Happy 2015! - 2nd Shot Updates

Hey Everybody! Happy New Year, Happy belated Holidays, and a very belated Merry Christmas! I was very busy the last few weeks traveling and spending very quality time with my family so I greatly apologize for late email correspondence and the lack of posts here - I've been hanging out a lot on Instagram though :). I hope everyone had a fantastic Holiday and I'm sitting here slunched over the computer all bummed out it's all over. I go back to my day job tomorrow... I don't wanna. I refuse to take down my Christmas tree. It's only been up for like a week and a half. I blinked and everything is done... everybody's gone. All the good food is gone... all the salty snacks and killer drinks. Back to regular routine. It's gonna be tough to sleep tonight but I keep reminding myself that I have a lot to look forward to in 2015. Especially with 2nd Shot cameras and my family!!

My last post happened during what is now known here in Buffalo as "Snowmageddon"... I think we set a US record for the most snowfall in a 24 hour period. That was absolutely crazy! The first few days everybody was all "YAY! SNOW DAY!!" but the third day when it kept going it was more like "dude... is our roof gonna cave in? Are we out of beer?". All is good now but it did back up quite a bit in the shop.

So here's a new post for a new year with new ideas and new... stuff. First, I need to go over some housekeeping. I am currently crazy booked through January. I will not be accepting any new repairs or builds until February 5th. The shop will be closed from Jan. 28 - Feb 4 due to business travel regarding my day job. So I need to get all repairs and orders, I think I'm at 13 right now, before I leave. I'll make an announcement when I get back. Thank you for everybody's patience while I get the rest of this group finished.

OK, now for the cool 2nd Shot business-y stuff. There's some changes planned for 2015 for 2nd Shot... all good but will affect repair pricing but I believe it will be worth the increase. I've learned a lot this past year regarding the business, where instant photography is headed, and with actual repairs. So here we go:

- 2nd Shot will be offering an electronic modification of the SX70 camera's metering system to accept 600 film. This goes for all SX70 models (C/R values are based on ECM model numbers). I'll update the price list next month but the mod will be priced around 35.00.

- 2nd Shot is now offering a factory fresh replacement motor upgrade service for all repairs! I have identified several new production motors that are suitable for all SX70 and SLR680 cameras and the results are fantastic!! The motor is the heart of the SX70 and with a strong new motor, the camera's mechanical functions are amazingly improved! The new motor option will add 20.00 to each repair.

- Model 1s are very popular cameras. A lot of people are buying them because of their iconic appearance but cameras pre-1976 can have a LOT of problems. They are extremely fragile, the electronics are old and outdated, they've been greatly used and worn out, rusty, fungus, etc. I highly believe that there is really only one way to repair an older Model 1 if performance is a concern and that is to upgrade mechanical and electronic parts entirely but to do so takes a LOT of time and patience. There's a reason the Alpha 1 is such a good camera... Polaroid used parts that had been redesigned and upgraded. Starting in 2015 all pre-1976 Model 1 repairs will carry the option of a "performance upgrade" repair fee of 150.00.  This is basically "The Works" repair option which includes replacement motor, ECM upgrade if needed, and upgraded flex circuitry. The general repair/reskin option is still available at 95.00 but the more involved electronics/mechanical repair option at 125.00 will be omitted.

- Stickers and shirts... I love em and so does everyone else! 2nd Shot will be offering both this Spring!!!

- Look out for more sales through the blog. Ebay is fun and all and gets a lot of traffic but now that each sale requires close to 15% of fees that's becoming a difficult amount to deal with, especially with high priced items. I'm not trying to get rich but that fee is worth a trip to the grocery store in some cases.

- Finally, I pledge to post each month at the bare minimum! Seriously... I mean it!!

I can't thank everyone enough for their support and correspondence and I sincerely hope that 2015 brings bigger and better things with instant photography! I hope that larger companies like The Impossible Project and Mint are successful with new products and developments and also smaller businesses that are dedicated to keeping our cameras filled with film thrive. I hope 2nd Shot keeps going strong (at least as much as I can handle) this year and that customers find that their cameras work better than ever after a trip to the shop. It's been heard over and over again, but here's to much love and peace for everyone in 2015!

I'll leave you all with pics of a few treats that were left by Santa Dubbs... ;) Shop's closed.


Such a valuable tool... great for testing at various voltages. No more shuffling to find a film pack with a strong battery.

Slowly been building up a stash in 2014 but a few extra packs for Christmas loaded up the fridge! Think I'm finally good with 3000 film. :)