INDY

INDY INDY is an Independant Music Community Project based in Altrincham, were we refurbish, rehome and relove unwanted and unloved Instruments for free.

INDY stands for 'It's Not Dead Yet'....

For more information go to the Website below or just ask! Welcome to INDY. A local independent project based in Altrincham and who revives unloved musical equipment, acoustic guitars in particular, and places them back into loving hands to be played again as they should be. We love Acoustic Guitars but will revive (If possible) all other types of equipment,

Electric Guitars, Amps, Mic Stands etc....Also Song/Learning Books in particular can be useful. We have been asked about Drum Kits and as they are a bit bulky and we only have limited storage space, it’s not always possible but if we can place one we will try, we hate to see good usable instruments being unused when they could be being played and enjoyed by someone. We hope to aim the INDY project at newcomers to the musical world and to those who otherwise may not be able to have access to such instruments or what we do for whatever reasons, all our generous contributors remain anonymous and all personal information is confidential unless otherwise stated.

* All contributors do so voluntarily and give their time, knowledge and equipment for free for which INDY is grateful. ) This is a free project.

Incoming....My most challenging amateur repair up to now, after taking into account the other bits it comes with, which ...
21/02/2026

Incoming....

My most challenging amateur repair up to now, after taking into account the other bits it comes with, which I can use on another camera or sell on, it'll stand me very little.

Mamiya 90mm f3.8 from the 70s, looks nice but the shutter doesn't work so as you can see from the library pic, it'll be fun diving in!!!!
Wish me luck when it lands!

One of Nikons finest lenses that was bought as Spares or Repair as it had Fungus on the glass internally, on the back of...
19/01/2026

One of Nikons finest lenses that was bought as Spares or Repair as it had Fungus on the glass internally, on the back of the front element and a little on the rear of the front section of the lens.

As you look into the lens with the front element block removed you can see the aperture mechanism and behind that, is more glass but that is clean so was left alone.

There is another part to this lens element but is off to the side as it only needed a tiny blemish removing.

This was quite a quick fix so no long blah blah....The fungus is cleaned off with 3% Hydrogen Peroxide, then cleaned again with Lighter Fuel and finally lens tissues and/or a good microfibre cloth, no not the ones from B&M 😉

This version is from 1977>1981 and according to the serial number was No. 75,365 off the production line, looks great for a 45 yr old lens.

Pics to follow in the following few weeks.

First fix for 2026.Rangefinder cameras don't focus the same as SLRs, they use moving lenses inside the camera so that yo...
18/01/2026

First fix for 2026.

Rangefinder cameras don't focus the same as SLRs, they use moving lenses inside the camera so that you see 2 images in the viewfinder, so when the subject is in focus the 2 images are lined up and you only see one.

Here we have a Fujica G690, a Medium Format Rangefinder, that the focusing system is jammed so there are constantly 2 images in the viewfinder and no idea what is in focus.

It turned out to be a dirty post inside the cameras rangefinder system, which was stopping the moving lens from, well moving and was stuck on infinity, it has to move along the shaft with the white dots, there was some cosmetic work done also which will be painted later in the year.

The pics with the white dots are the areas that needed cleaning as well as the front glass.

Next little fix PT1, a Mamiya RB67Pro film back, first step with me is always a good clean and one of those 20min jobs t...
15/11/2025

Next little fix PT1, a Mamiya RB67Pro film back, first step with me is always a good clean and one of those 20min jobs that takes 2hrs!

Cleaning the old foam away before trying to fix it, although the issue it came with is sort of not an issue as just tried it on a body and it seems to work.

There a couple of issues that need sorting before it's used in anger but up to now, onwards and upwards....

Testing the old 1980's Sun 24-40/3.5 out earlier in fading daylight on the Olympus E-420, quick jolly to the shops.
01/11/2025

Testing the old 1980's Sun 24-40/3.5 out earlier in fading daylight on the Olympus E-420, quick jolly to the shops.

