Digital Camera Repair Blog

Today, I’ll go over the instructions for installing a new shutter button assembly in the Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-H2 Digital Camera.  This will be a photo-instructional, with pictures to guide you step by step to getting your camera in good working order quickly!  This post is fairly long, so bear with me! I’ve tried to make the images as readable, but as small as possible.  If for some reason you can’t make out a certain detail, don’t hesitate to ask for help!

Why is it that we go through all this effort anyway? Can’t you just twist off the chrome ‘collar’ or ring that is still on the camera and repair it that way? YES, you can, BUT there is a very good chance that you will break one of the two ‘feet’ that attach the chrome collar to the camera body and then it will not twist back into place and hold securely to the camera. If this happens you have to buy the $30 part that includes the collar, the $20 repair kit we sell with the three pieces (the post, spring and clip only) will not fix the problem!

Before you make your purchase you should try twisting off your chrome collar (counter clockwise about 1/4 turn). Did a foot break off? If not you can try buying the $20 kit and HOPE that a foot doesn’t break off when you twist the part back on. If a foot did break off, you need the $30 part that includes the collar.

Hope this makes sense! If not, please contact us (888)435-5080 Mon-Fri 9-5 CST.

The DSC-H2 and H5 are very similar cameras and you can use this as a guideline to repair the H5 as well.

Tools needed:

• Pliars
• Ice Pick
• Philips Screwdriver
• Flash Discharger
• Anti-Static Mat or foam

Time required: Approximately 1 hour

This is what we are looking to fix today.  I’ve removed the shutter button collar, to show in better detail the reason why for complete disassembly of the camera.  The collar needs to slide under the locking tabs shown under the gray plastic.

To start with, here are the tools that I always use for installing a shutter button.  We have a pair of rounded pliars (gripping pliars work as well, I just found these are best when dealing with fragile ribbon cables), an ice pick (this tool is almost indispensible when working on cameras, the uses are almost limitless), a Philips screwdriver (we use the Wiha brand, very very durable and reliable screw driver), and at the botton, a flash discharger.  We buy our flash discharger from ztsinc.com, which they have for about $35. If you do not want to purchase the Flash Discharger, we can do the repair in shop if you want for $25 more, so just check out our Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H2 Camera Shutter Button Repair Service. The last part of the tool kit is a little more subtle, it is the pink foam the tools are resting on.  This is an anti-static foam, and will help prevent a static charge from building on your person while working on the camera, and potentially discharging into the camera, shorting out vulnerable electronic components.

A quick disclaimer here, and you’ll see that I have put the same disclaimer on several more pictures – NEVER work on a digital camera without first discharging the flash capacitor.  Some models, like the H Series, you have to disassemble partially before being able to discharge the flash.  This is for your own safety!  These flashes carry high voltage, but low amperage charges, and can very easily short your camera out, or possibly even harm you if not discharged safely.  If you do not feel comfortable discharging the flash, or do not have a flash discharger, we do have options available to help you with your install!

Now that we have that out of the way, let us move on to the disassembly of the camera.

Here are 3 shots of the sides of the Sony DSC-H2 digital camera.  We do not need to remove the front of the case, just the rear of the case.  There are 6 screws total to be removed.  3 on the right side, 2 on the bottom and 1 on the left side, as show in the pictures to my left

After you slide the case off, you will probably see what looks like a disaster waiting to happen.  Don’t worry! It is not as bad as it looks.

Here is what the inside of the case looks like:

At this point, there are several things that need to be done.  First, there are two cables that connect the LCD screen and the backlight to the power board.  These cables are fragile, so please be careful!  The LCD cable is the wider of the two, and has a locking tab that holds the cable into place.  THESE TABS ARE FRAGILE!  Be very gentle when lifting the tab and removing the LCD cable.  The backlight cable (the smaller of the two) just slides out of its plastic holder, but again, fragile!

After that, the LCD screen is held down by a clip directly above the LCD cable, remove the clip, and the whole LCD assembly should slide free.  Set this aside, gently, to be reinstalled later.

