bent pins on cf card slot? at DVinfo.net

Scott Stoneback · March 19th, 2011, 10:53 AM

Anyone else have this happen to them? My Nano went out last week on a shoot, I was not using it. It came back with bent pins on CF1 slot. Of course, in the field, they didn't know why there was an error with the unit. I figured it out with some help from Andy at CD.

The bent pins are really mashed. I have no idea why one on the side and one in the middle are bent and all the others are fine. I assume someone jammed a card in sideways but don't know for sure.

I have a SanDisk FW800 reader that was giving me problems, I looked in the slot and there was a bent pin there, too. This happened long before the Nano's pins had bent.

Here is what I am wondering: Is it possible that a card is causing these bent pins? Is the card damaged and bending pins? Can CF cards get damaged like that? I've looked at the holes on the card, there is nothing obviously wrong (like broken plastic or plugged up holes) but I'm not sure.

CD does the repair at $50 plus shipping, my unit is on the way there for repair.

FYI, the problem will surface on the Nano in this way: you will see an error code come up that says something about the card not readable. You can select format card, but it won't complete properly.

If you have inserted one card into a broken slot, that card will not work in either slot. Say you take that same card, remove it from the broken slot and put it in a good slot... the good slot will read error and not work with any card until you power down. In other words, a corrupted card from a broken slot will corrupt the other slots, too. If you take a good card and put it in a good slot, the Nano will work fine, but it will be limited to one slot, of course.

Dan Keaton · March 19th, 2011, 01:55 PM

Dear Scott,

One way to damage pins on the nanoFlash is to get debris in the female sockets of the CompactFlash cards.

Then, when inserting the card into the nanoFlash, the debris gets in the way, and if one pushes hard, the pin is bent out of the way.

The hard part, is that the debris may become dislodged, then disappear.

Thus, instead of keeping CompactFlash cards in one's pocket, it is best to keep them protected in a case.

Of course, they may be other reasons why a pin could get bent. It happens, but not too often.

We try to keep our repair costs very reasonable. We have to disassemble the nanoFlash, remove it from the case, desolder over 40 connections, then resolder a new CompactFlash card socket onto the main circuit board of the nanoFlash.

I hope you found our $50 fee to be nominal.

Marshall Staton · March 19th, 2011, 04:05 PM

If CD resolders 40 connections, I'd definitely call $50 unreasonably cheap. Thanks for what you guys do!

Scott Stoneback · March 19th, 2011, 09:53 PM

As long as the nano works when I get it... $50 is not so bad at all. I was expecting more, honestly, so yeah, that is reasonable to me.

Dan Keaton · March 20th, 2011, 12:29 AM

Dear Scott,

Your unit will have been thoroughly tested prior to us returning it.

Please check all of your CompactFlash cards for any debris.

Lance Librandi · March 20th, 2011, 04:07 PM

Hey Dan goto chip in on this one $50 is a really good price, I can not get any repair work for that price most companies charge us min $65 and that's just to get a quote.

Well done CD

Dan Keaton · March 20th, 2011, 04:32 PM

Dear Friends,

Thanks!

We just feel that this is the right thing to do.

March 19th, 2011, 10:53 AM	#1
Scott Stoneback Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: San Francisco, California Posts: 161	bent pins on cf card slot? Anyone else have this happen to them? My Nano went out last week on a shoot, I was not using it. It came back with bent pins on CF1 slot. Of course, in the field, they didn't know why there was an error with the unit. I figured it out with some help from Andy at CD. The bent pins are really mashed. I have no idea why one on the side and one in the middle are bent and all the others are fine. I assume someone jammed a card in sideways but don't know for sure. I have a SanDisk FW800 reader that was giving me problems, I looked in the slot and there was a bent pin there, too. This happened long before the Nano's pins had bent. Here is what I am wondering: Is it possible that a card is causing these bent pins? Is the card damaged and bending pins? Can CF cards get damaged like that? I've looked at the holes on the card, there is nothing obviously wrong (like broken plastic or plugged up holes) but I'm not sure. CD does the repair at $50 plus shipping, my unit is on the way there for repair. FYI, the problem will surface on the Nano in this way: you will see an error code come up that says something about the card not readable. You can select format card, but it won't complete properly. If you have inserted one card into a broken slot, that card will not work in either slot. Say you take that same card, remove it from the broken slot and put it in a good slot... the good slot will read error and not work with any card until you power down. In other words, a corrupted card from a broken slot will corrupt the other slots, too. If you take a good card and put it in a good slot, the Nano will work fine, but it will be limited to one slot, of course.

March 19th, 2011, 01:55 PM	#2
Dan Keaton Inner Circle Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Augusta Georgia Posts: 5,421	Re: bent pins on cf card slot? Dear Scott, One way to damage pins on the nanoFlash is to get debris in the female sockets of the CompactFlash cards. Then, when inserting the card into the nanoFlash, the debris gets in the way, and if one pushes hard, the pin is bent out of the way. The hard part, is that the debris may become dislodged, then disappear. Thus, instead of keeping CompactFlash cards in one's pocket, it is best to keep them protected in a case. Of course, they may be other reasons why a pin could get bent. It happens, but not too often. We try to keep our repair costs very reasonable. We have to disassemble the nanoFlash, remove it from the case, desolder over 40 connections, then resolder a new CompactFlash card socket onto the main circuit board of the nanoFlash. I hope you found our $50 fee to be nominal. __________________ Dan Keaton Augusta Georgia

March 19th, 2011, 04:05 PM	#3
Marshall Staton Major Player Join Date: May 2004 Location: Myrtle Beach, SC Posts: 241	Re: bent pins on cf card slot? If CD resolders 40 connections, I'd definitely call $50 unreasonably cheap. Thanks for what you guys do! __________________ www.marshallstaton.com

March 19th, 2011, 09:53 PM	#4
Scott Stoneback Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: San Francisco, California Posts: 161	Re: bent pins on cf card slot? As long as the nano works when I get it... $50 is not so bad at all. I was expecting more, honestly, so yeah, that is reasonable to me.

March 20th, 2011, 12:29 AM	#5
Dan Keaton Inner Circle Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Augusta Georgia Posts: 5,421	Re: bent pins on cf card slot? Dear Scott, Your unit will have been thoroughly tested prior to us returning it. Please check all of your CompactFlash cards for any debris. __________________ Dan Keaton Augusta Georgia

March 20th, 2011, 04:07 PM	#6
Lance Librandi Major Player Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: South Australia Posts: 374	Re: bent pins on cf card slot? Hey Dan goto chip in on this one $50 is a really good price, I can not get any repair work for that price most companies charge us min $65 and that's just to get a quote. Well done CD

March 20th, 2011, 04:32 PM	#7
Dan Keaton Inner Circle Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Augusta Georgia Posts: 5,421	Re: bent pins on cf card slot? Dear Friends, Thanks! We just feel that this is the right thing to do. __________________ Dan Keaton Augusta Georgia