At this point the lens mechanism was quite loose, but I couldn't coerce it out of its nest. I saw one more screw that seemed to be holding it steady, but I couldn't get it to budge. I was done.

I took a break while I found some smaller, jewelers-sized screwdrivers.

Usually, picking up pieces and setting a project aside at a moment like this is a huge mistake. No matter how sharp and detailed your notes, you start to forget how things fit together. Also, after a few days, it is easy to put the project on a permanent back burner. This is particularly true if the thing you are repairing isn't vital to your existence, such as a waffle iron or 9-iron.

In my case, with the added incentive of an unfinished web article, I tracked down a multi-tip mini-screwdriver at Lowes and was back in business a few days later.

It worked. I should have found one of these at the beginning of this project. Maybe I can just erase those drilling photos and no one will know how foolish I am.

With the Gordian screw finally out, I was able to slide out the flash/capacitor clump and rotate it up and out of the way.

The lens mechanism came free!

At this point, a little black cap fell away from the camera. It was the camera tripod mounting socket from the bottom. I gently placed it back in its spot. One orientation seemed slightly more correct than another, so take a close look if you have to re-seat this little devil.

Alright, this was as disassembled as I needed to go. It was time to replace the lens mechanism and try to get this thing back into one piece.

I wanted to prepare a better handle for the ribbon connectors, so I used a little adhesive tape on them. Even so, the cables connectors provided only the smallest amount of slack, so plugging them was one of the hardest parts of this project.

First wriggle the lens mechanism into place, then the flash/capacitor lump. They pretty much squeeze in at the same time. Expect this gentle component dance to take five minutes. Screw them into place. I obviously didn't have the original screws, because I had drilled them out. I used my two originals and borrowed one more from another component.

Please continue reading page 6

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