Walked into a camera shop in Portland last week and saw 3 shelves of digital cameras with dead shutters

Every repair forum I read says digital cameras are not worth fixing once the shutter goes. But I looked at those shelves and thought about how each one of those cameras probably has thousands of memories stuck in it. I fixed a Canon 5D Mark II last month with a $80 shutter replacement and it came out fine. Has anyone else ignored the common advice and saved a digital camera from the junk pile?

2 comments

2 Comments

umac7110d ago

Did you have to deal with any stripped screws on that D7000? Nikon used to use some really soft metal on the bottom plate screws and I've had a couple where I had to drill them out. The 5D Mark II was actually pretty straightforward once I got past the ribbon cables - those little locking flaps are so easy to snap off if you rush it. My biggest tip from doing a few of these is to take photos on your phone of every step before you disconnect anything. Saves you so much guesswork when you're putting it back together. Also, check the mirror bumper while you're in there, they get sticky and fall off on older Canons.

angela_carter11d ago

...and you know what, that's actually a good point about the memories. I did the same thing with my old Nikon D7000 a couple years back. Everyone online said just buy a new one, but I found a used shutter assembly on eBay for $60 and spent a weekend watching YouTube videos. It was a pain but totally worth it because that camera had all my kids' early birthdays on it. The files were still there, still perfect. Feels like people forget these are tools that hold real moments, not just disposable gadgets. Did you run into any surprises with the 5D repair?