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Ben
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, May 10, 2006 - 08:15 am: | 
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I've had my A-1 for nearly a year now, and, in that time, with probably a 100 rolls of film, I've mostly lived without the light meter LEDs.
I know that the meter is accurate, because, as I mentioned, it's done over a 100 rolls of film for me, with a fair number of those slide film. I've mostly used it in shutter priority, picking an apropriate shutter speed for the focal length, light level, and type of photography, and then just let the aperture fall where it wished with me having no knowledge of what it was doing.
On four separate occasions, the LEDs have worked. The first two times were two days in a row, for about a half day each, or one roll of film. The third and fourth time, they worked for about a week and for a roll of film or two.
Sometimes, they will flash EEE EEEE when I check depth of field and forget to work the multiple exposure level. Usually, when this happens, I can get the LEDs to work okay by judiciously throwing the little switch that turns the on and off back and forth, so I'm guessing that I'm dealing with both a dirty/oxidized switch and some other problem.
The times that they have worked, I have compared the readings side by side with another camera, and they matched exactly, so the meter seems to be reasonably well calibrated.
Although I do really like the size and handling of the A-1, I haven't used it much since I got my T90 due to the lack of a working meter readout.
Does anyone have any suggestions for what I should look for if I pull the cover off? I have all of the instructions for doing this, plus have a couple of other non-working A-series bodies that I've pulled apart and put back together, so I feel like I'm ready to attempt a repair.
Thanks in advance for any help,
Ben |
Reiner
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, May 10, 2006 - 02:37 pm: |
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It is possible to switch off the light meter LEDs. This might be the case at your A1. The light meter works also ok without the meter display. Please look it up here:
http://www.mir.com.my/rb/photography/companies/canon/fdresources/SLRs/a1/manual/htm/shutter1.html
The display EEE EEEE shows up when you made an invalid operation. That is not critical. |
Ben
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, May 10, 2006 - 03:38 pm: |
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I know that the switch is set correctly...I get the same result in either position.
I also know that the EEE EEEE shows up when you set the aperture ring to manual, push in the stop down lever, release the stopdown lever, and reset the lens to A, but don't operate the multiple exposure switch. I also know that it's supposed to flash EEE EEEE regardless of the switch position, so since I can only get EEE EEEE sometimes, I think that the problem is something other than just a bad switch.
Thanks anyway for the help. |
Steve Sweringen
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, May 10, 2006 - 08:10 pm: |
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Hi Ben, I am a camera repairman and specialize in the repair of Canon 35mm cameras and lenses. The intermittent 'EE EEE' problem is related to the aperture control mechanism out of adjustment. The intermittent LED problem is probably a bad circuit board connection. To repair these problems costs $90.00. This repair includes cleaning, lubricating and recalibrating the speeds and metering systems. This also includes replacing the light shields and mirror cushion as needed. I give a six month warranty with my work and can turn the repair around in about one week. Let me know if interested.
Steve
Camera Clinic
50 Freeport Blvd #24
Sparks, NV 89431 |
Ben
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, May 10, 2006 - 08:24 pm: |
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Steve,
Thanks, I may take you up on that, however depending on how involved it is, I would like to fix it myself if possible.
By the way, if my understanding is correct, the EEE EEEE "problem" isn't really a problem but just normal operation when you check depth of field and reset the camera the lens to A. The manual says that it will flash EEE EEEE if you don't operate the multiple exposure lever, and it will refuse to fire the shuter until you do so. I only reference this to show that the LEDs to sometimes work.
$90 does sound very tempting...especially since it will also get rid of the squeek that I've lived with but have always wanted repaired.
Thanks. |
Glenn Middleton
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, May 10, 2006 - 08:33 pm: |
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When you get the top off, you should first clean all the insulating washers associated with the battery test button/viewfinder display switches. Use a flat, stiff bristle artists bush to remove any dirt from around the contact mounting screws/insulating washers. Also check all soldered joints, wiring and circuit connectors associated with these two switches.
If you have a copy or a download of the official Canon A1 repair manual, you will find a section dealing with tracing the power feed for this part of the circuit. |
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