A quick heads up about those tiny ribbon cables in modern mirrorless bodies

I've seen three cameras this week alone come in with the same issue: a torn flex cable from someone trying to force it. The connectors on these things are super fragile, especially on the Sony A7 series and the Fuji X-T5. You need to lift the tiny black latch fully before you even think about pulling the cable. I keep a set of angled tweezers just for this job. Has anyone found a good source for replacement cables that doesn't cost an arm and a leg?

3 comments

3 Comments

gray3143d ago

Man, watching people manhandle those little cables is like watching a gorilla try to do brain surgery. I mean, you can practically hear the tiny plastic scream from here. Maybe it's just me but I feel like if you're brave enough to open up a camera that costs more than my first car, you should have the patience for the tiny latches. Good luck finding those cables for cheap though, they know they've got you over a barrel once you rip it.

emma_lee223d ago

Totally feel you gray314, I snapped one last week.

sam_cooper3d ago

Saw a repair video where the guy used a spudger to lift the whole connector, not just yank the cable. gray314 is right about the latches, they're basically tiny plastic hooks. My hands are way too shaky for that, I'd need tweezers and a magnifying glass. The price for those parts is crazy, they charge like twenty bucks for two inches of wire.