The only thing I can add would be to check the voltage of the batteries - my original AF360FGZ started to malfunction on NmHi batteries last year. It would just seem to 'reboot' randomly - I'd hear the groan of the zoom mechanism moving and the flash would be reset as if the batteries had been removed and replaced. After switching to alkaline batteries the problem went away.
It _does_ sound like the yellow/white switch is malfunctioning, so if you are gonna give up on the flash maybe try giving spritzing the switch with some contact cleaner. That might fix it or might ruin it for good...but if you are gonna toss it why worry. My AF360FGZ has been bashed to hell, but still works reliably. It once fell off the camera onto railroad tracks - which is bad, but worse because I had the camera on a tripod and over my shoulder at the time - probably an 8 foot drop. It's taken many a fall in the cold while shooting snow crystals. It has loose bits in it that rattle when you shake the flash and sometimes jam the zoom mechanism (a good whack usually resolves the problem). The battery door closes tight but no longer snaps in place (seems to stay closed, though.) The good news is that it is now capable of a -15 degree downward tilt... I bought a new one which is waiting in the wings for this original one to finally get destroyed. For the - literally - tens of thousands of photos I've taken with my original AF360 over the last many years, I have to say it owes me nothing at this point. - MCC Tom Reese wrote: > my AF-360FGZ is no longer: > > zooming > the light, format, zoom and channel buttons no longer work > the test button activates the modeling light only > > I put fresh batteries in it but it didn't help. > > The flash hasn't been dropped or anything like that. > > Is it worth fixing? Has anyone had one of these flashes repaired? How much > did the repair cost? > > Does anyone have any idea what a used one is worth? > > Should I try to get it fixed or replace it with a 540FGZ (if I can find one)? > > thanks for any and all replies (even the smart-ass ones) > > Tom Reese > -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Mark Cassino Photography Kalamazoo, Michigan www.markcassino.com - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
