[kskjon]

Hello from a new user, although I've been watching for a while.

I've been shoting with my K10D for the last two months, love that camera, but now I've taken the step to get my first proper flash, a AF-540 FGZ. I got it monday evening, and played a bit with it. Worked perfectly as long as I gave some thought into where I pointed it.

However, and here's my problem, today I too it out of the pouch and attached it to my K10D. Turned it on. *beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep* (sounding almost like a buzzer), and no zoom head movement. The flash takes about 6 or 7 seconds to turn on now (time until the display becomes functional) and the zoom setting just blinks "16mm" and it seems to be locked on "m zoom". Also, the 'zoom' button on the flash doesn't do anything. (It's an FA lens I'm using and the camera is registering zoom setting just fine, so I don't think it's the lens). Oh, and it's the same thing if I turn it on off-camera.

Am I doing something wrong, or has my zoom head jammed? Or do you all-knowing gurus have other suggestions?

Edit: Forgot to mention that pulling out the wide angle panel doesn't do squat. On monday, the zoom head would move when I did that.

[xfraser]

I seem to remember somebody else having this problem, you might want to do a search of the forum, but I think they ended up returning the flash and getting a new one.

[kskjon]

SUCCESS!

I did a search on the forum and it seems I'm not alone. One suggested hitting it on the side to free it up. Tried it and presto, zoom head is working again :-D

Thanks alot, I should have done a search first before asking.

[MRRiley]

I just got an AF-540 flash as well. Glad I saw this thread. I'll try the "hit it on the side" fix if it locks up but then I'll be sending it back to Pentax to be fixed or replaced. I also would suggest that you do NOT tell them you "hit it on the side". They would probably void your warranty due to "abuse" if you admitted that fix.

Given how hard the AF_540 was to get I sure hope this problem is isolated.

[kskjon]

I just got an AF-540 flash as well. Glad I saw this thread. I'll try the "hit it on the side" fix if it locks up but then I'll be sending it back to Pentax to be fixed or replaced. I also would suggest that you do NOT tell them you "hit it on the side". They would probably void your warranty due to "abuse" if you admitted that fix.

Given how hard the AF_540 was to get I sure hope this problem is isolated.

Yeah, I would normally send it in to get a replacement, but I NEED it next week, so sending it in now wasn't an option

And what the service centre doesn't know, doesn't hurt.. uh.. me..

From searching this forum I found two or three AF-360's with the problem, and no AF-540's (except mine). I would guess it's not a very common problem. (It didn't even show up on a google search). I just hope it's solved once and for all.

[jnorth]

I've had mine since last spring, though I do not use it a lot, very little actually. It has worked fine for me when ever I have used it. I did have a 360 before that that went back 'cause it quit syncing (and not just in PTTL) with my DS, though it seemed to sync just fine on my Z1p. Either way it was useless to me and I went a few months without a PTTL flash for my DS. I'm glad the DS could still do TTL. I am starting to think about a second flash and am really gunshy about trying another 360.