Next we will be removing the board the LCD cables were installed into:

Easy to remove this board, there are 2 screws that you remove, as shown by the arrows.  Note the LCD is removed from the cable, and note the locking tab is UP in this picture.

After lifting the LCD board off, you’ll see this:

There will be 2 screws immediately under the LCD board (which I’ve removed in this picture).  Remove those screws and the entire frame that the LCD screen clips into will be removed, which will reveal the power board for the camera, which we will remove next!

Here is the camera with the LCD frame removed and power board exposed:

As you can see, there are a lot of cables on this board.  A LOT.  There are 6 that need to be removed, and each one has a unique clip, so if you break even one of those clips, it could cause your camera to become inoperable.  Patience is the most important virture you can have while doing this repair.  Some of the clips are stubborn.  Be firm, but gentle, and they will be pop up, and allow you to remove the 6 cables shown by the arrows in the picture.  One thing to keep in mind, there is one cable I specifically did not remove, which is right under the viewfinder in the top left.  This cable is part of the entire assembly that comes out of the camera, and does not need to be removed!

Please note on the bottom left of the picture, there is 1 screw to remove as well.

READ BEFORE REMOVING BOARD: See the next 2 pictures and captions before removing this board!

Now here you will need to forgive some bad photography, for the life of me I could not get the macro on the camera to focus properly on what I’m trying to show you.  As soon as I can take a better picture, I will upload it, but for now, bear with a couple of blurry pictures please!:

As you can kind of see from these photos, there is an extremely small little clip that plugs into the BACK side of the powerboard + viewfinder assembly you started to remove in the last step.  This little guy doesn’t have much to grab onto, and if you damage the cable, the speaker on the camera will no longer work.  Be very gentle with this part, and work it back and forth instead of pulling it, and you’ll remove it easily enough.

Now, again with a disclaimer, this next step involves the flash capacitor.  Again, if you do not feel comfortable doing this repair, or do not have a flash discharger, STOP! There is a real danger of doing harm to your camera, or even to yourself at this step, and we do not want that at all.  Again here is the flash discharger, so you can see it!

If you have the equipment above to continue, see the picture below to see where to discharge the flash and how to remove the entire shutter assembly:

You will hear a very audible whine when you discharge the flash, you really can’t miss it!

And the screws to remove the assembly:

And finally, the end product:

You can see the shutter board removed to the rear of the camera.  I will update this post as soon as possible with the complete instructions on taking the shutter button off the board, and installing a new button.  I realized, to my chagrin, that I do not have that part in front of me, so I can not give any instructions on it today.

This process took me about an hour, but that was with taking multiple photos, and detailing the process completely.  Altogether, I expect it would take me about 20-30 minutes to perform this repair.  I would expect it to take an hour for someone who is not familiar with taking a digital camera apart.  I know it looks complex, but take your time, and be patient, and you will probably find this repair to be slightly challenging, but fun at the same time.  It would be a perfect project for a Sunday afternoon!

Here is the resources needed to perform the DSC-H2 repair yourself – Sony DSC-H2 Camera Shutter Release Button Repair Kit

And if you do not have a flash discharger or want to have us install the H2 Shutter Button for just $25 more than the part, we have the part and repair available here – Sony DSC-H2 Camera Shutter Button Repair Service

If you have any questions at all, don’t hesitate to email us, or call us @ (952)236-7243 or (888)435-5080

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If you are like one of an estimated 75 million owners of a digital camera, at some point in time, your camera will more than likely develop one or more problems and would be in need of digital camera repair. Common problems include cracked LCDs, broken battery doors, jammed lenses or board level problems.
There are a set of digital camera models however, that develop their own unique problems, all stemming back to a batch of defective CCDs that Sony produced and used in these camera models.

To start with, what is a CCD? A CCD is a Charged-Coupled Device, that “enables the transportation of analog signals through successive stages and are used as a form of memory or delaying smaples of analog signals”.
Now for that in English: In the digital camera world, CCDs are used by the camera to capture the image that is shown by the lens, translate it into a digital signal and send it along to the image processor to be converted and saved to the memory card.

