Would you try to repair a 135L yourself?

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Situation:

My 135L fails to reach infinity focus. AF, MF, different bodies...it appears to be an internal lens issue. It seems it needs adjusting/calibrating in order for focus to reach infinity. Meaning: it's useless to me outdoors. I have it boxed up and ready to ship to be repaired by Fixation UK. I was given a rough estimate over the phone, and even if it needs no parts replaced I can expect to spend at least £140 (~$215) after shipping. Labor alone was quoted at £111 after VAT. I have a hard time spending the money if I think I can do the work myself.

Question:

In an effort to save money, would you instead purchase a jewelers kit and attempt the repair yourself? I have never worked on lenses before, however I am usually competent enough to DIY (automotive, computer hardware, plumbing, etc). I fear that working on a lens might be too much of a precision-type task that I am ill trained for. I am, after all, in uncharted waters.

1. What would you do, or what would you recommend?
2. Is there any online material I could follow/read that might would make my repair easier?

TIA

do you plan on going in blind or do you have a manual or something to guide you?

Wile_E wrote in post #10835701
do you plan on going in blind or do you have a manual or something to guide you?

At the moment I do not have any material to go by. I was hoping the mechanics (and associated problem) would be obvious upon opening the lens up.

ken2000ac wrote in post #10835715
I was hoping the mechanics (and associated problem) would be obvious upon opening the lens up.

You can totally forget that idea.

Also - I suspect strongly that after repairing a lens, Canon does a software "calibration" of the autofocus electronics which requires at the very least special software and hardware that we could never get.

SkipD wrote in post #10835744
You can totally forget that idea.

Also - I suspect strongly that after repairing a lens, Canon does a software "calibration" of the autofocus electronics.

So, even if I *could* repair it mechanically, I would then find myself with an uncalibrated AF once it was reassembled?

ken2000ac wrote in post #10835759
So, even if I *could* repair it mechanically, I would then find myself with an uncalibrated AF once it was reassembled?

If you had to replace parts that affected the positioning any of the lens elements, I suspect strongly that would be case.

Thank you for the encouragement to just suck it up and pay the repair bill.

It's pretty frustrating, because I never dropped it or abused it in any way. It'll even manually focus up to a couple hundred yards out, but forget taking a picture of a distant mountain or even across a bay. If I didn't use it for landscapes, I honestly never would have noticed.

Kenny, you've got to ask yourself why the lens would suddenly cease to focus in the first place? Unless it was heavily knocked or something and a mechanical defect arose as a result, I just can't really see a lens just suddenly losing it's particular coding. I've pulled apart a couple of Canon bits and bobs and it's really not difficult, if you can source a parts manual - there is a link for all available ones on here if you search (that's if I don't find it first and amend this post), they give exploded diagrams help navigate your way through the internals safely.

Also, it sometimes pays to go on ebay and look for damaged/faulty version of your own lens/body/flash you wish to repair as you can buy them usually pretty cheaply, cannibalise and practice until you're confident enough to tackle your own item.

Obviously, have a camera(phone) to hand to document each stage so you don't lose track of what goes where and you should be fine!

Either way, I hope you get it successfully repaired!

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Oh I've noticed you've got an 85L... I don't recommend doing this unless you want to clean the inside of dust.. but if you focus to ~1m with it, the front element barrel just screws off lol

SkipD wrote in post #10835744
Also - I suspect strongly that after repairing a lens, Canon does a software "calibration" of the autofocus electronics which requires at the very least special software and hardware that we could never get.

I doubt that, at least from what I've seen in a couple of lenses.

But I still wouldn't do it, unless a lens diagram indicates it's just a couple of of simple sections that have to come apart from the rear. And I wouldn't pull USM stuff apart, if you have to do that to get to it.

adsayer wrote in post #10835886
Kenny, you've got to ask yourself why the lens would suddenly cease to focus in the first place?

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Thanks for the advice, truly. I really don't know how it came to have this issue, so that's part of the reason why I'm thinking I ought to just send it out for repair.

I haven't received much encouragement to go ahead with a DIY job, so as soon as I can track down some packing materials it'll be off to be repaired.

I wouldn't even consider it myself.. too complex for my simple brian.

ken2000ac wrote in post #10835983
Thanks for the advice, truly. I really don't know how it came to have this issue, so that's part of the reason why I'm thinking I ought to just send it out for repair.

I haven't received much encouragement to go ahead with a DIY job, so as soon as I can track down some packing materials it'll be off to be repaired.

No problem at all, I totally understand and I'd be facing the same predicament if something happened to mine - although I'd probably just have a poke around for the interest value alone.

I had a look at the Parts Catalogue thread but nothing for the 135 mm sadly...
But it's here for future reference.
Cheers!

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If the lens is out of warranty (as it appears is the case), it might be worthwhile to check local camera repair techs to see if they can adjust it, rather than send it to Canon. It might cost less, save on shipping and save time.

ken2000ac wrote in post #10835653
Would you try to repair a 135L yourself?

"Hell no."

Most adjustments are electronic anyway.