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Reymoskito
Tinkerer
Username: Reymoskito
Post Number: 1
Registered: 12-2007
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, December 13, 2007 - 09:42 am: | 
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Hi all, please help, I got an Olympus XA and I am so disappointed as it is not working:
·Shutter wont fire even if camera back is open
·Spool is blocked so I cant load film
·Small button in the bottom for releasing the film spool once roll is out is fully deppressed and wont pop out
·Battery check will not work even thogh I tried with two different jsut bought battery sets (one set of LR-44's and one set of SR-44's)
·Contacts seem clean on battery compartment
·As it is camera gives no signal of life or whatsoever
Many thanks for any help, I want to start making photos with these little monster, please! |
Reymoskito
Tinkerer
Username: Reymoskito
Post Number: 2
Registered: 12-2007
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, December 13, 2007 - 09:47 am: |
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Hi Paul,
Sorry for the private message but im desperate
I got an Olympus XA and I am so disappointed as it is not working:
·Shutter wont fire even if camera back is open
·Spool is blocked so I cant load film
·Small button in the bottom for releasing the film spool once roll is out is fully deppressed and wont pop out
·Battery check will not work even thogh I tried with two different jsut bought battery sets (one set of LR-44's and one set of SR-44's)
·Contacts seem clean on battery compartment
·As it is camera gives no signal of life or whatsoever
Many thanks for any help you can give me, I want to start making photos with these little monster, please! |
Shutterbug2
Tinkerer
Username: Shutterbug2
Post Number: 12
Registered: 10-2007
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, December 13, 2007 - 07:48 pm: |
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i picked up olympus xa few weeks ago with a11 flash attachment for song and dance around $3.00 i could,nt wait to get home to check out my new find. this xa uses EPX 76 batteries 2 with postive side up. i tried holding in film rewind button camera still fires. 76 batteries are 1 1/2 volts by my DVM. not totally familiar with 44 batteries you tried using. could it be that they don,t have enough current to work camera properly even being new. i don,t know just a thought. if the 44,s should work then you might have a internal wiring problem steming from battery connections since you can,t get camera to do anything then you,d want get more expertise help from forum member that,s worked on one. my camera still fires even with back open. not sure what you mean when you say spool is blocked ? this camera in working clean condition i,ve seen at local camera store for around $100.00 they had about 4 of them for sell. good luck James |
Shutterbug2
Tinkerer
Username: Shutterbug2
Post Number: 13
Registered: 10-2007
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, December 14, 2007 - 08:07 am: |
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forgot to add theirs good repair manual on xa under repair manuals you can either view or download with excellent flow chart showing the conditions necessary for camera to fire. hope your,s is simple fix. theirs ton of electronics under hood of a xa. James |
Chenard
Tinkerer
Username: Chenard
Post Number: 21
Registered: 11-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, December 14, 2007 - 08:58 am: |
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Hi Santiago,
It sounds to me like there is no power getting to the camera at all. With the batteries in, take a look through the viewfinder to see whether the needle responds to light or not. If the needle is not moving, then the problem most likely is that there is no connection between the batteries and the rest of the camera.
Also, the reason you can't wind on is because the shutter is cocked and the interlock is preventing you from winding until an exposure is being made. But you can't make an exposure because the electronic shutter needs power in order to release it. After you finally manage to release the shutter, you will be able to advance the film and then the rewind button will pop out.
To check for power:
1-make sure that the batteries are installed correctly, the right way around
2-make sure all contacts are clean. They can look clean but still not conduct. Use denatured alcohol & rub them with a pencil eraser to get them clean.
Try these, and report back. If this doesn't correct the problem, then the next step is to open the camera to check for corrosion and/or disconnects between the battery compartment and the circuitry inside the camera. The repair manual elsewhere on this website will come in handy for that.
