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Wenbiao Liang
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, April 21, 2005 - 11:45 pm: | 
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Hi,
I got this Olympus XA, that used to work, then it got dropped, and it developed this problem:
The shutter will release right after I wind the film, without pressing the shutter release button.
I took it apart, and it seems to me that the mechanicals are "working", the switch SW2 will go off after I wind the shutter, the shutter release switch (SW1) is also good.
So I guess maybe somewhere in the electronics that is broken. I tried to replace a couple of resisters blindly and did not fix the problem.
Anyone had this problem before and how do you fix it?
Thanks a lot!
Wenbiao |
M Currie
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, April 22, 2005 - 08:52 pm: |
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I think this may be one of the less exotic XA problems. My XA2 did this too once many years ago, and it was repairable, though I don't know what was done to fix it. If you go to the "repair manuals" link on this page, you will find a downloadable copy of the XA repair manual. This problem and a couple of possible causes are mentioned on page D-3 there. With luck, you might find it is as simple as dirt in the magnet mechanism. |
Wenbiao Liang
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, April 22, 2005 - 11:07 pm: |
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Thanks for the reply.
I think the problem with XA is different than that in the manual.
Without battery, I can wind no problem, the shutter will not fire. so, I guess the magnet is strong enough to hold the "shutter release arm".
However, with batteries inside, the shutter will fire right after I wind the film, and it seems to me that it fires at the highest speed (1/500).
And my "shutter release switch" (sw1 per the repair manual) is fine, because I took the switch off, with 2 wires unconnected to anything, I still go the same problem.
So, that is why I suspect there is something wrong with the electronics. I guess after I wind the film, the switch sw2 (per the repair manual) will go to off position, and somehow this tells the IC to charge current to the magnet to release the shutter.
too bad if I will need to replace the IC. |
WernerJB
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, April 23, 2005 - 09:03 am: |
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I need advice about whether to buy an XA or not, because right when I had decided to get me one, I read about "exotic XA problems" in one of the above entries. What problems are there that other cameras do not have ? Is the XA servicable by people who are far from being electronics experts ? Thanks in advance to those who help me avoid unpleasant experiences ! |
M Currie
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, April 23, 2005 - 05:20 pm: |
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As I understand it, many XA problems are easily fixed, but some are not, because the parts aren't made any more. A number of functions rely on an integrated circuit, and if that goes bad, the only cure is substitution from a parts camera. At this point, the cost of having it done can exceed the cost of a replacement.
I have an XA (now in pieces) which I bought at a yard sale, and whose shutter doesn't fire properly, which I've been unable to fix so far, and an XA2, on which the button activates the self-timer every time. This latter problem is said to be if not common, well known to my local camera repair guru, and not easily repairable, because it is almost certainly the fault of the IC. I'm holding on to them both in hopes that either a donor camera will come along or they will become donors themselves.
Having said that, though, I should mention that my XA2, bought used in 1989, was my faithful pocket/backpack/bike bag camera through all sorts of rough conditions, poor storage, hot cars, dirty pockets, etc. for many years and many rolls of film. I will cheerfully buy another if the right one comes along. |
WernerJB
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, April 24, 2005 - 12:06 pm: |
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Tanks for your input, I think my whole XA project will have to be postponed or abandoned, as these cute little cameras are quite expensive, and as electronics go bad sooner or later ... |
Wenbiao Liang
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, April 27, 2005 - 12:11 am: |
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XA is relatively easy to repair, electronics excluded. 
The mechanics are very simple, pretty much everything is modular designed. For example, the RF+meter is one assembly (fastened by 2 screws) plus one small metal cyclinder, film winding is one assembly (2 screws), lens plate is one assembly (5 screws), and etc.
It is very easy to take it apart, and very easy to put it back.
The difficult part is when there is something wrong with the electronics, I have seen bad ICs, and cracked variable resister board, when this happens, there is nothing you can do, except to take parts from a donor camera, and the donor has to be of different problems.
so, unless you can buy at least a couple of parts camera for very low price...
I bought 2 parts XA (one partially disassemblied) for about 20 dollars. One has this "press the shutter, then self timer kicks in" problem, I heard this is due to bad IC, another one (the one that was partically disassemblied) does not work at all. So I switched two IC boards, now I have one fully working camera and one fully non-working one. took me about 2 nights to fix the first one, and about 2 hours to put the non-working one together. |
WernerJB
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, April 27, 2005 - 11:27 am: |
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Instead of the XA I have bought two Chinon Bellami clones ("flap door system") called Revue 35 CC, although this may turn out to be not exactly what I had in mind, as this camera (Seiko program shutter 1/8 - 1/1000 sec, 2,8/35 mm lens) unfortunately has no self timer, otherwise everything including the flash or no filter thread is similar to the XA; it is also pocketable and I learned from a Japanese site that the camera is reliable (!) and has a sharp lens. |
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