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Michbucanon
Tinkerer
Username: Michbucanon
Post Number: 1
Registered: 08-2008
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, August 06, 2008 - 02:07 pm: | 
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I recently bought a Nikon FE, apparently in very good condition. It worked flawlessly for about a month, and then, 1 minute maybe after I turned it off for the last time, the camera wouldn't turn on.
Of course I tried new (LR44) batteries but it didn't help. I also cleaned the battery contacts with alcohol but without any success. The battery checking light stays off and nothing works except the M90 or B mode but it's rather limited.
From a quick search in this forum I understand electrical issues are quite common with the FE, I just want to know if it could be useful to remove the bottom plate and check is everything is alright. I'm quite shy to do it, as I don't have any experience with camera repair or with electronics.
Thanks for any information or advice anybody can provide. |
Rick_oleson
Tinkerer
Username: Rick_oleson
Post Number: 641
Registered: 07-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, August 06, 2008 - 07:31 pm: |
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I don't know how prevalent electrical problems are with the FE compared to any other electronic camera, but there's always a risk. A sudden total failure suggests (but does not guarantee) that the power got cut off between the battery and the rest of the camera, and that may be relatively good news. The first thing that I would look for is a corroded and broken wire at the battery terminal solder joint. This is about the simplest possible problem to fix, but it's still not as easy as you'd like: the corroded wire cannot be soldered back on, you have to expose clean wire, and the corrosion may extend an inch or two up the wire or even possibly all the way to the other end. To get past the first inch or so can require a serious disassembly of the camera. |
Krp
Tinkerer
Username: Krp
Post Number: 69
Registered: 07-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, August 07, 2008 - 06:56 pm: |
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You will do no harm by removing the bottom plate. There are only 3 screws. I would also look at the plastic battery box itself. It may be cracked. |
Dgillette4
Tinkerer
Username: Dgillette4
Post Number: 234
Registered: 04-2007
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, August 07, 2008 - 07:47 pm: |
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There may be corrosion where the wire attaches, I have had some completely detach at this point. If you are leery about this send it out, but as has been stated it isn't a hard job. If you go slow, remove the screws on the bottom cover , put them in a jar, I can't count the number of times I dropped some screw or spring..Keep us updated. Don |
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