What’s the big deal with the faulty CCD? Well Sony produced a series of CCDs for various digital cameras between the years of 2003 and 2005, for at least 20 different models. And in higher heat and humidity conditions, the CCDs would begin to fail, producing some crazy looking images or causing a black screen to show on your camera (Before you starting thinking your camera has a bad CCD, PLEASE check and make sure your “display” button is not pressed and just shutting the LCD off).

So what does this mean for the consumer? Simple: If you own a camera that is covered under the Sony CCD recall, and your camera develops a problem as described above, you can generally send your camera to the manufacturer and get the CCD repaired for free. The largest affected manufacturers are Canon, Konica Minolta(now part of Sony) and Sony, but luckily for consumers, these manufacturers are standing behind their products and fixing their faulty CCDs. At one time the manufacturers were just replacing the cameras with new models, but lately it seems, they have gotten the CCDs fixed and are replacing them for you. Same camera, but you get a new, updated CCD and many more years of memories!

Here is a list of all the bad Sony CCD models that I can find right now, as I find more, I will add them to the list.
Don’t throw your digital camera away if it has a bad CCD and it is covered under this recall, get it repaired!

(This information was originally posted on www.imaging-resource.com)

Canon Digital Cameras & Camcorders

• PowerShot A60
• PowerShot A70
• PowerShot A75
• PowerShot A300
• PowerShot A310
• PowerShot S230 Digital ELPH / Digital IXUS V3 / IXY D320
• PowerShot SD100 Digital ELPH / Digital IXUS II / IXY Digital 30
• PowerShot SD110 Digital ELPH / Digital IXUS IIs / IXY Digital 30a

Additional digital cameras added in the fall of 2006 to the original service advisory by Canon include the following, all of which went on sale starting from 2002 to 2004, depending on the specific model:

• PowerShot A40
• PowerShot A80
• PowerShot A85
• PowerShot A95
• PowerShot S1 IS
• PowerShot S60
• PowerShot S200 DIGITAL ELPH / DIGITAL IXUS V² / IXY DIGITAL 200a
• PowerShot S330 DIGITAL ELPH / DIGITAL IXUS 330 / IXY DIGITAL 300a
• PowerShot S400 DIGITAL ELPH / DIGITAL IXUS 400 / IXY DIGITAL 400
• PowerShot S410 DIGITAL ELPH / DIGITAL IXUS 430 / IXY DIGITAL 450
• PowerShot S500 DIGITAL ELPH / DIGITAL IXUS 500 / IXY DIGITAL 500 (including White Limited version)

• MV600i
• MV630i
• MV650i
• MV700i
• MV730i
• MV750i
• MV5i
• MV5i MC
• MV6i MC
• ZR60
• ZR65 MC
• ZR70 MC
• ZR80
• ZR85
• ZR90
• Elura 40 MC
• Elura 50

According to the updated advisory, available on the company’s US website (as well as other regional Canon websites), the additional eleven digital camera models shown above in red may now be eligible for free service regardless of warranty status, should any malfunction be caused by the CCD sensor.

For repair instructions, visit the Canon USA support website. To read the specific service advisory for your model, use the pulldown menus to browse for your specific model, or simply type the model number into the box provided at the bottom of the page and click the “Search” button.

The Canon support website holds no forms or other needed documents, so you can save yourself some time (if you live in the US or Puerto Rico) by just calling the Canon Customer Support line at 1-800-828-4040. Support hours are Monday-Friday 8am to 12 midnight, and Saturday from 10am-8pm. (All times EST.) Alternately, you can send email to: carecenter@cits.canon.com.

