Yes - it just happened, without any special reason. I felt from the very beginning it's not very sturdy. The flap has a pin at the front and a hole at the back; there's also a tiny spring that has fallen off. Could someone check whether there's anything else at the back, apart from the spring? I can't seem to be able to put it back together... Perhaps some photo, a close-up of how it should look when assembled? But first off all: is there any more part that could fall off that I should be looking for somewhere on the floor?

Please help!

Hope these help. I do not see anything other than the 2 pins and a spring that goes from the body to the flap.

Thanks Josh; but as far as I can tell from your pics, there IS a pin at the back, where the spring comes? It must have fallen off and got lost! Is it a metal one? How big can it be?

Ohh. as I said in the post 2 pins (at each end) and a spring. I thought you had 2 pins... sorry.

So, am I to look for a separate, metal pin, right? Such a thing would be a logical element of the assembly, but I lost it!

I has a similar problem with an old 35mm FE2 photo camera... the wind arm for the film broke off and I lost the pin, but I managed to cut a small piece of a small paperclip to use as a straight metal pin. I've had it this way for months and never had a problem. I'm not near the A1 right now, but if its a straight pin, it should work fine.

Also fixed my wristwatch with a paperclip when the original pin broke... the watch has been using a paperclip for over a year no problems

Call me lazy, but the paperclip has worked for me :)

Arghh...! I just can't believe it; I didn't find a pin but, when I shake the camera, something is rattling in the handle! Could it actually fall into it? I never supposed I will have to send my brand new Canon to the servicing for such a silly reason. Should I simply lost it, I'd think of trying to repair it (perhaps even using a paperclip as per Nick's suggestion), but I cannot leave a metal part inside the handle, which is packed with electronics!

Any idea on what else could produce rattling like this? It sounds like a very lightweight, metalic object bumping against the plastic...

I've heard the local Canon service sucks, so if anybody is in a position to contact a service he is in good relations with, and just ask what could happen and what should/colud be done about the missing pin for the handle flap, I'd own him lots of beers!

As a side note: I only hope this is *not* an indicator for the overall A1's build quality. A flap in the handle should be as sturdy as... the handle itself, it's that simple!

All,

I'd appreciate if someone takes a closer inspection on how the flap is assembled at the rear end, where the spring comes. Is there a pin inside the coil spring? Is it a metal pin, or a plastic one? Is it fixed to the handle, or does it turn freely?

The answers to the above questions are very important to me, because I don't know what I should be looking for in case it fell outside, or - in case in actually fell into the handle (and something is definitely rattling inside), and if it's a metal part - I can't power up my camera because it could short it out and cause further damage!

Thanks in advance.

hey Piotr, it does look like there is a metal pin inside the coil of the spring to me. If you hear something rattling around in the handle it must be the pin. Sorry bro, that sounds pretty frustrating....

Does appear to me that there is a metal pin inside the spring at the rear, but I can just barely see it within the gap. I can't tell if it turns freely or is fixed to the handle or flap.

Piotr -

I suggest contacting Canon Service. Maybe they are not as bad as you heard. Maybe it could be fixed while you wait, if it's in your city and you don't have to send it.

Since it's on warranty, fixing it at any local service is not a good idea even though it's very likely it could be fixed easily.

Problems like that are not so rare. I saw at least a few camcorders with missing flaps, covers, plugs etc. Sony cams were among them also.

Bogdan,

Yes, I'll have to send it to a service in Warsaw taht does warranty repairs for Canon. You're right any camera could break, but it's normal under heavy use, lots of operation hours etc. The flap on the Canon is simply too delicate and I can bet it will be troublesome for most users; just a matter of time.

Sorry to hear about the problem, but the fact is flaps and similar small elements are never as sturdy as the whole camera body and we are the users of the first series on XH cams. Since November 2006 it looks like problems users report are not general in nature which is a good thing. Other brands also suffer from annoying imperfections. This is just another sign of times we live in, but from the other side today's products are much more complex than 20 years ago for example. Obtaining warranty service is the best idea if some metal part is still inside.

Also, this basic design has been standard on XM, GL and XL cams for quite a few years now, so it ought not to be a general problem, though that's small comfort for Piotr...

Piotr -

Do you consider taking a trip to Warsaw, dropping the camera at Service Center and having fun in the city for a few hours? It's so easy to fix they should agree to do that if you schedule in advance :) Call them up.

I did something like that years ago, but that was a problem with Sony TV. Wasn't easy, but they finally agreed to fix the problem in one day.

Bogdan, I'll probably do just that - the only thing is that I must make sure they would have the missing pin in case it couldn't be found inside the handle...

Just an update, as this may happen to any of you fellow A1 users: if your handle flap breaks, do yourself a favour and switch the camera off IMMEDIATELY! My dealer (absolutely marvellous people BTW) did the inspection and indeed found the locating, metal pin inside the handle (this is the only place it can go, if it gets loose). I was very fortunate to not power up the camera, as it could cause further damage *not* covered with warranty, being originated by a mechanical event.

Where is the "handle flap."

Andrew, see the highlighted area of the attached pic. It's the hinged plastic cover on the top handle.

This somewhat worries me if it's that easy for the small spring to dislodge from it's location.

I really don't see the need for it anyway. I mean, how difficult would it seem to open the flap if this spring was never there in the first place?

Bill

Very true, Bill; in fact it' not the tiny spring that fell inside, but an even tinier metal pin that's inside it but as you said, it'd be better to have a more rugged construction here, even without a spring! It's not even doing the job of keeping the flap close, as another snap is serving this purpose well (at the front end of the flap).

It's not even doing the job of keeping the flap close, as another snap is serving this purpose well (at the front end of the flap).

The spring works the other way... to help the less physically abled to OPEN that heavy door :D

I thought I read in an earlier post it was the spring. Still though...

Bill