power failure in D20

[garbidz]

Two months happy with my D20 and today delighted as my 70-200 F/4 arrived. But, alas, as I got to taking photos with the new setup, no power. Changed battery (a newly loaded one) and after two shots same thing. Turned all possible switches on and off. Removing and refixing the lens gave two shots more. Snapping the AF-manual switch on the zoom gave a short burst of life, one series and dead again. No picture reviews, DEAD! (like Monty Python's Parrot)

No battery handles here, just the basic thing hand-held and on a tripod.

Coming from a family of engineers. I gave the camera a good shaking with a couple of gentle thuds here and there. Now it works. I just wonder how long.

No exotic appliances ahve ever been attached to my camera body, canon stuff and a Tamron macro.

Is there a mention that the D20 should be disciplined every now and then or should I send it to a (far away)warranty repair?

Am I the only one with a rebelling D20?

[Jon]

Sounds like faulty contacts in either the battery or the camera. Are both batteries that you tried Canon branded? But I'm afraid the camera will have to make the pilgrimage back to the nearest Canon Warranty Service Center.

[garbidz]

Thank you Goldmember. (ommagawd, what a title!)
Canon, all Canon. Today a session with no incidents.
According to my experience, the pilgrimage takes about two months!

I think I'll just brave it and pass it to a cam tech guy I know when on holidays where I used to live... Two months! That's what it took the Ixus. I have money, I can pay!

[Jon]

Have you a second charger you could try? Yours may have died. Also, changing the button cell may cure the problem.

[garbidz]

Well, as the machine goes on, the batteries are fully loaded so I cannot see how the charger could be to blame. After the thuds it seems to behave. I think it is a mechanical contact failure in the battery department as the problems comes with two batteries and three lenses. A little professionally oriented twist to the contacts might be all that's needed.

Thge calendar also zeroed itself so maybe the button is loose or dying. I'll check that.
Thank you.

[garbidz]

The culprit is the little circuit breaker at the lid of the battery compartment.
As the lid is partly open (even with the latch closed) the thing pops up just enough to cut the power. Any movement, flipping switches not to mention thudding the poor thing causes enough movement for the connection. Until it breaks again. I'll put some silicone there with a cotton swab, I think that will solve the problem.

[Feihung08]

Ah, good find garbidz!!
Maybe you could document the process (a few pics would be nice) and post up what you did here so that fellow owners could learn from you??

[garbidz]

mmm...I think everybody knows what a cotton swab looks like, the kind ladies use to touch up their make up. You just spray some silicone spray on one, then you wipe the target area with well-controlled circular motion. My camera has been sprayed with salt water quite a bit recently.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tags/gbdz/
I think it is part of the problem, the thing gets sticky all over!

[Feihung08]

mmm...I think everybody knows what a cotton swab looks like, the kind ladies use to touch up their make up. You just spray some silicone spray on one, then you wipe the target area with well-controlled circular motion. My camera has been sprayed with salt water quite a bit recently.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tags/gbdz/
I think it is part of the problem, the thing gets sticky all over!
Cool, thanks for the tip!
Some great shots of the ocean there. Where were those taken?

My Canon G5 just rescently got a nice salt water bath at Seaworld! Gotta be quick if you want to take pictures from any of the first front 15 rows!!

[garbidz]

I live on a little island in the middle of mighty the Indian Ocean.
A paradisiac place.
Which doesn't change the fact that the 20D still goes off and on as it pleases.
I press the battery lid and it goes on...
Got to get it fixed once I return to civilisation...before the guarantee wears off.

[LadyHawk]

Coming from a family of engineers. I gave the camera a good shaking with a couple of gentle thuds here and there.

This is a perfect example of why I don't buy used equipment. As they say, buyer beware.

No offense to you, Gardidz... I also come from a family of engineers and have seen them try to "fix" things like this too.

[garbidz]

I am pretty much along those lines also, Karen. I have been fixing these marvellous buys in pouring rain tens of miles away from home or at sea. I find it surprising that despite the avances madde in the high technology sometimes you just have to bump the thing to make it work...
Maybe the electrons get stuck in between their quantum states?
The D20 I bought brand new.
I has started to give me excuses to upgrade to a...
No, I do not say it, 1'd---oops now I said it anyway!