Forgot Password
Pentax Camera Forums Home
 

Reply
Show Printable Version Search this Thread
04-27-2021, 01:00 PM   #1
New Member




Join Date: Apr 2021
Location: Maryland
Posts: 21
K-3 with malfunctioning display and lenses

Hello, Pentax Forums. II'm a newbie on the forums but have been a semi-pro and professional photographer for about 12 years. My favorite K-3 camera was just repaired (a sticking shutter curtain) by Camera Service Company in Atlanta, GA. My home base is in Maryland, so the camera was shipped back and forth.

I received the "repaired" camera today, 27 April 2021. Initially it worked but within five minutes of operation, the LCD started flickering on and off, the shutter clicked once or twice, and the lens (a kit DA 18-55) kept cycling back and forth trying to focus. The camera would still take pictures but the LCD remained black with the exception of image display. I could see them and delete them, but otherwise a black LCD. Live view still worked. The firmware is also up to date.

Turning it off and on would reset it, but the same things happened repeatedly within about 30 seconds of the reset. I tried a new battery, same result. I checked the SD port door and it seemed fine. Switched the SD card between slots, still same result. The same result occurred in multiple modes, with manual focus, with auto-focus, manual triggering, remote control triggering, and with a different lens (Tamron SP 10-24mm).

Before the latest round of malfunction, the K3 with the Tamron 10-24 was my go-to rig for my real estate photography business, as well as a personal favorite for hobby shooting. Before I call Camera Service Company, has anyone experienced this phenomenon? Any home remedies out there? Insights and assistance would be greatly appreciated.

04-27-2021, 01:18 PM   #2
Moderator
Loyal Site Supporter
Loyal Site Supporter
pschlute's Avatar

Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Surrey, UK
Photos: Gallery
Posts: 8,115
QuoteOriginally posted by Oncatography Quote
I received the "repaired" camera today, 27 April 2021. Initially it worked but within five minutes of operation, the LCD started flickering on and off, the shutter clicked once or twice, and the lens (a kit DA 18-55) kept cycling back and forth trying to focus. The camera would still take pictures but the LCD remained black with the exception of image display. I could see them and delete them, but otherwise a black LCD. Live view still worked. The firmware is also up to date.
I don't know exactly what you are expecting to hear, but you should send it back to the repairers. They have failed to repair it.
04-27-2021, 02:24 PM   #3
Veteran Member
brewmaster15's Avatar

Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: CT
Posts: 1,860
QuoteOriginally posted by Oncatography Quote
Hello, Pentax Forums. II'm a newbie on the forums but have been a semi-pro and professional photographer for about 12 years. My favorite K-3 camera was just repaired (a sticking shutter curtain) by Camera Service Company in Atlanta, GA. My home base is in Maryland, so the camera was shipped back and forth.

I received the "repaired" camera today, 27 April 2021. Initially it worked but within five minutes of operation, the LCD started flickering on and off, the shutter clicked once or twice, and the lens (a kit DA 18-55) kept cycling back and forth trying to focus. The camera would still take pictures but the LCD remained black with the exception of image display. I could see them and delete them, but otherwise a black LCD. Live view still worked. The firmware is also up to date.

Turning it off and on would reset it, but the same things happened repeatedly within about 30 seconds of the reset. I tried a new battery, same result. I checked the SD port door and it seemed fine. Switched the SD card between slots, still same result. The same result occurred in multiple modes, with manual focus, with auto-focus, manual triggering, remote control triggering, and with a different lens (Tamron SP 10-24mm).

Before the latest round of malfunction, the K3 with the Tamron 10-24 was my go-to rig for my real estate photography business, as well as a personal favorite for hobby shooting. Before I call Camera Service Company, has anyone experienced this phenomenon? Any home remedies out there? Insights and assistance would be greatly appreciated.
Welcome to the forum! Best suggestion is send it back for repair as it sounds like they did not fix it properly.

