Canon 350D - Help please - can it be repaired?

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Evening everyone, need some help here please. A good friend of mine has a 350D that her father bought her. It's her only camera and it's precious to her for more than just the fact it's her dSLR.

Unfortunately the pins in the card slot have become damaged when a friend was a bit heavy handed putting the compactflash card back in. :bang::bang: Apart from the anger this has caused, it has also rendered the camera un-usable :(

Does any know if it is possible to have this component repaired/replaced by Canon or a reputable 3rd party camera repair company.?

Cheers
 
Yes it is repairable, though the cost might be considered uneconomic for such an old model, but sentimental value may change that perception.
 
depending on the damage you might be able to straighten the pins with a good fine long pair of twezzers and some time. Normaly the pins are gold plated kovar which are quite strong and can be rebent, if its not too bad.
 
tris101 said:
depending on the damage you might be able to straighten the pins with a good fine long pair of twezzers and some time. Normaly the pins are gold plated kovar which are quite strong and can be rebent, if its not too bad.
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Do that and you run the very real risk of breaking a pin off, the pin falling into the innards of the camera and shorting something out.....
 
Flash In The Pan said:
Do that and you run the very real risk of breaking a pin off, the pin falling into the innards of the camera and shorting something out.....
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True, but considering the value of the camera now I would try it or simply ebay it.

If it gets sorted, just leave the card in and use USB cable next time.
 
Flash In The Pan said:
Do that and you run the very real risk of breaking a pin off, the pin falling into the innards of the camera and shorting something out.....
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That'd be a chance in a 1000 I'd think and even if the pin breaks turning the camera so that the slot points down and giving it a slight shake may well make the pin fall out. Even if it doesn't there's a good likelihood that it wont short anything out.

It has to be worth a try before sending the camera for repair.
 
Flash In The Pan said:
Do that and you run the very real risk of breaking a pin off, the pin falling into the innards of the camera and shorting something out.....
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Yes there is a chance it will snap it all depends how damaged it is as long as you are gentle and it’s not kinked and the its not bent more than 20 degs you might straighten it. Lead conditioning is standard practise in the micro electronics manufacturing

It would be better to replace the connector but the cost of repair would be more than the value of the goods so what do you have to lose...

If the pin does snap turn the body upside down and it will probably fall out.

Yes there is a risk but the body is currently a paper weight...
 
daugirdas said:
True, but considering the value of the camera now I would try it or simply ebay it.

If it gets sorted, just leave the card in and use USB cable next time.
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I dont think they'll want to eBay it due to the sentimental value it has.

However its worth trying to fix as even if you break the pin off it's not going to make it any worse and IIRC the repair is to replace the entire CF unit anyway.
 
Hi all, many thanks for your comments. Just spoken to her and 2 of the pins are actually broken, so the 'bend-back' process is not an option. I'll pursue it with Canon for a repair price.

Cheers again
 
Boney Boy said:
Hi all, many thanks for your comments. Just spoken to her and 2 of the pins are actually broken, so the 'bend-back' process is not an option. I'll pursue it with Canon for a repair price.

Cheers again
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he realy must have forced it in hard....
 
I have done exactly this with a 5D2 - my own fault. If you send it to Canon, they will just replace the main board at cost (board + labour). It is likely to be uneconomic - the cost for the 5D2 was £300.

A local independent repairer can often replace individual pins which works out loads cheaper. I'd ask around at local camera shops and see if they have any recommendations.
 
I got a quote off the Authorised Canon Repair centre in Chelsmford of £80 + PP + vat with a turn around of about 7 days.
 
Depends if £110 inc sending there and back is what you consider economic.
 
arad85 said:
Depends if £110 inc sending there and back is what you consider economic.
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As per the op's first post though, it has sentimental value so I'd say thats reasonable to keep it going!

Sounds like a fair quote.
 
DaveKing said:
I'd imagine that once you get all the plastic off there would be just a connector and a few screws Worth a consideration?
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The CF card connector will be soldered to the board. I'd imagine replacing it (given it is ~40 connectors) would require specialist equipment 99.99% of people wouldn't have.

Edit: this is the part you'd need: http://www.cameraspareparts.co.uk/cf-unit-pin-assembley-for-canon-eos-350d-and-400d-465-p.asp and that will need to be soldered to the board with a fine tip soldering iron. At £30 for the part, I'd just send it to the repairer that quoted £80+vat+p&p (and I've probably got the equipment/knowledge to do it).
 
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I think most dslr's are built around a single circuit board with pretty much everything soldered straight on to save space!
 
Unless you have right equipment you will damage the PCB removing the connector, you will more than likely leach or lift the pads.

You also really need to know what solder and flux was used when the board was manufactured, I would guess it would be a lead free solder and water based flux. You don’t really want to mix the system as it can lead to issues.

Unless you know what you a doing I would either scrap the camera (as it is only worth about the repair cost) or send it to the repair shop if it has sentimentally value to you.
 
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