lens repair - Canon Elstree or authorised service company?

[ren41]

Hi all

my EF 24-70mm has developed a fault (intermittent comms error 1 and aperture not behaving correctly); as a student I need to keep costs down and I wondered if anyone knew which repair route was most economic, Canon's repair dept or authorised independents?

Many thanks

ren

[Geoff F]

I've always used Colchester Camera Repair for any Canon work. They are approved Canon agents and do work under the official guarantee.

Pricing appears to be around £100 for strip down and reassembly plus any parts.

[ren41]

I've always used Colchester Camera Repair for any Canon work. They are approved Canon agents and do work under the official guarantee.

Pricing appears to be around £100 for strip down and reassembly plus any parts.

Thanks Geoff; I hadn't heard of the service centre in Colchester, I'll look them up. I've read about what sounds like similar problems with the 24-105, and they seem to need a lot of parts replacing - if Canon does fixed price repairs then it might work out cheaper. Can't really afford too much sending off for estimates, either! My project this term is landscape based so I need the lens!

ren

[William W]

. . . my EF 24-70mm has developed a fault (intermittent comms error 1 and aperture not behaving correctly) . . .

Have you:

a) used that lens on another body, to confirm that it is a lens only fault
b) cleaned and dried the electrical contacts of the lens and also of the body
c) cleaned and dried the camera’s battery contacts and also the battery's contacts

WW

[ren41]

Have you:

a) used that lens on another body, to confirm that it is a lens only fault
b) cleaned and dried the electrical contacts of the lens and also of the body
c) cleaned and dried the camera’s battery contacts and also the battery's contacts

WW

Thanks for your email - yes, I've done those things and changed the battery. I dont have another Canon digital camera but I tried the lens on my film camera - it was between error 1 incidences and it displayed the same behaviour, needing to set the aperture higher. It did this throughout the range. My other lenses are all working properly on the body and displaying normal behaviour.

ren

[William W]

Good work. Understood.

Good luck with the repairs - and your course of study.

WW

[ren41]

Thanks very much - the course is very time consuming (even part time, as I'm doing it!) and whilst I don't mind the academic element of it at all, there does seem to be little time left for photography that isn't, or can't be incorporated into, the assignments I'm set.

ren

[William W]

. . .the course is very time consuming (even part time, as I'm doing it!) and whilst I don't mind the academic element of it at all, there does seem to be little time left for photography that isn't, or can't be incorporated into, the assignments I'm set.

Maybe you are not seeing what you need to be seeing?

Maybe you are not managing your time in the most efficient manner?

Maybe you are not focussed at the moment in time on THAT moment in time and at THE task at hand?

Maybe ‘part time’ gives you TOO MUCH time?

Just a few maybe’s for your consideration.

WW

[ajohnw]

If you are using old kit this might help with the fault but use it gently.

http://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/pcb-cl...20626C6F636B26


If the link doesn't work go to UK RsComponents and search PCB scrubbing block. I wouldn't advise getting this sort of thing from any one else. RS sell to anyone these days as they are aware that they stock items that can't be bought from anyone else. Delivery isn't free but is usually next day.

Might work might not so the choice is yours. It is possible to have slight contact tarnishing cause problems like this. This is also probably the product repairers would use if needed.

There are several authorised Canon and other repairers in the UK. For instance I had a sensor clean and check while I went for a long cup of coffee in Stoke On Trent. There is a list of them on Canon's web site. Afraid I would use one of these. There are too many of the type that just register with some web site about. This makes local ones that I might visit to see what they are like rather hard to find.

John
-

[ren41]

If only, but sadly it really is too little time; I'm self employed and trying to recover from the recession with work that isn't weekday 9 - 5; I think if my husband had realised in advance just how much extra money the course would cost in terms of equipment (half of it id film based) then I don't think he would have encouraged me!

[The Blue Boy]

Ren,

Welcome to the forums,

Could you do us all a favour and add a bit more info into your profile? I.e. Where you are based. It makes for more solid answers as we can then (literally) point you to places. For instance we have a great little shop here in Manchester that's been doing stuff for me for years.

[ren41]

If you are using old kit this might help with the fault but use it gently.

http://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/pcb-cl...20626C6F636B26


If the link doesn't work go to UK RsComponents and search PCB scrubbing block. I wouldn't advise getting this sort of thing from any one else. RS sell to anyone these days as they are aware that they stock items that can't be bought from anyone else. Delivery isn't free but is usually next day.

Might work might not so the choice is yours. It is possible to have slight contact tarnishing cause problems like this. This is also probably the product repairers would use if needed.

There are several authorised Canon and other repairers in the UK. For instance I had a sensor clean and check while I went for a long cup of coffee in Stoke On Trent. There is a list of them on Canon's web site. Afraid I would use one of these. There are too many of the type that just register with some web site about. This makes local ones that I might visit to see what they are like rather hard to find.

John
-

Thanks John - I know RS and have ordered from them before. I don't think this is the problem; the lens isn't that old (EF 24-70mmL, just the first iteration, not the new one) and when I manipulate the f stop manually, off the camera, the aperture doesn't appear to be opening as wide as it should.

lehmann is the one in Stoke, I think; as far as I can tell the authorised service companies operate their own scale of fees, so I was hoping to gauge whether using one of those would be cheaper or more expensive than Elstree, Canon's own service department. They certainly have faster turnaround times, but whether this is because Canon is cheaper, less efficient, or offers a longer warranty post repair, is anyone's guess, I suppose!