Good luck. Post how you make out.

Al
04-27-2021, 02:44 PM   #4
Site Supporter
Site Supporter
jatrax's Avatar

Join Date: May 2010
Location: Washington Cascades
Photos: Gallery | Albums
Posts: 12,991
QuoteOriginally posted by pschlute Quote
I don't know exactly what you are expecting to hear, but you should send it back to the repairers. They have failed to repair it.
This ^^^^^^

They should have at least some repair warranty. If I had to guess they left a ribbon cable a bit loose inside but that's only a guess. And doesn't matter. You paid them to fix it, not break it more.

04-27-2021, 04:46 PM   #5
New Member




Join Date: Apr 2021
Location: Maryland
Posts: 21
Original Poster
QuoteOriginally posted by pschlute Quote
I don't know exactly what you are expecting to hear, but you should send it back to the repairers. They have failed to repair it.
I will be on the phone with them tomorrow, for sure. I was curious to hear if others had come across it. I will be taking notes and I'll share how things work out with them.
04-27-2021, 09:04 PM   #6
Loyal Site Supporter
Loyal Site Supporter
UncleVanya's Avatar

Join Date: Jul 2014
Photos: Gallery | Albums
Posts: 28,182
New behavior in my recollection. Occasionally a repair results in failure but not this particular failure.
04-28-2021, 07:02 AM   #7
Pentaxian
Wasp's Avatar

Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: Pretoria
Photos: Gallery
Posts: 4,650
Sounds like it was not put back together properly after the repair, i.e. something got broken that was not broken before .

04-28-2021, 12:58 PM - 1 Like   #8
New Member




Join Date: Apr 2021
Location: Maryland
Posts: 21
Original Poster
Indeed!

QuoteOriginally posted by Wasp Quote
Sounds like it was not put back together properly after the repair, i.e. something got broken that was not broken before .
Most definitely! I contacted them this morning and they confirmed that none of that should be happening. So I'm shipping it back for diagnostics and repair on their tab. Fingers crossed it sticks.
04-29-2021, 01:27 AM   #9
Pentaxian
Andrea K's Avatar

Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Rome, Italy
Posts: 822
In these cases, who pays the shipping costs?
04-29-2021, 04:07 AM   #10
New Member




Join Date: Apr 2021
Location: Maryland
Posts: 21
Original Poster
QuoteOriginally posted by Andrea K Quote
In these cases, who pays the shipping costs?

Hello, Andrea K!

Typically the repair shops pay for shipping when they are at fault. I verified it with this company, and they will be covering the shipping costs.
04-29-2021, 05:58 AM   #11
Veteran Member




Join Date: Feb 2019
Posts: 2,009
I cross my fingers for the K-3 and for you. Let's hope it will get fixed for real this time.
04-30-2021, 10:59 AM   #12
Loyal Site Supporter
Loyal Site Supporter




Join Date: Nov 2018
Location: California's Gold Country
Posts: 98
Your troubleshooting efforts

You did a great job troubleshooting. It was logical and thorough, topped off with your question here. Great job! The loose cable seems to me the most likely cause of the problem. Good luck with the repair of the repair.
05-02-2021, 06:34 AM   #13
New Member




Join Date: Apr 2021
Location: Maryland
Posts: 21
Original Poster
QuoteOriginally posted by Roam Redway Quote
You did a great job troubleshooting. It was logical and thorough, topped off with your question here. Great job! The loose cable seems to me the most likely cause of the problem. Good luck with the repair of the repair.
I learned how to be a troubleshooter from my father, who was an auto mechanic for almost 50 years. Function and scale are very different between cars and cameras, but the principles for diagnostics translate well. Thank you!
05-02-2021, 06:53 AM   #14
Site Supporter
Site Supporter
Mbaez's Avatar

Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: NY
Photos: Albums
Posts: 3,726
QuoteOriginally posted by Oncatography Quote
Hello, Pentax Forums. II'm a newbie on the forums but have been a semi-pro and professional photographer for about 12 years. My favorite K-3 camera was just repaired (a sticking shutter curtain) by Camera Service Company in Atlanta, GA. My home base is in Maryland, so the camera was shipped back and forth.

