Don't give up on your Canon T90!

[Krzys]

I bought a T90 from ebay which was listed to be tested and work in exc+ condition. When I got it it had the EEE error after every shot on every speed. I tried all the ghetto fixes, hitting it on some thing hard, firing the shutter ect and nothing seemed to work. I contacted the seller in America via email and telephone and he has been very nice, agreeing to refund and even look for a replacement T90.

Today, after shooting then resetting for hours the shutter started working on the high speeds. After running though the high speeds for a couple of hours the mid range speeds started working consistently. Now the camera fires consistently on all speeds above 1/30. Last I check it would fire below 1/30 but lock up after a few shots. The camera has been lodged under a weight and firing on 1/45 for an hour now. I will check soon to see if the lower speeds have freed up.

I don't know how permanent a solution this is and if I will have to exercise the camera every day but the seller has agreed to wait a week or two for me to continue testing and says that if it doesn't all clear up then he will still issue a refund/replacement.

Don't give up on your T90 if it displays errors. It just needs some exercise and maybe some TLC (CLA) in the long run.

Update: I think I may has risked overheating the motor drive as it is very hot but now the camera works on all speeds consistantly! Will continue the exercise on all speeds in a couple of hours.

 

[Laurent]

This sounds like good news ! I should do the same with my T90, but it's been sitting on the shelf for years now... It's still a camera I really miss, it has all the nice features of my EOS3, for one quarter of the weight !

 

[Poisson Du Jour]

I really don't like the sound of that for a high-end pro model like the T90, but it seems you've got a good handle on it with observing behaviour, so this should prove educational for many others with a T90.

During my owernship of the T90 a warm motordrive (the base of the camera) was quite the norm. It's a beautiful camera to use, with a couple of must-have features that subsequently passed down into the EOS range (i.e. exposure index on right, F for full roll of film then countdown).

Why is the camera under a weight??

 

[Krzys]

To hold the shutter button down while I make some tea

I swear that after hours of on and off motor drive the sound is completely different, more of a crunch than a squeal -though this is probably just in my head. I ran a roll through it and it seemed to work fine.

All speeds work now, now locking or errors.

 

[benjiboy]

The T90 is a camera that needs regular use to keep it operating I have four of them, one I bought and three that people gave me because they thought they were f**ked, I got two of them going, and the third is going to be my spare parts body to keep the others going for the repairer.
I find It's a good thing to fire the shutter a few times every day if you can, in the twenty two years since this camera was made many of them haven't been used much, and have been left in cupboards for decades.
IMHO when they are working the T90 has everyting I could want in a camera, and then some, enjoy Kezys.

 

[Poisson Du Jour]

It is too long ago for me to remember precisely, though two things do come to mind:
1. The motor drive can be warm to touch over extended shooting (normal); and
2. The motor drive/wind and rewind should be silent. This feature (particularly the coreless motor assay) was passed down into the subsequent EOS body range.

My T90 (1987-1989) was well loved and used during uni study, plus weekend bushwalks and skitouring (stored in the tent, it never failed to fire up in below zero temperatures). The two points above regarding quietness made a big impact compared to the industrial clunk-whirr of e.g. the Nikon F3/F3HP owned previously!

As the motor drive is integral to the body, service where indicated is more involved. If it doesn't sound right, I would seriously angle for a bench test with Canon to ascertain if anything needs adjustment. The T90, like the EOS bodies that followed it (particularly the EOS1/1N), wouldn't necessarily show any glaringly visible signs of having been dropped/banged, if such an event has even remotely put things out of kilter.

All cameras benefit from being used frequently, fellas!!

 

[Jeff Kubach]

I had a T-90 a while back. Sold it and I wish I hadn't. A great camera indeed.

Jeff

 

[flatulent1]

Or, you could send it in for a cleaning, new foams, and a new shutter bumper. Rather than possibly burning the motor out or wearing down the shutter, that is. I have three; the one I've had cleaned professionally doesn't need to be exercised at all, the second hasn't been done yet but works just fine (apart from a finicky command dial) and the third will get attention when I can afford it. They are definitely worth the cost to repair.