Film Camera CLA: What You Can Fix Yourself vs. What You Can't

Film camera on the shelf isn't necessarily dead. Old lubricant turns to glue and mimics a mechanical failure so convincingly that people bin cameras worth servicing. The practical split here is knowing which symptoms you can actually address yourself (sticky advance, light seals, basic cleaning) versus which ones need a technician with the right tools and knowledge of what not to touch. If you've been sitting on a Pentax K1000 or a Canonet that fires once then locks up, read this before you either bin it or blow money on a tech visit for something fixable in your kitchen.