I received the "repaired" camera today, 27 April 2021. Initially it worked but within five minutes of operation, the LCD started flickering on and off, the shutter clicked once or twice, and the lens (a kit DA 18-55) kept cycling back and forth trying to focus. The camera would still take pictures but the LCD remained black with the exception of image display. I could see them and delete them, but otherwise a black LCD. Live view still worked. The firmware is also up to date.

Turning it off and on would reset it, but the same things happened repeatedly within about 30 seconds of the reset. I tried a new battery, same result. I checked the SD port door and it seemed fine. Switched the SD card between slots, still same result. The same result occurred in multiple modes, with manual focus, with auto-focus, manual triggering, remote control triggering, and with a different lens (Tamron SP 10-24mm).

Before the latest round of malfunction, the K3 with the Tamron 10-24 was my go-to rig for my real estate photography business, as well as a personal favorite for hobby shooting. Before I call Camera Service Company, has anyone experienced this phenomenon? Any home remedies out there? Insights and assistance would be greatly appreciated.
Interesting, I didn't know there was another repair store for Pentax besides Precision Camera. I think that one of my cameras will need a shutter replacement. How much did they charge you?
05-03-2021, 08:40 AM - 2 Likes   #15
New Member




Join Date: Apr 2021
Location: Maryland
Posts: 21
Original Poster
QuoteOriginally posted by Mbaez Quote
Interesting, I didn't know there was another repair store for Pentax besides Precision Camera. I think that one of my cameras will need a shutter replacement. How much did they charge you?
Mbaez:

Original estimate was $185.00 USD, with $28.46 for shipping, total of $213.46. That's less expensive than my past experiences with Precision. My camera was well out of warranty, and ironically my last experience with Precision was a bit less than satisfying, although not as spectacularly off. The K3 is back iwith Camera Service Pro, to be set right at cost to them. I can say that CSP has been understanding and pleasantly helpful with this issue so far, hoping that holds up. We'll see!
Reply

Bookmarks
  • Submit Thread to Facebook Facebook
  • Submit Thread to Twitter Twitter
  • Submit Thread to Digg Digg
Tags - Make this thread easier to find by adding keywords to it!
blank lcd, camera, focus, home, k3, lcd, lcd display issues, lens, malfunction, pentax help, pentax service, photography, repair, result, sd, service, tamron, troubleshooting, wait, warranty
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Sony A7R III is only camera malfunctioning in weatherproofing test beholder3 Photographic Industry and Professionals 8 01-09-2018 04:32 AM
Manual focus workaround for malfunctioning Sigma HSM lenses on K1 Steinback Pentax K-1 & K-1 II 12 02-04-2017 09:14 PM
K5 light meter malfunctioning allart Pentax K-5 & K-5 II 5 07-27-2013 07:35 PM
Malfunctioning K-x with teleconverter Dorkus Malorkus Pentax DSLR Discussion 2 08-20-2010 05:15 AM
Is My Computer Malfunctioning, Or Has The Forum Changed Recently?? baltochef920 Site Suggestions and Help 2 04-05-2009 01:23 PM



All times are GMT -7. The time now is 12:51 AM. | See also: NikonForums.com, CanonForums.com part of our network of photo forums!
  • Red (Default)
  • Green
  • Gray
  • Dark
  • Dark Yellow
  • Dark Blue
  • Old Red
  • Old Green
  • Old Gray
  • Dial-Up Style
Hello! It's great to see you back on the forum! Have you considered joining the community?
register
Creating a FREE ACCOUNT takes under a minute, removes ads, and lets you post! [Dismiss]
Top