Pentax IstDs: left side buttons stopped working

heki · 10-06-2019, 07:41 AM

Hi everyone,

my young daughter wants to take photos ... And i remembere i have an old pentax istds in the closet. I put batteries in and bam, the camera turns on ...
The problem is that the left side buttons dont work so i cant get into the menu to change picture quality and stuff like that ... taken pictures are all fine,
after taking a photo it displays it on the screen, but just those darn buttons ... The camera itself its worthless so i am not planing on repairing it. Is there
a way to repair it by my own?

Regards,
HEki

pschlute · 10-06-2019, 09:53 AM

Originally posted by heki

Hi everyone,

my young daughter wants to take photos ... And i remembere i have an old pentax istds in the closet. I put batteries in and bam, the camera turns on ...
The problem is that the left side buttons dont work so i cant get into the menu to change picture quality and stuff like that ... taken pictures are all fine,
after taking a photo it displays it on the screen, but just those darn buttons ... The camera itself its worthless so i am not planing on repairing it. Is there
a way to repair it by my own?

Regards,
HEki

I suggest two approaches:

1. Take battery out for 24 hours. install battery. Repeat.

failing that....

2. Take camera to nearest hard surface and give it a good bash

**AstroDave** · 10-06-2019, 10:26 AM

Originally posted by pschlute

2. Take camera to nearest hard surface and give it a good bash

Not as "wacky" as it sounds! (I'd thump it with my hands, though.) The buttons may have developed some oxidation while out of use and some serious jiggling may help them come back to life.

Push them a lot of times, wiggling from side to side perhaps. A judicious drop or two of contact cleaner inserted around the edges might help, too. Open the door on that side - does that allow any better access to the switches?

**Just1MoreDave** · 10-06-2019, 12:17 PM

I'd take the camera apart, spray electrical contact cleaner in all the likely spots and reassemble. It sounds complicated but it doesn't look that bad to me.

You need the contact cleaner and a #00 screwdriver. Ideally you'd use a JIS screwdriver which is harder to find. Phillips will work but not quite fit the screwheads.

Step 1 is removing the bottom plate. Get some paper and draw an outline of the bottom plate of the camera (where the serial number is). Mark the location of the screws. As you remove a screw, tape it to its location on the paper diagram. There are different types and lengths, so this helps when you reassemble.

Step 2 is removing the side plates. The side with the AF/MF switch is easy, with three visible screws. Two of these are also holding on the back plate (with the rear screen), in the upper and lower rear corners. One is low and forward. The other side plate has screws hidden under the rubber grip. You have to peel the rubber off to see the screws.

Step 3 is to slide up the viewfinder surround to remove that, and unscrew the two screws on either side of it.

At this point I'm not sure what you need to do. You want to detach the back plate, similar to this photo of a DL, pretty similar:

You have removed all the screws holding it on. But you may need to loosen the top plate first. There is a screw hidden in the battery compartment, and another visible screw above the strap mount next to the top LCD. The top plate has a lot of wires attached and is just another floppy delicate thing, so avoid that if you can, and try to get the back plate off without it. But if it looks like you need force, loosen the top plate and push it up a little.

Once the backplate is free, the only wires are connected at the bottom, so you can set the camera down upright and the screen side down, as in the photos. There are two connectors, one for the screen and one for the buttons. Blast all the button connector stuff with contact cleaner, cross your fingers and reassemble.

Another photo which kind of shows the screw locations. Except the four side ones are out of focus and one of the tabs next to the viewfinder broke off:

ghosteclipse · 10-06-2019, 08:27 PM

Goodluck. I have an ist DS and still use it today. I ran to some problems before but using eneloop batteries seems to made them disappear.

**Just1MoreDave** · 10-06-2019, 08:40 PM

I just realized that this broken DL parts camera has the 2.5" rear LCD. I could probably swap back plates with my DS, which would upgrade my DS to a DS2! Pentax released a final firmware for the DS to add DS2 features, so the only difference was the rear screen. I can swap the DS flash solenoids with the crappy green one, then buy another aperture block failure camera and have a 5th DSLR.

Why I need to do this isn't clear.

**photogem** · 10-08-2019, 11:18 AM

Originally posted by Just1MoreDave

I just realized that this broken DL parts camera has the 2.5" rear LCD. I could probably swap back plates with my DS, which would upgrade my DS to a DS2!

Won't solve the problem: The left buttons will still not work.

But it is pretty easy to disassemble a DL and clean the contacts.