[PT2]Sun 24-40/3.5 was fixed and put back together, had a bit of trouble as I said earlier as there's no detailed repair...
30/10/2025

[PT2]

Sun 24-40/3.5 was fixed and put back together, had a bit of trouble as I said earlier as there's no detailed repair documention for it anywhere but I got there in the end, so threw the Olympus YS Mount back on it and a couple of quick snapshots in Macro on the Olympus E-420.

[It's still not 100% as a light baffle fell off inside, [The ring in the picture] and needs fixing back on but it's usuable as is]

The diagram is from another similar lens by a different maker but uses the same rear lens layout so was lucky finding it by chance to put the rear glass back in place after cleaning.

Both the Zoom ring and the Focus ring change focus slightly so needs a proper run in daylight and not torch light.

When I put the baffle back in I'll do some more pics as I was in a rush to put it back together.

One more saved.

Sun 24-40mm F3.5, according to the www, one of the first decent small zooms made and gets decent reviews for an 80's len...
27/10/2025

Sun 24-40mm F3.5, according to the www, one of the first decent small zooms made and gets decent reviews for an 80's lens but as I bought it broken, it needs fixing, so a quick post about it, it needs more work as there is no information on the www about any repairs for this so working blind, this is the first stage.

The little 'aperture' blades weren't moving and the zoom function was jamming at 28mm, also the Auto function wasn't working, and the mount was loose.

Sorted out the loose Olympus mount as it is an interchangable type [YS] and just needed tightening up, what is interesting is that it has 2 mounts, once you remove the attached one it becomes a T Mount, which is another type of interchangable mount originally developed in 1957.

Managed to get in and sort out the aperture blades and get the Auto working, it now Zooms in and out but only in Macro mode so something stilll not right, as I found a bent pin and loose parts inside, it's either been messed with before or mistreated badly, to be continued....

It's been a while but a qu**ky for you, a little bit more saved from landfill and brought to life for another few years....
12/10/2025

It's been a while but a qu**ky for you, a little bit more saved from landfill and brought to life for another few years.

Macbook Pro 13" Mid 2012, came stock with 4GB and a sh*tty 500GB 5400RPM HDD < This is the bottleneck in these machines.

So on this occasion it was an easy upgrade:

1: 240GB SSD from the bit drawer, moved the little plugs to hold it in place from the old HDD. [Fresh install of Catalina 10.15]

2: 16GB RAM [£20 Amazon, ordered last night, came this morning.] These only officially support 8GB RAM but you know, shouldn't always believe what Apple tells you!

3: Cup of Coffee and half an hour blood sweat and tears!

A more modern OS could be hackily installed but whilst tempting and doable, sometimes, if it works, don't fix it, comes to mind and the old slow 500Gb was put into a £7 USB3 Caddy to be used for storage/backup.

I won't upload the 2 minute original boot up video, just the new boot up one.

Hi, don't worry I'll be back soon just sorting out other stuff but in the meantime a quick book update, something a litt...
12/07/2025

Hi, don't worry I'll be back soon just sorting out other stuff but in the meantime a quick book update, something a little different today and why not!

Hey, long time no post but been busy with Real Life™Picked this Lens up for £7.22, an Olympus Zuiko 28mm f2.8 that was d...
10/06/2025

Hey, long time no post but been busy with Real Life™

Picked this Lens up for £7.22, an Olympus Zuiko 28mm f2.8 that was diassembled as the previous owner started working on it but couldn't work out how to put it back together.

The first pic is how it came and the next pic is on an Olympus OM1 for the beauty shot once I'd put it back together.

Tested today on an Olympus E-420 DSLR.

Been a while but busy with other things, helping a friend, learning new stuff, having fun, err investigating takeaways.....
28/04/2025

Been a while but busy with other things, helping a friend, learning new stuff, having fun, err investigating takeaways....Only 2 people know what I mean so don't fret....

Anyhow.....Some new stuff added to the Library.

Just a quickie add....
24/03/2025

Just a quickie add....

Address

Altrincham

Opening Hours

Tuesday 10am - 4pm
Thursday 10am - 4pm
Saturday 10am - 6pm
Sunday 10am - 2pm

Telephone

+447387288877

Website

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