Fujifilm Digital Cameras

Model Serial Number Range(s)

• FinePix A303 3JA4**** to 3JA5****
• FinePix F410 32A1****, 32A6**** to 32A7****, 32A9****
• FinePix F700 33A0****, 34A1****
• FinePix S2 Pro 31A127** to 31A143**, 32A000** to 32A039**, 33A000** to 33A007**, 34A000** to 34A004**

Serial numbers can be found on the bottom of the cameras. From the Fuji service advisor, the following applies to US customers:

IF SERVICE IS NEEDED:
Package the camera carefully using ample padded material to prevent damage in transit. Include your name, address and phone number with the shipment as well as a general description of the problem. Keep a record of the camera’s serial number and shipment tracking number. Ship your camera to the Fuji Service Center noted below:

Fuji Photo Film U.S.A., Inc.
1100 King George Post Rd.
Edison, NJ 08837
Attn: Camera Repair Dept./CCD Advisory

Konica Minolta Digital Cameras

• DiMAGE A1
• DiMAGE 7i
• DiMAGE 7Hi
• DiMAGE Xi
• DiMAGE Xt
• DiMAGE X20
• DiMAGE S414
• DiMAGE F300

The Konica Minolta support website has a PDF file posted on it that in turn links to a PDF service advisory form, and a Support FAQs area. We had difficulty following the links in the main PDF file from our web browser, so have reproduced both of them above. The most relevant one is the PDF service advisory form.

European Konica Minolta owners are referred to the Konica Minolta European support page.

For your easy reference, here is a link to the original IR news story on the Konica Minolta advisory.

Note: Sony has since taken over servicing of Konica-Minolta digital cameras. Sony’s customer support website now lists the affected Konica-Minolta models along with a troubleshooting guide and repair request form.

Kyocera Digital Cameras

• Finecam S3L
• Finecam S5
• Finecam S5R
• Contax TVs

Additional digital cameras added since the original 2005 service advisory by Kyocera include the following:

• Finecam M400R
• Finecam M410R
• Finecam SL400R

Kyocera sold digital cameras from 1996 under the Contax, Kyocera and Yashica brandnames, but by early 2005 competitive pressures saw Kyocera withdraw all of its brandnames from the digicam market.

In late 2005, Kyocera announced that four of its digital camera models could suffer from failure of the CCD image sensor, with symptoms such as images that either showed no picture at all, or showed extreme distortion and severe purple or green color casts. Affected cameras included the Kyocera Finecam S3L, Kyocera Finecam S5, Kyocera Finecam S5R and Contax TVs Digital models. Kyocera stated that in cases where the CCD was found to have failed in one of these models, it would repair the problem free of charge for a period of up to five years after production of the specific model was halted.

Two years later, and Kyocera has added a further three models to the list. The Kyocera Finecam M400R, Kyocera Finecam M410R, and Kyocera Finecam SL400R – all models which were discontinued when the company exited the digicam market in March 2005 – can apparently suffer from similar problems, which tend to occur most often in humid environments. As with the earlier announcement, Kyocera is extending the warranty on these cameras to cover CCD failures through to March 2010.

At this time, both announcements only seem to cover the Japanese domestic market. We’ve yet to see any announcement from Kyocera in other markets, and would advise customers who have experienced the problem to contact their local Kyocera office to determine whether their camera may be covered under warranty. For customers in Japan, instructions on how to seek repair of the covered digicams can be found in the Japanese-language service advisory.

Leica and Panasonic Digital Cameras

• Leica DIGILUX 2
• Panasonic Lumix DMC-LC1

In December 2006, we told readers about a warranty extension for Leica’s DIGILUX 2 digital camera, covering problems with the CCD image sensor. Given that the Leica DIGILUX 2 is a variant of Panasonic’s Lumix DMC-LC1 design, it isn’t surprising to find that some LC1 digicams can suffer from the same problem.

Panasonic Canada have published a notice on their customer support page indicating a limited number of 2004 model DMC-LC1 digital cameras within a specific range of serial numbers are affected. The serial number ranges are A4SYxxxxx and G4SYxxxxx. Canadian customers are asked to call Panasonic Canada’s toll-free call center number at 1-800-561-5505 for assistance in arranging a free repair.

A similar announcement can be found on Panasonic Japan’s website (Japanese-language only), also indicating the company is offering free repair in cases where the problem has manifested itself in that country.

We’ve yet to see any announcement from Panasonic in other markets, and would advise customers who have experienced the problem to contact their local Panasonic office to ascertain whether their camera may be covered under warranty.

