Praktica BC1

Praktica BC1 bought (out-of-order) for 200f with a 1.8/50mm.

April 1990: I notice on a shop drawer a set of 3 second-hand lenses (28, 50, 135) for Praktica; the shopkeeper explains that the body (BCA) broke down and his customer sells the optics. I buy it, provided that the person gives also the body (for parts). The shopkeeper also has in his stock this BC1, fallen in the water, witch shutter is blocked by the rust. I take it also, of course!
Back home, I dismantle all that and rebuild a fully functionnal BC1, using the shutter from the BCA (which electronics is burned out).
My brother since that took a lot of pictures with it, it has always worked well, with perfect exposure!

What is well with Praktica B's is that they have a modular structure: initially the frame containing the cocking and film advance mechanism, in which is screwed the shutter. By 4 screws the block containing the mechanism for the mirror, capped by the pentaprism, is added to it. The flexible electronic circuit (for B200, BC1) comes to cover all that (for the B100-BCA, the electronics are on a vertical rigid card on the right of the mirror-block). Is added the selftimer mechanism, and it is closed by the “body-nose” carrying the lens mount, then the top and bottom caps. Only remains to stick the sleeving. Differences between the various versions: the electronics, the engraving of the focusing screen, and the viewer indicators (needle or various dispositions of diodes), the shutter-speed selector, and body-nose with or without depth of field tester.
Attention if you want to clean a “B”!!! painting is soluble in alcohol!