problem with camera and tripod

Alright gang, here’s one for your input.

Today I was out shooting and encountered this problem. When I went to fire my Bronica SQ-Ai, it wouldn’t. It was mounted on a tripod. After fiddling with everything, I took it off the tripod and it fired. Both with and w/o the cable release. When I put it back on the tripod it would not work again. When I depressed the shutter release button I heard the contact being made. The same with the cable release. I’m thinking that when the camera is on the tripod something is shorting out. I have used this camera and tripod combination since 2005. Today is the fist time this has happened. I’ve had the tripod for about 20 years and never had this problem with any other cameras.

Thanks

Mike

Have a look in the tripod mount ... see anything ?

Try firing the shutter sequentially as you are screwing in the tripod mount, you'll find thee point at which it starts crapping out - maybe the screw is too long, maybe its independent of the screw length and when tight the flexing of the body is shorting it somehow ...

Screw too long can be fixed, otherwise get yourself some jewellers drivers, delorean, flux capacitor and your fave single malt then dive into that bad boy

When you attach the tripod is the camera base plate deforming? If so it might be interfering with the shutter release. Might be a case of not tightening it so much or getting a tripod head with a large quick release adaptor that spread the pressure over a wider area.

And if it screws into the camera too deeply, you can fit a spacer between the camera and the tripod.

They used to sell these in the 1980s. It's simply a nylon (or other material) disc with a hole in it.

Don't know about the Ai, but the A has the battery compartment on the camera base. I would guess that tightening the camera to the tripod head is somehow breaking battery contact in the compartment. Try cleaning the battery compartment contacts and the battery contacts. You may need to 'reform' the contacts also. Another trick you may wish to try is removing the battery cover, (not the battery) and trying that. Clearly he tripod head is either shorting or cutting battery contact.

Good luck - and let us know.

Bob

Sorry about the slug reply, I was hit with a flu that kicked my a**. Sat. (1/19) I played with the camera and the tripod. The first thing I did was to apply pressure to the battery compartment. The camera fired with and w/out the cable release. Then I put the camera on the tripod and screwed it in partway and the camera again fired. I then tightened everything down properly and guess what, it all worked. Now I am left scratching my head wondering when it will happen next. Probably in a remote area on a long road trip.

Thank you for all your input

Mike