Nikon Digital Cameras

• Coolpix SQ
• Coolpix 3100
• Coolpix 5700

Additional digital cameras added since the original service advisory by Nikon include the following:

• Coolpix 3500
• Coolpix 4500
• Coolpix 5000
• Coolpix 5400

There’s a button on the Nikon USA Photography home page, labeled “Coolpix Service Advisory: 3100-5700-SQ-5400-4500-5000-3500″ that displays information in a popup window. Here’s a link to it in a standalone window: Coolpix Service Advisory. Here are links to other pages from the Nikon site, namely the Coolpix Advisory FAQs, and the Service Advisory Product Return Form.

For more details, read Nikon Europe’s service advisory if you’re a European customer, or Nikon Japan’s service advisory if you purchased your camera in Japan.

Olympus Digital Cameras

• Camedia C-5050 Zoom
• Camedia C-730 Ultra Zoom

Olympus is distinguishing themselves by offering to repair affected cameras, even if they aren’t displaying the problem yet. Their free repair policy is extended for up to four years from the original purchase date. They do ask that, if your camera is currently operating properly, you hold off on sending it in until after January 2006, due to the high volume of repair business during the holiday season. To determine if your camera is affected, call Olympus repair at 888-553-4448, Monday-Friday, 8am -10pm EST, or email to customersupport@olympus.com.

Pentax Digital Cameras

• Optio 330RS
• Optio 330GS
• Optio 33L
• Optio 43WR
• Optio 550
• Optio 555

Pentax USA have published a brief note on their Customer Care & Support homepage which refers customers to a separate PDF file for further information. This document pledges repair of the problem free of charge, regardless of warranty status, as long as the camera doesn’t have other symptoms not described as part of the problem.

This PDF document in turn refers customers to a separate PDF form which must be filled in, and includes instructions on how to return a camera for service. The return address from the form is:

PENTAX Service Department
12000 Zuni Street – Suite 100B
Westminster CO 80234

We couldn’t find any details regarding the duration of the free repair offer, nor of serial numbers affected. We suggest you simply contact Pentax for clarification of these points.

Ricoh Digital Cameras

• Caplio RR30
• Caplio 300G
• Caplio G3
• Caplio G3 model M
• Caplio G3 model S
• Caplio ProG3
• Caplio G4
• Caplio G4 wide
• Caplio 400G wide
• Caplio RX

Ricoh US support took a little digging to track down. Ricoh Global issued the service advisory itself. Service centers for various regions US, Canada, and South American service for Ricoh cameras is handled by:

C.R.I.S. Camera Services
Phone: 800-22 RICOH
Fax: 480-940-1329
www.criscam.com
Email: <ricoh@criscam.com>

We couldn’t find any details regarding the duration of the free repair offer, nor of serial numbers affected. We suggest you simply contact C.R.I.S Camera Services directly to learn how to proceed.

Sony Digital Cameras Camcorders

• Cyber-shot DSC-F717
• Cyber-shot DSC-P10
• Cyber-shot DSC-P12
• Cyber-shot DSC-P2
• Cyber-shot DSC-P31
• Cyber-shot DSC-P32
• Cyber-shot DSC-P51
• Cyber-shot DSC-P52
• Cyber-shot DSC-P7
• Cyber-shot DSC-P71
• Cyber-shot DSC-P72
• Cyber-shot DSC-P8
• Cyber-shot DSC-P92
• Cyber-shot DSC-U10
• Cyber-shot DSC-U20
• Cyber-shot DSC-U30
• Cyber-shot DSC-U60
• Cyber-shot DSC-V1
• CD Mavica MVC-CD250
• CD Mavica MVC-CD400
• CD Mavica MVC-CD500
• FD Mavica MVC-FD100
• FD Mavica MVC-FD200

Additional digital cameras added in the fall of 2006 to the original service advisory by Sony include the following models:

