Nikon has issued a partial recall of the Nikon F6 – its last ever 35mm film camera, which was launched in 2004 and is remarkably still in production today.
The recall is due to the detected presence of dibutyl phthalate (DBP) in select production runs of the Nikon F6, in quantities that exceed restrictions imposed by legislation in the European Union.
The F6 is widely regarded as one of the best film cameras, and one of the best Nikon cameras ever made. And, as evidenced by the fact that it is still in production – 16 years after it launched, and in an era when film cameras are essentially dead – there are photographers out there still buying and using it.
Unfortunately, certain batches of the F6 contain DBP – an endocrine disruptor that can cause developmental disorders including birth defects and cancerous tumors. Accordingly, the concentrations of the compound (which is used as a plasticizer) are highly regulated around the world – and in this case, they exceed the safe amounts legislated by the European Union.
"While Nikon has taken great measures to assure the high quality expected of Nikon products, it has come to our attention that some components containing levels of dibutyl phthalate (DBP) that potentially exceed the standard value specified in the European Union regulation, the RoHS Directive,* have been used in some F6 film SLR cameras manufactured and/or sold after July 22, 2019," states the global service advisory notice.
"For those who have already purchased an affected F6 film SLR camera, and would like to have their camera serviced to correct this issue, Nikon’s service center will service cameras as needed free of charge to the customer, including the cost of shipping affected F6 film SLR cameras to Nikon, as well as their return to customers, even if the warranty has expired."
The recall affects a total of 152 cameras, whose 7-digit serial numbers are as follows:
0035842, 0035862, 0035867, 0035868, 0035869, 0035870, 0035871, 0035872, 0035873, 0035909, 0035910, 0035911, 0035912, 0035913, 0035914, 0035915, 0035916, 0035917, 0035918, 0035919, 0035920, 0035921, 0035922, 0035923, 0035924, 0035925, 0035926, 0035927, 0035928, 0035929, 0035930, 0035932, 0035934, 0035941, 0035942, 0035943, 0035944, 0035945, 0035946, 0035947, 0035948, 0035949, 0035950, 0035951, 0035952, 0035953, 0035954, 0035955, 0035956, 0035957, 0035958, 0035959, 0035968, 0035969, 0035970, 0035971, 0035972, 0035973, 0035974, 0035975, 0035976, 0035977, 0035978, 0035979, 0035980, 0035981, 0035983, 0035984, 0035985, 0035986, 0035987, 0035989, 0035990, 0035991, 0035992, 0036010, 0036011, 0036012, 0036013, 0036014, 0036015, 0036016, 0036017, 0036018, 0036019, 0036020, 0036021, 0036022, 0036023, 0036024, 0036025, 0036026, 0036027, 0036028, 0036029, 0036030, 0036031, 0036032, 0036033, 0036034, 0036035, 0036036, 0036037, 0036038, 0036039, 0036041, 0036042, 0036043, 0036045, 0036046, 0036047, 0036048, 0036049, 0036050, 0036051, 0036052, 0036053, 0036056, 0036057, 0036058, 0036062, 0036112, 0036114, 0036116, 0036130, 0036133, 0036134, 0036135, 0036136, 0036137, 0036138, 0036139, 0036140, 0036141, 0036142, 0036147, 0036149, 0036153, 0036154, 0036155, 0036156, 0036157, 0036158, 0036159, 0036160, 0036161, 0036162, 0036165, 0036177, 0036188, 0036189, 0036191
Who said film is dead? Certainly not Nikon, which is doing everything possible to keep film alive – even for 16-year-old technology!
Read more:
The best film cameras: recapture the magic of film photography
Best film: our picks of the best 35mm film, roll film, and sheet film for your camera
The best Nikon camera: including Nikon DSLRs, Nikon Z and Coolpix compacts
