Olympis OM1n SLR help needed!!!

i will confess to being an SLR novice but refuse to give up trying to become an expert at using my Olympus OM 1n.
Here is where my problem lies, whenever i have finished a film i've had great difficulty rewinding it (by spinning the handle which pops up on the left side of the camera) either ripping the film or simply not rewinding it back into the canaster at all i've exposed two rolls of amazing pictures (taken in Havana!) due to this problem...i dont want to get admid defeat but need to sort it out as im going travelling again soon....

anyone who has a little knowledge of old SLRs please HELP!

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Originally Posted by samOM1n

i will confess to being an SLR novice but refuse to give up trying to become an expert at using my Olympus OM 1n.

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Good for you! On the bottom of the camera, there is a "release" button that you need to press before rewinding. It's usually a little silver button (don't know the OM series though) that's probably more towards the other (film advance) side of the camera. If you're holding it like you're going to shoot, turn it upside down and it should be on the bottom near the right, close to the back of the camera. This will release the film advance mechanism and let you wind the film back into the canister.

You're on the right track- you're not releasing the lock to rewind the film, causing it not to, or when you force it it will rip the sprocket holes!
On most manual advance camera's the rewind release is on the bottom, however on the Olympus bodies they put it in a wierd place. When looking at the body from the front (lens side), on the left, right around where the shutter dial is, there is a round "lever" on the face of the body. Simply turn that to R to release the rewind lock and you'll be good to go!

Practice with a roll you don't care about first if you have any worries! Hope that helped!:)