Elan IIe trouble - please help!

[gnashings]

Hi folks,

I am posting this for a friend who has a Elan IIe, and has been having some trouble with it. He asked me for help, but I don't know much about these cameras trouble spots, etc.
The problem is, the camera "jams" intermitently - as in, you press the shutter, the mirror goes up and stays up, and the battery indicator shows low battery, even with a brand new batter. This condition seems to get worst and then better, sometimes disappearing all together, sometimes locking up on every shot, with no perceived rhyme or reason.
I was hoping some of the more experienced users of Canon auto-focus bodies may have come across this and perhaps know of a remedy. Is this a common problem with these cameras?

Thanks in advance for any and all input - it is much appreciated!

Peter.

 

[reellis67]

I have an Elan II (no Eye control) that I bought when they first came out, but I've never seen this problem. Could you please ask your friend a few questions?

1) Have they ever used a flash unit on the camera. If so, which flash? These cameras have sensitive electronics that will be damaged by non Canon flash units if the trigger voltage is higher than a certain amount. Damage from this can results in symptoms similar to what you are describing.

2) What lenses is this person using with the camera. I have seen a few, not many but a few, non-Canon lenses that caused the camera to do very odd things. All of my lenses are Canon, but I did try a few that made the camera unusable. Mostly they were older third-party lenses..

In the event the that camera is toast, I would suggest getting a price from KEH for a replacement and comparing it to the repair estimate. I think that you will find a replacement unit to be much less than a repair, sad as that is.

- Randy

 

[photomc]

Well actually, I have seen the same problem on my Elan IIE. Would be curious to know if he is using the BP50 battery pack. This fits into the battery compartment and if not seated correctly will damage the contacts and cause this problem. When it happened to mine, sent back to Canon and they repaired it (must run around $150 USD at the time). If you search some of the Canon sites this will come up pretty often, it was a problem with these...some folks had them, other did not. Anyhow since the repair, no other problems.

Good Luck

 

[gnashings]

Hi guys, thanks for the input - I really appreciate it.

He has only used a Canon flash unit. He does not have/use an additional battery pack. He uses mainly two Canon primes (85mm and 50mm), and sometimes a Tamron zoom - there seems to be no co-relation between the lenses used and problem...
I suppose given how inexpensive these bodies are, its probably best to just replace it with one that has been checked out and guaranteed to work (like KEH, for example).
Thanks again,

Peter.

 

[colrehogan]

I had one of these once and wound up putting a piece of cardboard between the battery and the battery door. The battery was not getting a good connection. Have your friend try pushing the battery in with his finger with the power on. This problem was part of my decision to get rid of that camera.

 

[gnashings]

Thank you - that certainly sounds plausible! I will make sure he tries this. Thanks again, everyone.

Peter.

 

[Mark Fisher]

Also, try cleaning the contacts with a pencil eraser. It is a bit of a reach down to the contacts.

 

[gnashings]

Definitely - that pencil eraser is a good idea to reachin there! Thanks.

 

[highpeak]

I had the same problem with my Elan IIe also. When it happens, I just turn the whole thing off and back on again, it would return to normal, but a frame is wasted. It's just my way to deal with it, now it works fine w/o any repair.

I will try the above suggestions when it happen to me again, but for your friend, he's better to send it to repair if it happens a lot.