Restoring an Ever-Ready Case

There seem to be a fair number of rough examples of these about, so I thought I'd post a guide to restoring them. You will need shoe polish, a sponge, and gloves.

Before - this was bought on ebay for £6. Note scuffs and cracks:

[IMG]http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x21/Kingofthemountains/IMGP1955.jpg[/IMG]

Step one - put the gloves on and rub the polish over the case. Get plenty of it on the scuffed and cracked areas, then leave to dry:

[IMG]http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x21/Kingofthemountains/IMGP1956.jpg[/IMG]

Step two - polish the case with the sponge until you have a shine. You might want to repeat the process depending on what results you get, but as can be seen it makes a huge difference:

[IMG]http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x21/Kingofthemountains/IMGP1957.jpg[/IMG]

I initially bought this case thinking that it was for an MX, it turns out not to be! Can anyone tell me the distinguishing features of the MX version, other than it being slightly wider than the normal M series (which isn't easy to spot unless you have it in your hands)?

I only have the "blimp" for my MX. That case has MX stamped in the faux leather on the back. Not sure if a normal MX case would have the same. The LX case has LX stamped on the bottom.

K.

The case isn't as high for the MX as it is for the ME series cameras. That's about the only difference, and it does make a difference if we want the case to fit snugly.

The ERC I bought new with my MX (30 years ago :cry is very similar to the ME Super one apart from:

1/ The front piece has a metal Pentax badge fixed to the front.
2/ The case lining is black rather than maroon.

HTH,
R

Hmm, sounds like I'll have to keep an eye open in real world camera shops (where I can actually try the case on the MX before buying) then. Thanks for the advice!

While shoe polish does the trick I find it's a bit messy to work with. I'd recommend saddle soap (available from tackle suppliers) which brings leather back to life, leaves less crud on your hands / work surfaces and has a nice soapy smell too.

I've just given it a going-over with saddle soap to finish off, after finding an old can in the back of a cupboard - only problem is that I don't think it can turn the grey scuffed bits black? It has cleaned off the loose shoe polish residue though.

I'm not so sure about my opinion that this isn't an MX case after all now. My MX does actually fit inside. The base isn't flat though and the sides do bow out a bit, so I'm wondering if the original owner rammed an MX into a standard size case and over the years it sort of stretched to fit? The lining is red fabric, but then again when I compare it to my other ERC (on an MV-1) it does seem a little bit shorter, as John says. Very odd!

Looks identical to my MESuper case.
Except mine doens't look as good as that...off for some boot polish

Best stuff for restoring old battered and neglected leather is stuff called Hydrophane Leather Dressing - as used in all the best equestrian establishments

Personal experience

Takes a bit of time but it really works . Once the leather is in better condition then use a really good shoe polish to gently restore the colour .

Dangermouse, I hope you dont wear a white jacket

That case looks like the one I had for my Pentax Electro-Spotmatic I bought new in 1973 in Japan.

They don't come up on ebay very often and go for a good price when they do!

K.

all that wax will transfer to the camera mee think's

James

It doesn't seem inclined to transfer to anything else now, so I think a quick going over with saddle soap was a good idea to finish it off. None of the wax got anywhere near the camera.

I'm not actually sure whether this is real or fake leather - it doesn't smell like leather at least.

Definitely fake. The old Spotmatic cases and the LX case were real and do not loose the surface like the M series cases.

Cheers, K.