Minolta Light Meter IV F Problem

[Tom Harrell]

Greetings to all,

I have a Minolta IV F Light Meter that has a problem. Several months ago I had it in my camera bag and took it out to take a measurement. It acted as though the battery was dead. I changed the battery out and momentarily all the functions that the meter is capable of showing on the display panel came on for a second then extinguished leaving the 100 ISO, AMBI, and the time measurement 60 (for 1/60), plus all of the small f stops accross the top of the display panel. Depressing any of the buttons does no good. You can not power it off, nor change anything it is simply stuck. Pulling the battery and reinstalling it starts the whole sequence over again.

I'm wondering if the buttons are connect to the display panel by a ribbon cable that somehow has vibrated loose. Has anyone experienced this before? Does anybody have an idea what to try? Any suggestions would be greatfully appreciated. I miss the little rascal.

Warm Regards and "Thanks In Advance"
Tom Harrell

 

[Toby]

I've had a similar problem with a minolta spotmater I simply cleaned the battery contacts - seems like a good place to start if you haven't tried it already.

 

[Tom Harrell]

Toby, thanks, I cleaned the contacts and got the same results. The contacts did not look dirty and I got nothing off of them. Problem still exists. I called Sony (they are repairing Minolta light meters) and they want to charge me $181 to fix it. That is their estimate anyway! I haven't decided what to do as yet.

Regards,
Tom

 

[Trius]

If it's not under warranty, then I would consider Quality Light Metric in LA/Hollywood, or maybe even have a look yourself before making a final decision.

 

[Wayne R. Scott]

If it's not under warranty, then I would consider Quality Light Metric in LA/Hollywood, or maybe even have a look yourself before making a final decision.

I'll second QLM. I had them repair one of my Minolta IVf, I think the total repair bill was in the $65 area. It has been working fine for the last 18 months.

I did not look at it myself, if I would have my repair bill might have been $130 to fix what I broke!

Wayne

 

[Tom Harrell]

Thank you both for your suggestions. I will remove the cover and have a look but I doubt there is much that I can do. I feel like there is a short there some place and that is why it comes on as soon as you replace the battery in it's holder. It comes on without depressing the power button, plus you cannot turn it off. Sounds shorted to me.

Regards,
Tom Harrell

 

[dubes]

I realize this is a 3 year old thread, but after a couple of years I pulled my Minolta IVF meter out of the closet, installed a fresh battery, and could not use it--same exact symptoms as Tom. Were you ever able to find a solution?

Thanks!
Mike