• Cyber-shot DSC-F88
• Cyber-shot DSC-M1
• Cyber-shot DSC-T1
• Cyber-shot DSC-T11
• Cyber-shot DSC-T3
• Cyber-shot DSC-T33
• Cyber-shot DSC-U40
• Cyber-shot DSC-U50

• CCD-TRV107E
• CCD-TRV118
• CCD-TRV128
• CCD-TRV218E
• CCD-TRV228
• CCD-TRV228E
• CCD-TRV318
• CCD-TRV328
• CCD-TRV418
• CCD-TRV418E
• CCD-TRV428
• CCD-TRV428E

Camcorders, DCR-DVD models

• DCR-DVD100
• DCR-DVD100E
• DCR-DVD101
• DCR-DVD101E
• DCR-DVD200
• DCR-DVD200E
• DCR-DVD300
• DCR-DVD91E

Camcorders, DCR-TRV models Camcorders

• DCR-TRV147E
• DCR-TRV14E
• DCR-TRV16
• DCR-TRV16E
• DCR-TRV18
• DCR-TRV18E
• DCR-TRV19
• DCR-TRV19E
• DCR-TRV22
• DCR-TRV22E
• DCR-TRV240E
• DCR-TRV24E
• DCR-TRV25
• DCR-TRV250
• DCR-TRV250E
• DCR-TRV255E
• DCR-TRV25E
• DCR-TRV260
• DCR-TRV265
• DCR-TRV265E
• DCR-TRV27
• DCR-TRV27E
• DCR-TRV33
• DCR-TRV33E
• DCR-TRV340
• DCR-TRV340E
• DCR-TRV361
• DCR-TRV38
• DCR-TRV38E
• DCR-TRV39
• DCR-TRV40
• DCR-TRV40E
• DCR-TRV460
• DCR-TRV460E
• DCR-TRV461E
• DCR-TRV50
• DCR-TRV50E
• DCR-TRV740
• DCR-TRV740E
• DCR-TRV840
• DCR-TRV940
• DCR-TRV940E
• DCR-TRV950
• DCR-TRV950E

DCR-IP models

• DCR-IP45
• DCR-IP45E
• DCR-IP5
• DCR-IP55
• DCR-IP55E
• DCR-IP5E
• DCR-IP7E

Camcorders, DCR-PC models

• DCR-PC101
• DCR-PC101E
• DCR-PC103E
• DCR-PC104E
• DCR-PC105
• DCR-PC105E
• DCR-PC106E
• DCR-PC107E
• DCR-PC108
• DCR-PC108E
• DCR-PC115
• DCR-PC115E
• DCR-PC120
• DCR-PC120E

Camcorders, DCR-VX models

• DCR-VX2000
• DCR-VX2000E
• DCR-VX2100
• DCR-VX2100E

Camcorders, DCR-HC models

• DCR-HC14E
• DCR-HC15
• DCR-HC15E
• DCR-HC16E
• DCR-HC18E
• DCR-HC20
• DCR-HC20E
• DCR-HC30
• DCR-HC30E

CLIE Handheld Computer Models Professional Camcorders
(DVCAM format)

• PEG-NZ90/G
• PEG-NZ90/H

• DSR-250 & DSR-250/P
• DSR-PD150 & DSR-PD150P
• DSR-PD170 & DSR-PD170P
• DSR-PDX10 & DSR-PDX10P

As Sony is the original sensor manufacturer for all of the other manufacturers’ products listed above (and given the vast array of products that they manufacture themselves) it should come as no great surprise that Sony has by far, the greatest number of affected products. This should not be taken as indicating any inherent deficiency in Sony products beyond the now discontinued sensors involved.

According to the update, which currently seems to be available only in the Japanese language, the defect may potentially be found in an additional eight digital camera models (shown in red above), which went on sale from 2003 – 2005. The Japanese advisory states that these newly added models will be eligible for free service regardless of warranty status should any malfunction be caused by the CCD sensor, in the same way as detailed in the original service advisory.