Paul |
Reymoskito
Tinkerer
Username: Reymoskito
Post Number: 3
Registered: 12-2007
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, December 14, 2007 - 10:42 am: |
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Ill try your suggestions with the alcohol, that alcohol part always seems easier, :-)
I am checking on the manual too, but the camera is not very simple inside too many screws and electronics. I am trying to rule out everything else before I open the camera, as I have never done that with a camera and am afraid to break the little baby for good. If I have no other choice, I 'll go and open it up.
Thanks everybody for your help |
Reymoskito
Tinkerer
Username: Reymoskito
Post Number: 4
Registered: 12-2007
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, December 14, 2007 - 10:52 am: |
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I am going to post other hints that Jon Goodman kindly sent me through email so It can help for someone else:
Hello, Santiago.
I hope you are ok. Your XA...with the new batteries installed, does the battery check function not make noise? Please tell me. The shutter will not work if the battery is not good or if the battery is not making contact. This means the camera will let you cock it and try to fire it one time, but when the shutter does not fire, everything is locked. I think this is your problem. Also, sometimes the camera will not work if the top is not open all the way. Can you slide it over any further?
Best regards,
Jon
Hi Jon, thanks so much:
The batteries are ok, as I put two different completely new sets (one set LR-44 and a different set SR-44). With them installed, it will not make any noise.
Shutter wont fire with or without open back door. Back door would be totally open, front door would slide all the way open(I tried harder) but shutter wouldnt fire.
It doesnt make any noise in check mode in both cases.
Film spool is blocked all the time, and film spool does not advance, so film cannot be loaded.
It is like camera was totally dead.
Led does not light at all. Never.
does it mean something is wrong with electrical contacts of battery? Contacts in batt dept seem clean.
Santiago
Hello, Santiago.
Yes..it means the battery's current is not going through to the camera. It could be the contact, or it could be a bad wire. Is the battery cap (which screws in)...is it clean, also?
The threads also need to be clean. Please let me know.
Jon,
Yeah they are clean, but the threads are not so clean maybe, I ll try to lightly sand them and see what happens.
Thanks so much again for your help. |
Reymoskito
Tinkerer
Username: Reymoskito
Post Number: 5
Registered: 12-2007
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, December 15, 2007 - 04:41 am: |
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nah! I tried cleaning contacts and threads but no luck
i am dissassembling the camera but got to the point of removing front cover (not sliding door but cover) and i cant get any further, too many screws, levers and tiny pieces I am afaid to break, I havent reached the battery wires yet :-( |
Reymoskito
Tinkerer
Username: Reymoskito
Post Number: 6
Registered: 12-2007
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, December 17, 2007 - 09:02 am: |
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Hi all! I got to remove the bottom cover, which actually came off quite easily. I got to the negative lead wire. Seemingly, it was sulfated, I tried to scrap the sulfate off the soldering area but then the whole black lead wire came off. That connection didnt seem to be good enough and presumable was the cause of the power failure. But the thing is it is hidden in a very narrow area and cannot reach the black wire for resoldering, as it is very tight and short in an unreachable area. To do that I would have to remove the lens housing and it seems very delicate and complicated now, I dont dare to. Maybe I disadjust focus, or who knows. So the option I took was to rewire from the black negative lead soldering to the black wire in the mode selection lever, which should go to negative as well. I tried to shoot without fully reassemblying but it wouldnt. I dont know what I did wrong.
Any help please?
Thanks again for any assistance. |
Chenard
Tinkerer
Username: Chenard
Post Number: 22
Registered: 11-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, December 17, 2007 - 03:50 pm: |
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Hi Santiago,
Is the battery check working now? How about the meter needle in the view finder?
If the answer is no, then there is still no power getting to the camera. The black wire from the battery compartment actually goes up to the top of the camera and connects to the flex circuit board underneath the galvanometer. If the galvanometer is not getting power (ie the needle isn't moving) then you haven't jumped the black wire to the right spot, or there is a problem with the red wire, too.
On the other hand, if the battery check works, and the needle is moving, then remember that you have to have the back or front of the camera open for the shutter to release. If the back of the camera is closed, then you'll have to hold the interlock switch on the front closed with your finger in order to get it to release.
Paul |
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