My NEX-5N has come down with the dreaded cannot recognize lens problem

[Kahoona]

My NEX-5N has come down with the dreaded cannot recognize lens problem. I love that camera but I have heard nothing but horror stories about Sony Service.I am supposed to send it prepaid $200 to Precision Camera and Video. I checked them out. Yelp has 2 good reports out of hundreds if bad ones and they tend to be 1 star. Has to be a better way. It is the camera and not the lenses since it gives the same results with all three e-mount lenses I have. This has happened to many of these. Has anyone found a better way other than sending it to these guys?

 

[old_tv_nut]

Do you have a camera club in your area you can consult? That has helped me find a good repair place in the past.

 

[Kahoona]

Do you have a camera club in your area you can consult? That has helped me find a good repair place in the past.

Good idea! I will check around later today.

 

[alteclipsch]

Have you tried deoxit on the contacts in the camera body?

 

[Markoneswift]

Pencil eraser on the contacts - works (most of the time) for Canon EOS. Worth a try for nothing Also check you're on the latest firmware - surprising what a firmware flash can fix sometimes....

 

[Kahoona]

Have you tried deoxit on the contacts in the camera body?

You know....I was stuck in camera nut mode and I forgot that I repaired old electronics. I tried the Alcohol and the pencil eraser and all kinds of resetting schemes. I All firmware was still up to date I forgot about Deoxit! That is always my first thought but I forgot it. I just tried it. Used the slide deoxit and lube. So far it is working. Surprised the heck out of me after months of screwing around! I assume it will act up again but perhaps not. I'll post the results here. Wouldn't that be great if it worked! Can you guess that I am pleased??????????????? Thank you!!! If you stay subscribed I'll report back once in a while.

I think I understand why it took Deoxit. The contacts on the lens are stationary. Easy to clean. The ones on the camera body are spring loaded pins.Conventional cleaning only cleans the top. I suspect that the contacts under the pins are to blame and had oxidized. It took some deoxit on a q tip to flow down and clean them. I must make sure that the solvent evaporates fully before sealing it up again. For this Sony gets $200.00. I am sure they do other things too though. Woo Hoo!!

 

[alteclipsch]

The other thing you could do (which I've done on my 5N) is to take a toothpick with a minute speck of dielectric grease and just touch each contact. I did that a couple of years ago, I haven't had a problem since. Key is to just use a tiny dot of it so there is no chance of grease migrating anywhere else.

I see you have KLH Fives in your sig. Wonderful speakers, aren't they?

 

[Kahoona]

The other thing you could do (which I've done on my 5N) is to take a toothpick with a minute speck of dielectric grease and just touch each contact. I did that a couple of years ago, I haven't had a problem since. Key is to just use a tiny dot of it so there is no chance of grease migrating anywhere else.

I see you have KLH Fives in your sig. Wonderful speakers, aren't they?

They are. They were the first speakers I bought new almost 50 years ago and I still use them on a daily basis. I pretty much restored them about 3 years ago and they sound better than ever! That grease sounds like a good idea. Might keep them from future problems. That is one of the early NEX-5N's and it goes everywhere with me. I assume that the fine dust in the deserts has gotten in there and perhaps mixed with salt spray.