Would you buy this Nikon body?

[ted_smith1]

Hi

 

I have a Nikon D70s currently and I want to get another one so that I can attend

a shoot with two bodies with two different lenses set up ready to go. Also, to

act as a spare.

 

My question is - I have found another D70s body on e-Bay that is described as

follows :

 

"CAMERA IS BROKEN AND IS IN NEED OF REPAIR OR CAN BE USED FOR SPARE PARTS. THE

MIRROR IS JAMMED AND IT FLASHES 'ERR'. THE BODY ALSO HAS A SMALL CRACK IN IT. IT

DOES COME WITH A GENERIC BATTERY SO IF YOU THINK YOU CAN FIX IT GRAB YOURSELF A

BARGAIN"

 

Now, I don't know, and I can't be sure, but from what I've read there's a good

chance that the mirror lockup is related to flat batteries and the 'ERR' message

perhaps related to either the mirror lockup (i.e. one fault) or having a lens

attached that is not stopped down to it's minimum aperture (i.e. two 'faults').

In both cases, they are easy to fix. Maybe he doesn't know much about SLRs,

perhaps.

 

But what if that's not the problem and it's more serious or only half of it? I

expect I'll win it for around $40 or so as it expires soon and is only up to

about $10.

 

What are your views and experiences?

 

Ted

[ShunCheung]

Sounds like you are on the verge of wasting $40, which is not exactly a huge amount of money.

 

If you indeed want a back up camera, don't you want a working one?

[fritz_eckert1]

You make no mention of the crack in the body. Sounds unfixable to me. I wouldn't waste my money.

[SCL]

Take a walk

[gary_watson]

Don't be a dope. It's plainly busted, probably a victim of fatal impact damage. If it was a film camera, we wouldn't be having this little chat.D70(s) models aren't exactly appreciating, so why not go for something that works for a little more $? How bad do you need a another doorstop, Ted?

[vivek iyer]

<i>Maybe he doesn't know much about SLRs, perhaps.</i>

<p>

What if..? ;)

[stwrtertbsratbs5]

New batteries and some duct tape and you're good to go! WHAT A DEAL!!!

[Michael R Freeman]

One thing I can assure you of is that the "ERR" message has absolutely NOTHING to do with a lens minimum aperture setting.

 

"ERR" accompanied by a jammed mirror and impact damage (small crack) means it's 99.99% likely to be much more serious than a flat battery and is indeed a doorstop. The sellers history indicates that he has sold lots of Nikon items in the past - I sincerely doubt he would be so clueless as to not try a charged battery to see if that was the reason for the fault.

 

To answer your question, no, I would not buy this Nikon body.

[r_johnston]

First, No I would not.

Second, bid the last minute for the next highest bid, like $11. But, with a crack in the body, I'd not bid. That crack may be a light leak also, so would mean no pictures. I'd rather bid like I do on ebay for everything... using a snipe Program, which puts a bid in the last minute at the minimum. Got my D200 that way. Bid on 27 cameras before I got one at the lowest bid possible from Cameta Camera, new, a real bargain. No one else bid on it, so got it for their lowest price. (Took 3 months just researching prices on the Internet and EBay with legitimate offers.) Cameta had the best prices, for best packages, and excellent service.

 

I'd do a search for all cameras I wanted for a second one. Personally Id get a D50 instead of a D70. (Did a search for review comparisons.) Then set up a bid to be submitted in the last minute for one or more if they close different days. First one you get, delete the other bids. There are several programs which do this. You get a camera in good condition, that you know you can use, for the lowest price. I never bid on the higher priced ones, if they do not sell, they advertise them again for a lower price.

[ronald_moravec1]

Don`t waste $40.

[ted_smith1]

lol...Ok, seems like I'd be a fool for giving it a go. I just wondered whether in people's experiences it was possible\likely to be a simple fault. But yes, the crack in the body does suggest something more serious.

 

Incidentally though, the ERR message DOES have something to do with minimum (f22 or f32) aperture on the lens - if you don't physically stop it down to that, it won't function and you see ERR - this is the case with many DSLRs I thought but it definately is with the D70s.

 

The only reason I'm going for a second D70s is I don't want one camera noticeably better than the other - I'll just end up using the better all the time and this is not my intention. I want two bodies - one with my 80-200mm lens and the other with my 60mm Macro or 50mm standard attached. And at my level, the D70s suits me well.

 

Anyway, thanks again - I think I'll give this one a miss. :-)

 

Ted

[scott_warn]

Ted, check your manual. FEE is the error indication for a lens being mounted and not set to the minumum aperture. ERR indicates a fault with the shutter sequencing cycle. For which Nikon recomends test firing the shutter and returning the camera if the error persists.

[Michael R Freeman]

<i>"Incidentally though, the ERR message DOES have something to do with minimum (f22 or f32) aperture on the lens - if you don't physically stop it down to that, it won't function and you see ERR"</i><P>

 

No. You see <b>"FEE"</b> with an improperly set aperture ring. There is a difference. Check your manual. ;-)<P>

A blinking ERR indicates a camera malfunction. It's seldom a good message to get on your camera. If Nikon had a wry sense of humour, they would probably replace a blinking ERR with a blinking $$$ message.

[johnw63]

FEE-ERR.

 

I would certainly FEAR getting a lump of plastic, on this auction. :)

[wei_who]

I just looked at the picture. The screws on the D70S body are all "white".(someone already tried to repair) I did a lot of DSLR repairs before. You may want to buy it only for non-circuit related parts (if you're lucky), not as a spare camera. Sunday night is also very bad timing for buyers too (I'd estimate bids ending near $100).

[graham_marsden]

You would be better rolling dollar bills into balls, and flicking them at passers by. It would be more fun than owning this heap of junk !

<IMG SRC="http://www.clicksmilies.com/s1106/alles_moegliche/mixed-smiley-004.gif">

[Hector Javkin]

<i>Maybe he doesn't know much about SLRs, perhaps.</i><p>

So you are hoping to grab a bargain by taking advantage of what you perceive as the owner's ignorance of what that D70 is worth. You deserve that camera. Go for it.

[aaron l]

You're kidding, right?

[ted_smith1]

My apologies - I'd received the 'FEE' message before when I accidentally mounted a lens without stopping it down. I confused it with ERR, which I've never yet had. My mistake.

 

My apologies, also, for even asking the question. I've never considered buying a 'faulty body' and all my query related to was whether you can sometimes get a bargain with an easily repairable fault - and I was unsure as to whether this might be an example. As I have no experience of faulty cameras I didn't know whether this was, or was not, a serious issue. Many of you have clarified this for me, and I thank you for that. Those who have just ridiculed me though - I'm not sure that helps with the photo.net community spirit. I merely asked for your experiences, not your sarcasm. How are people to learn from those on here with experience if every time they ask a question they're belittled?

 

I think we've made the point - the camera is junk. I'll not be buying it. Thanks.

[tim_knight]

Ted, Robert's suggest to get a D50 is great if you realize that the D50 uses SD cards instead of CD cards. Might be an issue at a shoot! I have the D50 and feel it would make a great backup except for the menory card difference.

[briany]

$40 to get to take apart a D70 without fear of screwing something up?? Count me in!!!