions. I will work on this camera further and report my findings.

[Proofblue]

My trip 35 is fine - selenium meters only degrade on contact with a moist atmosphere for a while.  Arnold Harris is right - any stuff you might have heard about sunlight degrading them is tosh.  If it passes the test mentioned above it should be fine - I

[Jimmomary]

I just found this post, obviously later in time. I've worked for 28 years at a selenium copier drum factory where we vacuum deposit selenium onto cylinders. Selenium in the ultrapure state (five nines), acts as a photo conductor/photo receptor. I.e.

[Nickon51]

Hi Jim,
 
Thanks for the 101 on selenium. I used to work on photocopiers when most of the drums were selenium coated.
There was a widespread practice in the industry of polishing the surface of the drums with Brasso. I wasn't keen on doing thi

[Mndean]

Hm, I'd heard different in regards to color response, that selenium was closer in color response to the eye than CdS cells (I'd forgotten which way the bias was in CdS, toward UV or IR), which were the replacement for many years until silicon

[Charlie]

I think selenium does not vary resistance according to how much light it sees but generates electricity according to how much light it sees. That's why it does not need a battery. And I hav read that selenium is closer to the human eye in color reaponse

[Arnoldharris]

I as much about chemistry as I do about astrophysics. In other words, what I pick up from reading daily newspapers.
 
But I have a big collection of Voigtlander Vitessa-T 35mm rangefinders, all built in 1956-1958 and all with neat little selenium

[Mndean]

Well, I didn't say anything in regards to selenium cell life - I couldn't do it since I have a number of selenium meters over forty years old which still work. Not all are accurate, but they work. Of all the cameras I've gotten with selenium met

[Thuggins]

Complete instructions for troubleshooting and repairing the Trip 35 are here:
 
http://www.thermojetstove.com/Trip35/
 
And it is tosh that The meter dies slowly as with all selenium

[William_a]

When you put the selenium ring back on the camera, there is a little U-shaped metal piece that needs to go onto a round metal post on the inside of the ring that you turn to set the ASA. As you turn the ASA ring, this will cover or uncover a certain p