Canon QL

[chrisy]

Morning chaps.Just a little advice required.
I have a Canon QL 19e which has developed a strange fault in that the shutter fires when the wind on lever is operated.Now thats bad enough but it doesn't do it very time (Like I've just fired it a dozen times and it's worked fine,but when I tried it yesterday the fault reoccurred) It's a shame because when it's working correctly it takes wonderful pictures.Question is, is it worth repairing? You comments/ advice would be greatly appreciated Regards Chris

[PeterW]

Hi Chrisy,

I haven't been inside a QL19 but I had a similar thing happen a few years ago on a little Ricoh. It turned out that the link between the button and shutter was sticking. The button came up OK but the linkage stayed in the firing position. Cleaning took care of it.

Quite a simple fix really, but I don't know how much a repair shop would charge for doing it. I would suspect a minimum of an hour's labour charge. They're nice little cameras, but if I were you I'd do a spot of scouting round the net and find out what sort of price reputable classic camera dealers are asking for one in good order, and then get a quote before sending it in for repair. Make sure you get a quote, not an estimate. A quote is a contract, but an estimate is just that, an estimate. Some repair shops are good at 'discovering' that the repair took longer then estimated.
PeterW

[chrisy]

Hi Peter, Thanks for the advice. I'm going to the Cottenham Camera fair on Sunday so I'll start my search there. Mind you there's no telling what I might come home with......!