Fogged film

After following this discussion, I think I tend to agree that the fogging is due to a light leak in the cameras. What's so unusual is the fogging appears in the same area on the film from both cameras. I'm wondering if the fogging is happening at the hinge, where the film spools. The seal appears deteriorated in this area on both.
 
this is light leaking onto film which has been wound on to the take-up spool. I have seen this myself. If you know what it looks like, then it is not surprising that two cameras could display the same pattern of light leaking.
 
To prove that this is light leaking to the take-up spool, it is easy. load a roll of film and shoot most of it outdoors in daylight but save the last few frames. Then, go into a darkened room and shoot the last five or six exposures in total darkness. Rewind the film in the totally darkened room. Then take the film in for developing.
 
The fogging starts at one place, where the sprocket holes are blackest, and becomes less- noticeable as the light become less- intense. The light leak is very small, and the differences are due to time between frames shot and pulled out of the film canister and or the back slightly flexing in use and handling of the camera. The light leaks do not look " identical" because of the time it takes to create the light leak artifact . The test methodology I gave above is easy to implement. You could also tape-up the camera with black gaffer tape to create a temporary fix, but I would say that over the past 45 years your two Nixon-era cameras have both acted like 95% of foam-sealing bodies made four decades ago, and developed small light leaks.

The light leaks look quite similar in the same way that a rock chip looks quite similar no matter if it is found on the windshield of a BMW or a Ford pickup truck.
 
Cameras are very close in design. Film take-up spool design and placement is pretty similar. The film gate is 24x36mm in size. That light leaks on the hinge side in two low-cost 35mm cameras made in the mid-1970s look very similar is not surprising...35mm camera design is more similar than different...film transport is quite similar....cartride on the left, film gate, take-up on the right, door hinged on the right...
 
snip>...the fogging appears in the same area on the film from both cameras. I'm wondering if the fogging is happening at the hinge, where the film spools. The seal appears deteriorated in this area on both.

Occam's razor...
 

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