I wish I could leave it for now but with this big landscape brief looming, I need that lens. If it was a cheap lens (eg my 40mm pancake lenses) I'd just buy a new one or try a repair with the help of youtube!

many thanks

ren

[DanK]

I assume it depends on your location. In my location, minor repairs can be less expensive when done by independents because Canon seems to have a minimum repair charge for any given lens. You can ask for an estimate form the independent. In the US, you get an estimate from Canon only by sending the equipment in, and the only issue is whether the repair exceeds the preset minimum. Someone can chime in if I am misinterpreting Canon's repair policies.

Personally, I find Canon's repair service frustrating because in my experience, you can't speak to the people who will work on your camera. The customer service people with whom I have spoken have mostly been very good, but the system seems not to reliably get the contents of those conversations to the repair people. If the repair is routine, this is not an issue at all.

[ajohnw]

I'd guess Canon's own will be quickest if parts are needed. My E-M1 went for repair a month ago. 2 weeks and I would guess much of that was getting parts - a new top in this case as one of the thumb wheels was acting up.

I also had a lens sent back to Tamron recently. Just under 2 weeks so it's hard to guess how long things will be away for really.

John
-

[ren41]

I assume it depends on your location. In my location, minor repairs can be less expensive when done by independents because Canon seems to have a minimum repair charge for any given lens. You can ask for an estimate form the independent. In the US, you get an estimate from Canon only by sending the equipment in, and the only issue is whether the repair exceeds the preset minimum. Someone can chime in if I am misinterpreting Canon's repair policies.

Personally, I find Canon's repair service frustrating because in my experience, you can't speak to the people who will work on your camera. The customer service people with whom I have spoken have mostly been very good, but the system seems not to reliably get the contents of those conversations to the repair people. If the repair is routine, this is not an issue at all.

Hi Dan

yes, I just rang Canon to see if they do fixed price repairs but the only fixed price is for cleaning and similar. The customer services woman felt they might be a bit cheaper than some of the service centres because their parts are sourced inter company whereas the independents have to buy from them. She didn't mention a minimum, or per-lens, repair cost although I feel as it is an L lens there's bound to be a premium added in somewhere. It could of course be anything from the issue I read of with the 24-105 which can involve replacement of the diaphragm, cable and a lens or two, to a bit of grit! Anyway I have sent it to Fixation and got a confirmation of receipt this morning. They say they aim to provide an estimate in 2 days so should get the awful news back quite shortly. I think they may be the more expensive one (in London and a snappy website) but I couldn't afford to spend more time dithering. Will keep you all posted and thanks for the replies and help.

[ren41]

oh, I also meant to say that my tutor has told me about londoncamerarepairs.com, who he uses; he says they will give you an online quote, and you can also go there, they have lots of old cameras (presumably for sale).

ren

[ren41]

I got my estimate back very quickly, it was much as I expected (was afraid of) and comes to £236. This includes VAT and postage back. replacement parts listed are:

collar
power diaphragm
sleeve, filter

and it says impact/physical damage, general service, replace parts, set up and recalibrate, relubricate, diaphragm, check & clean.

This seems very similar to the 24-105 problem I'd read about. I am surprised by the 'impact' comment as it hasn't been dropped, banged or knocked and spends most of its life in a padded bag. It was second hand but I've had it for about 7 months and was fine until a week ago.

ren

[William W]

. . .This seems very similar to the 24-105 problem I'd read about. I am surprised by the 'impact' comment as it hasn't been dropped, banged or knocked and spends most of its life in a padded bag. It was second hand but I've had it for about 7 months and was fine until a week ago.

I suspect that the 24 to 105 problem that you cite is the one which gained a lot of comment a couple of years ago: that was an issue with a ribbon cable and appeared specific to only the first iteration of the lens. I am not aware of a consistent similar issue in any iteration of the 24 to 70.

They probably listed "impact" as one possible cause, not a confirmed cause.

WW

[ren41]

Mmm, well I've had an email from them this morning and she says, 'I have proceeded the repair work as requested.

The technicians have noted some impact to the front of the lens, where the filter sleeve will need to be replaced. They also suspect that it’s impact that has caused the damage to the set of collars that will need replacing, however these can fail just through wear, but we will have a better idea of this when the lens has been dismantled.

Replacing the Power Diaphragm will solve the Err 01 communication problem.

The technicians have advised me that we do not currently have the power diaphragm in stock, so there could be a delay of a week or so while we wait for it to arrive, but as soon as it is here we will complete the repair ASAP and contact you. '

So perhaps it was dropped before I got it, although it has been fine. I have replied to ask if they can find out how long the part will take to arrive; it couldn't be worse timing as the children bought us 'a weekend in Europe' for our anniversary which I was going to use to get the shots for my assignment, so I'm definitely on a deadline.

[ren41]

Hi all

i thought I'd post to say that I got the lens back exactly a week after sending it in, and it was unfortunately the £236 I'd been expecting. They did say they thought it was normal wear and tear. I would guess its a risk with those heavy L zoom lenses. At least at the moment it doesn't have that zoom creep that I used to get with the 28-135 that I had.

thanks for your help, everyone

ren