The original service advisory was posted on the Sony Asia Pacific Support site. The Asia Pacific post lists all affected models in a concise format. On the Sony US website, the advisories are only listed on the support pages for each individual product. To see the information for your product, go to this page, enter your model number and click “Search” to find all relevant information. If your product is one of those listed above, you should see a link (probably dated 10/3/2005) under the “Product Alerts” section, titled “Important Notice about your Sony Product.”

Regardless, in the US, the story is the same (at least it is for all the products we checked): “From October 3, 2005 through October 2, 2007, Sony will repair, free of charge, affected products exhibiting the above-mentioned problem where it is caused by the image sensor device. Sony will also cover the cost of shipping and handling to service to correct this issue.”

No service forms or mailing addresses are provided on the Sony US site. Rather, owners are instructed to contact the Sony Customer Information Services Center for further assistance at 1-866-703-7669.

I hope you are able to get your camera repair for free! Good luck, and let me know if you do!

Thomas Drayton,
Owner: www.darntoothysam.com

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Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-H2 Shutter Button Installation Instructions – From HSeriesShutterButton.com

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Many people have asked about repairing their front covers/flaps on their Canon PowerShot SD series cameras, so I’ve written up some instructions. I have added photos!! Each link is a helpful photo of an actual repair I did on a customer camera. Please let others know if you found this article helpful.

The barrier kit on most Canon PowerShot SD series cameras is a little tricky but not impossible to replace yourself. All you need is some patience, a steady hand and a small tipped screwdriver. We use dental picks, they work great!
Here are the parts in the kit. The pink bubble wrap is my anti-static workspace!

To start, you will need to turn on the camera and extend the lens, then open the battery door to turn off the camera and keep the lens out. This allows you to easily work on the lens barrier assembly. The yellow arrow points to where the next part is to be inserted.

The first part that goes in is the barrel drive ring; it has a small part sticking down into the lens. The image linked here shows the drive ring installed and the arrows point to where the spring connects (top arrow) and the barrier plate or flat is inserted (bottom arrow). Some cameras don’t have one, so if there isn’t one in your kit then your camera doesn’t need it. Make sure it rotates slightly once it has been inserted, otherwise its not in properly and will jam the lens.

Next are the springs and flaps. Put one spring on each of the flaps, there are little tabs to hold them on. They are TINY, they are hard to hold and if you drop it… lets just say DON’T drop it on the carpet, ok? We do have just the springs available for purchase, but please try not to lose them.

Gently put the flap in the hole with the spring laying towards the post that the free end will mount on; then with something with a very small tip (we use dental picks!) gently grab the loop of the spring and stick it on its post.

Do this with the flaps in the open position, they will stay in place if you get them seated properly. If everything pops off, just start again. Try not to stretch out the springs, they need to remain tight for the assembly to work properly.

Then gently put on the barrier cover, it’s a flat plastic ring. There are tabs on the barrier cover, they match up with little slots on the lens and it locks into place. Be gentle, don’t force anything too hard or you will break it and the parts will not hold it place.

Not it?s time to test your skills! Put in the battery (cross your fingers) and press the power button! Did it work? Did it go *SPROING!* and all the parts flew across the room? Yeah I hope not, but I?ve been there myself so you?re not alone.

Once you have it working smoothly:

Next put the dual sided tape on the barrier cover. VERY IMPORTANT: Peel the tape off the yellow backing paper but DO NOT remove the paper from the side that is cut to match the shape of the tape!! Removing the small paper part will cause the tape to fold up on itself and stick together. Bye bye tape!

The tabs fold over the edge, don’t let them stick out or the lens cover won’t fit and the lens will jam. The arrow in the image above shows the tape tabs folded down in the correct spot. The tape lines up with one tab at about the 11 o’clock position, then fold the tabs over and press them in so they don’t stick out.

Now put on your chrome or black lens cap, line up the cap with the small indentation at the bottom, you’ll see how it goes on easily.

Fire up the camera again and admire your handywork! Congratulations you repaired your camera yourself for $20 and the good old Geek Squad told you it would be $200 and take 3-4 weeks to repair.

Hmm… I think I’m seeing the beginning of something big here! =)

Thomas Drayton.,
Owner; Darntoothysam.com

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