500mm AF-S with damaged mount-can I fix it?

[larry_montgomery]

<p>I purchased a 500mm AF-S version I (non-VR) lens. It was a little rough mounting it on the body, and the first time I mounted it to a TC14E II, I couldn't remove it. A camera store guy managed to get it off, but the mount is damaged. There is an authorized repair shop in town, but I had an experience where I thought they ran up the charges on a body. In addition, they want to charge $28 just to find out if the part is available! On the Nikon site, it appears that this version is no longer supported, while version II is. My first question: where might I find the mount, or at least find out if it is available? Second: Is this something I could do myself, with moderate mechanical skills and no specialized tools? I could pick up a JIS (?) screwdriver. It looks like the electrical contact strip would come off with the mount, but hopefully there is enough slack in the wires to work it through the mount. I assume the new mount would align just like the old one. Any information and advice would be appreciated.</p>

[Aoresteen]

<p>I was able to find a replacement lens mount for my daughter's Nikon kit zoom 18-55mm lens that had broken. The mounts were so cheap that I bought 5 replacement mounts for $10 off of eBay and was able to replace it myself. Nikon wanted $200 to repair it!<br>

The item is 400808857990.</p>

<p>I'd look on eBay to see if your mount is available.</p>

[ShunCheung]

<p>The 18-55 is an inexpensive consumer lens with a plastic mount. For a 500mm/f4, I think you are better off having a professional repair person to fix the mount and calibrate it. The mount just needs to be off a bit for you to get a lot of uneven, semi out-of-focus images, perhaps out of focus on one side.</p>

[Mary Doo]

<p>Try http://www.nikoncamerarepair.com. Good luck!</p>

[Aoresteen]

Shun,

 

True what you said but the op wanted to fix it himself. I would send it to a pro repair shop but that's not what he asked for.

[ShunCheung]

Anthony, IMO, the OP's attempt to fix it himself is not a wise move. That is what I am pointing out. However, that is

entirely his choice as well as his consequences.

[heimbrandt]

<p>In what way is the mount damaged? Does it have a bent/dented flange? Since you could mount to a camera and get it off, albeit with a lot of work, it sounds doable to me.</p>

<p>I see where you are coming from and have occasionally fixed things myself. The key is to not get in too deep. Do not go further than you feel confident you can get it back together again in the same condition as it was when you started working on it. You can try fixing it yourself, but be prepared to pay for a professional repair if you do run into problems such as those Shun mentions.</p>

<p>YouTube has loads of repair/disassembly videos. Watch several for various lenses and decide if you feel comfortable trying it yourself. I would presume most Nikkors (at least those from the same era) use the exact same metal part. Back in the film days I bought a Canon EF lens with a seriously dented metal flange. It was a fleamarket find and I used a model file on it after having removed the metal mount. That lens work flawlessly for years. Same with an old AF-D 28-105 Nikkor that I changed the metal mount on myself. That lens also performed as new after the repair. I found a new metal mount for the Nikkor on eBay.</p>

[pete_resetz]

<p> I haven't had to repair a Nikon lens that needed new parts in a while. (Kind of unusual me for me. I'm rough on my equipment.) The last lens I broke about 1years ago. I call Nikon Parts and they send me the exploded view of the lens so I could order the replacement parts and do the repair myself. They have done this for me in the past, but you will have to call them and find out if they will still sell parts to the general public. I hope that they still do. It's reason why I use Nikon.<br>

A list of some of Nikon's I've repaired myself over the years.<br>

FM: Chassis and lens mount. (Fell from a helicopter. The camera not me.)<br>

50mm f/1.8 AIS: Focus helical and aperture assembly. (Fell from said helicopter.)<br>

SB - 16: Hot shoe mount. (Beat some guy up with a FM w/ MD12 when he tried to steal it from me. He was bloody when I was done with him.)<br>

FM2: Shutter button assembly. (Banged hard.)<br>

135mm f/3.5 AIS: Focus barrel. (Banged hard.)<br>

300mm f/4 AF: Focus drive, gear, and bearing. (Wore it out.)<br>

F100: Body top and info glass and it's gasket. (Cracked hot shoe mount when I slipped on some ice with the body in a back pack.)<br>

F5 #1: Bottom battery compartment. (Bent and cracked when I fell 40 feet out of a tree. The camera faired much better than I did from that.)<br>

F5 #2: Ten pin socket and flexible circuit. (Ten pin socket spun and severed connection when removing a MC-30.)<br>

F5 #1 and#2 and D1X: Rubber body cladding and the adhesive tape. (The rubber stretches and dries out.)<br>

24-85mmf4.5-4.5G AF-S: Internal screws. (Tree branch fell on me on a windy day and dropped F5 with said lens attached.)<br>

60mm f2.8 Micro AF-D: (Didn't break that one. Nikon sent me the exploded schematic so I could disassemble the lens to remove the lock button on the A-M ring for switching between the two position easier.)<br>

35mm f/1.8G AF-S: Aperture assembly. (Bought it used for $60.00US. The aperture blades were out of sync.)<br>

SB80-DX: Flash tube. (Burnt out using Hi Speed Focal Plane mode to much I'm guessing.)</p>