'bc' error with Canon EOS 3

<p>I just bought a Canon EOS 3 (w/ PB-E2 grip) and EF 28-105 USM lens on ebay, supposedly in perfect working order. I am receiving a 'bc' error every time I press the shutter release button, and it only goes away when I press it again. During the error, the mirror is locked up. <br>

However, once I remove the lens, the shutter fires just fine. Also, (lens attached) in Av mode, the aperture cannot be modified (stuck at '00'), and will not autofocus whatsoever. <br>

I've been researching possible causes to the 'bc' error for the EOS 3 (excluding batteries, mine are new). Found this page: <a href="http://eosdoc.com/manuals/?q=BCerror">http://eosdoc.com/manuals/?q=BCerror</a>, user named 'James' seems to have identified a very similar problem, but it involves removing the front cover of the body, which I am hesitant to do.<br>

I want to say the lens is my problem, since it seems to function well without it, but am curious to what you guys think the problem might be.<br>

Thanks</p>

This Is reaching I'm sure but are you in a cold climate ,as I have had the same situation when I had my camera working in the cold and it

does it almost everytime .Never in the warm,sorry I could not be if more help.If you are anywhere close to a best buy or Walmart or etc i

would take my camera to the store and test the camera with new store lens to see if this help, as the electronics may be a part of the

problem ,as far as your lens,aslo have you cleaned the contacts on bothe camera and the lens,thsi can also give you the same issues, I

do have that happen when I chaneg out a lot of lens,which I just remembered.

<p>Well, the body and lens came from Montana and Philadelphia respectively, although that is stretching it. I did try and cleaning both contacts with rubbing alcohol and a cleaning cloth, as recommended by multiple google results, to no avail.<br>

I definitely will try putting another lens on there, once I get the chance.</p>

<p>I doubt it's the lens, probably the grip. I get that dreaded 'Bc'error message when my batteries are dead.</p>

<p>It only happens when the lens is attached, it works fine without it. Batteries are brand new.</p>

It sounds like a mirror problem. Does it happen with other lenses and have you tried the lens on another body. I would do

this to isolate the problem. If you are lucky it is just the lens / camera comunication.

<p>Also, maybe a completely unrelated issue, but the 45 red focusing zones sit just outside of the ellipse in the viewfinder. Could the focusing screen be shot?</p>

<p>Took it to the local camera shop. Tried another lens, same problem, then tried my lens on their body (t3i, i thinks) and it worked fine. So body's the fault.</p>

<p>Since you've removed the lens from the possible faults, try to remove the grip and see if you still have a problem. Depending on what you paid, if you got a good enough deal that your purchase price is good for the body alone, and the grip is the faulty item, it might be worth keeping rather than return to the seller. I had this issue with the EOS 3 I bought, but the price I paid for the body and then Canon for repair were basically the market price for a used body in good condition.</p>

<p>It seemed like the price of just a used body, but unfortunately it didn't come with the factory grip, so I can't try that. But can the grip alone be at fault when it works fine without a lens?</p>

<p>You should be able to remove the grip and put batteries directly in the camera, unless the seller didn't include the door that goes back on when the grip is removed. The grip might be supplying a little power, but not enough to operate the lens. Either way, since the price doesn't really justify footing the repair yourself, returning it is probably the best bet.</p>

 

<p>This is too funny, so I have to share. I had an EOS-3 die, months ago, with similar symptoms. Didn't matter, lens on or off, nothing but the flashing "bc" when I pressed the shutter button down. After reading this thread today I got to wondering, does mine work in any mode, drive, etc? I have a working EOS-3 so this sick body was no loss if I ruined it more. What I noticed is the bc flashing stopped on the second shutter release press, and opening up the back, I saw slight movement in the shutter blades. Stuck, maybe? I tapped the camera against my palm a couple times - nothing. Then I figured it maybe needed a bigger bump, so I dropped it, on its base, onto a tile floor from about 6" up. </p>