10-06-2019, 07:41 AM	#1
heki New Member Join Date: May 2012 Posts: 15	Pentax IstDs: left side buttons stopped working Hi everyone, my young daughter wants to take photos ... And i remembere i have an old pentax istds in the closet. I put batteries in and bam, the camera turns on ... The problem is that the left side buttons dont work so i cant get into the menu to change picture quality and stuff like that ... taken pictures are all fine, after taking a photo it displays it on the screen, but just those darn buttons ... The camera itself its worthless so i am not planing on repairing it. Is there a way to repair it by my own? Regards, HEki

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10-06-2019, 09:53 AM	#2
pschlute Moderator Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Surrey, UK Photos: Gallery Posts: 8,192	Originally posted by heki Hi everyone, my young daughter wants to take photos ... And i remembere i have an old pentax istds in the closet. I put batteries in and bam, the camera turns on ... The problem is that the left side buttons dont work so i cant get into the menu to change picture quality and stuff like that ... taken pictures are all fine, after taking a photo it displays it on the screen, but just those darn buttons ... The camera itself its worthless so i am not planing on repairing it. Is there a way to repair it by my own? Regards, HEki I suggest two approaches: 1. Take battery out for 24 hours. install battery. Repeat. failing that.... 2. Take camera to nearest hard surface and give it a good bash

10-06-2019, 10:26 AM	#3
AstroDave Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: May 2007 Location: Flagstaff, Arizona Posts: 1,637	Originally posted by pschlute 2. Take camera to nearest hard surface and give it a good bash Not as "wacky" as it sounds! (I'd thump it with my hands, though.) The buttons may have developed some oxidation while out of use and some serious jiggling may help them come back to life. Push them a lot of times, wiggling from side to side perhaps. A judicious drop or two of contact cleaner inserted around the edges might help, too. Open the door on that side - does that allow any better access to the switches?

10-06-2019, 12:17 PM	#4
Just1MoreDave Site Supporter Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Aurora, CO Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 6,340	I'd take the camera apart, spray electrical contact cleaner in all the likely spots and reassemble. It sounds complicated but it doesn't look that bad to me. You need the contact cleaner and a #00 screwdriver. Ideally you'd use a JIS screwdriver which is harder to find. Phillips will work but not quite fit the screwheads. Step 1 is removing the bottom plate. Get some paper and draw an outline of the bottom plate of the camera (where the serial number is). Mark the location of the screws. As you remove a screw, tape it to its location on the paper diagram. There are different types and lengths, so this helps when you reassemble. Step 2 is removing the side plates. The side with the AF/MF switch is easy, with three visible screws. Two of these are also holding on the back plate (with the rear screen), in the upper and lower rear corners. One is low and forward. The other side plate has screws hidden under the rubber grip. You have to peel the rubber off to see the screws. Step 3 is to slide up the viewfinder surround to remove that, and unscrew the two screws on either side of it. At this point I'm not sure what you need to do. You want to detach the back plate, similar to this photo of a DL, pretty similar: You have removed all the screws holding it on. But you may need to loosen the top plate first. There is a screw hidden in the battery compartment, and another visible screw above the strap mount next to the top LCD. The top plate has a lot of wires attached and is just another floppy delicate thing, so avoid that if you can, and try to get the back plate off without it. But if it looks like you need force, loosen the top plate and push it up a little. Once the backplate is free, the only wires are connected at the bottom, so you can set the camera down upright and the screen side down, as in the photos. There are two connectors, one for the screen and one for the buttons. Blast all the button connector stuff with contact cleaner, cross your fingers and reassemble. Another photo which kind of shows the screw locations. Except the four side ones are out of focus and one of the tabs next to the viewfinder broke off:

10-06-2019, 08:27 PM	#5
ghosteclipse Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2014 Posts: 165	Goodluck. I have an ist DS and still use it today. I ran to some problems before but using eneloop batteries seems to made them disappear.

10-06-2019, 08:40 PM	#6
Just1MoreDave Site Supporter Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Aurora, CO Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 6,340	I just realized that this broken DL parts camera has the 2.5" rear LCD. I could probably swap back plates with my DS, which would upgrade my DS to a DS2! Pentax released a final firmware for the DS to add DS2 features, so the only difference was the rear screen. I can swap the DS flash solenoids with the crappy green one, then buy another aperture block failure camera and have a 5th DSLR. Why I need to do this isn't clear.

10-08-2019, 11:18 AM	#7
photogem Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2015 Posts: 3,520	Originally posted by Just1MoreDave I just realized that this broken DL parts camera has the 2.5" rear LCD. I could probably swap back plates with my DS, which would upgrade my DS to a DS2! Won't solve the problem: The left buttons will still not work. But it is pretty easy to disassemble a DL and clean the contacts.

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