<p>It worked.</p>

<p>Whatever was wrong seems to be gone. I have a roll of film in it right now, so I'll verify it soon that it actually is fixed, but so far so good.</p>

<p>I wish I could try that but it's been returned.</p>

<p>Ohwells</p>

<p>Well, it didn't work entirely. The camera still errors on occasion, but it's usable for non-fleeting, non-action shots. I threw away a Canon T90 for similar behavior. Seems that EOS bodies too are susceptible to magnet fouling. I'll try taking the camera apart and see if a more permanent fix can be effected.</p>

<p>Just to follow up. I did manage to take the front cover off and look at the magnet, as described by several online posts. It's encased in plastic and can't really be accessed for cleaning even if you use a knife to cut the plastic off, or enough to access the magnet, like I did. I used a small, stiff-bristled paintbrush and some alcohol to try and clean it. It seemed to work but the next day the error returned.</p>

<p>So, figuring it was a junk body now, I banged it HARD onto the stone mantle above our fireplace. Hard enough to leave a dent in the plastic.</p>

<p>That was several weeks ago and the camera has worked flawlessly ever since. Turned off, left on, lens on or off, doesn't matter, every shot after that has been perfectly focused and nary a bc error. I don't recommend this procedure though and wouldn't have done it myself if I didn't have another EOS-3 to use. But, if you're in a pinch, in the field, and know the battery really is good, tapping your EOS on a hard surface might free it up enough to finish your shoot.</p>

<p>It's been a while now, but I wanted to give at least one more update. The hard bang has apparently fixed the bc problem - not a single occurrence since. Keeping my fingers crossed! :)</p><div></div>

<p>Patrick, did you notice a black line going down the edge on one side of your photos when you were shooting and received that dreaded BC error? I have been recently getting the same error after 6 months of use and no problems until now. I have been loosing some shots when the shutter sticks, and also the black lines on my photos have been appearing.<br>

Shooting w/ a EOS3 PB2 grip</p><div></div>

<p>I recently bought an EOS3 on Craigslist. Checked it out and everything seemed fine, but as soon as I got home I was getting nothing but the "bc" error. Fresh battery, nothing would fix it. I even brought it to my local repair shop, but of course the parts to fix it are not available. <br>

I just came across this thread and saw Patrick's post about banging it on the floor. Considering it was dead already I figured I couldn't hurt things more. What do you know? A few solid taps on the floor, and it's firing away smooth as butter. <br>

We'll see if it keeps going, but thanks for the tip Patrick! </p>

<p>Just did the banging on the floor fix and the camera is again working. You'd think for such a sophisticated camera, something like this would have been addressed by Canon's engineers.</p>

<p>I recently bought a used T90 on eBay which was supposedly "working" only to discover I cound not get it to work at all. I heard no whirring noises, the shutter did nothing at all.<br>

I would get "bc" with no bars upon mounting any of my FD lenses. Pressing the bc button would make it go away, however as soon as I moved the lens into Auto mode "A" on the dial, then I would get a flashing "bc" on the screen with nothing else. No amount of button presses or resetting would clear this, except removing the batteries. <br>

If I left the lens off and put batteries in everything seemed to work fine, except if I pushed the BC battery check button i would see bc in the display but no bars, even with known fresh batteries.<br>

I could get an EEE error if i mounted a lens with A and DEP already set.<br>

OK, it works now!<br>

Here's what I did, no matter how silly this seems:<br>

I smacked it on my floor (carpet over hard wood). Yeah. Took about 10 smacks on the base and stopping to test once or twice. And now it works. Perfectly. No errors, BC bars show up, shutter works etc.<br>

Somehow the shutter must have gotten stuck in shipping? In any event I'm glad it works now and cant wait to run some film through it.<br>

Thanks to all who went before for this tip ; without the above comments I doubt I would have ever thought to bash this pristine looking T90 on my floor a bunch of times.</p>