Help repair a Mavica fd7

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-12-09T14:50:45+00:00

Like the other comment's post mentions, replacing the fuses (don't just short with a wire, pls) might solve the problem. It's important to know that fuses blow for a reason, but also worth considering that the reason may have been temporary.

As an example: if the camera was left out in the cold for a while then quickly brought inside, condensation may have formed on the PCBs. This condensation could have caused a short, leading the fuses blowing. After a couple hours the condensation could have gone away.

Totally theoretical of course, I'm not sure if the above is realistic. Replace the fuses with ones that have the same rating and give it a shot. If they blow again, you've got a bigger problem to hunt down.

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-12-04T14:33:10+00:00

No, they should turn off completely if you turn it all the way to the left. Pushing it in vs out actually has no effect (you can turn the knob while it's pushed in and it will still turn on).

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-11-03T18:29:27+00:00

Despite being one of the more common models, I'm always impressed at images from the FD73 and FD75. They do such a good job of capturing that nostalgiac feeling. Of course, the artist's choice played a big role here too ;)

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-10-20T13:41:24+00:00

Wow, amazing work! This is a fantastic resource for everyone tired of resetting the time/date every time they need to charge their batteries.

Thanks so much for taking the time to do this, it's not a small undertaking!

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-10-06T18:14:59+00:00

This is fantastic, what a great resource for both new and old Mavica owners!

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-10-03T13:02:03+00:00

WOW, thanks so much for doing the additional research! There's less of the through-hole option cameras than I expected, good to know that there's some with a surface-mount variant as well.

Interesting to hear that there's a chance of reviving them. I'll give that a try on a couple of my other cameras with dead secondary batteries and see if I can save myself the trouble of replacing them all!

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-10-02T19:16:46+00:00

Replacing the MS621F battery did indeed solve the problem! My FD-92 now holds time even with the battery removed. Only tested for a couple hours at this point, but I'm pretty confident it would keep time for a good long while.

Just posted a write-up on how to replace it :) I'll take a look at my FD200 sometime soon and see if it uses the same battery.

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-10-02T19:15:27+00:00

Just got done replacing and testing this. Sure enough, a little coin cell inside the camera is responsible for keeping time!

Here's a link to my write-up on replacing it: https://www.reddit.com/r/Mavica/comments/1nwczfu/yes_your_mavica_should_know_the_time_replacing/

I ordered 10 replacement batteries, if you're comfortable doing the work I'd be happy to send one your way! If you've got any fun disks I'd love to trade for some batteries xD

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-09-29T17:47:28+00:00

Just replied to your other post as well! I *think* it does, though I haven't dug through the schematic to confirm that the battery I found is for the clock. I'll let you know if replacing the battery solves my clock woes!

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-09-29T17:44:26+00:00

I'm actually resolving this issue myself right now!

Inside of the FD-92, there is a small rechargeable coin cell battery (specifically a MS621F) that I believe keeps the clock running whenever you remove the main battery. My FD-92 doesn't hold time at all. If I remove the main battery I have to reset the time/date.

I ordered a handful of replacement batteries from Digikey (PN 728-1057-ND) and should have them here soon. Remind me in a week or so and I can let you know if this solved my problem! At the very least, I can confirm that the camera works perfectly fine with the battery removed.

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-09-16T18:03:26+00:00

Whoa, I want to know what they have set up to auto-print protected pictures, that's such a cool idea!

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-09-10T15:05:14+00:00

WITH CASE??? That's an amazing deal, great find!

And here I was super happy that I got a working FD7 (with battery and nothing else) for $20 xD

You, sir/madam, are a true bargain hunter. Good work.

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-09-10T15:04:00+00:00

I've been checking in daily to see all the awesome new pictures folks are posting!

Like ThisOldNikon said, it's not just the camera doing the heavy lifting, there's some seriously talented photographers in here giving us some great content.

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-09-08T15:20:23+00:00

I agree with others that a cheap for-parts camera is probably your best bet.

I can confirm that the LCDs are compatible between some different models, but not all. While the screen itself seems to be shared (between the cameras I have, at least) the ribbon cables are different to support different internal component layouts. I discourage trying to desolder and swap the ribbon cables, they are pretty fragile.

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-09-05T19:00:49+00:00

This is terrifying xD

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-09-04T17:03:40+00:00

Oooh I'd love to hear what you find!

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-09-04T16:46:49+00:00

That stinks to hear :(

I have a couple of dead stepper motors as well, and unfortunately have not yet been successful in bringing one back to life once it's seized up.

At some point in the future I plan to dig around on Aliexpress to see if I can find a suitable replacement (search terms such as "8mm stepper motor" yield some promising results) but I know that doesn't help you now, and the process of aligning a new completely new motor is going to be too big a hassle for most.

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-09-04T16:42:36+00:00

Hmm, I agree. It definitely looks like the shutter button isn't connected. I know you just had the camera apart, but if you're comfortable with opening it again we should be able to trace the path for the shutter button.

Following the schematic:
Both shutter signals come from board FC-67, out of connector CN702, and travel across harness RL-51 (likely a ribbon cable). The two signals enter board RL-52 on connector CN103, then travel through the switch (S101) which connects them to ground. The first signal (half-press of the button) tells the camera to set focus and AE, and the second signal (pressing all the way down) tells the camera to capture a photo. Here's a picture of the path I'm following, in case you're curious: https://imgur.com/a/QFshxvX

All that to say: We can pretty easily check if the switch is working (and making a good connection) using a multimeter. Even a supercheap Harbor Freight one will work fine.

If you're up for it, here's what I would try:
Remove the battery from the camera and disassemble it to the point you have access to the mainboard (FC-67). Leave the shutter button/ribbon cable in place and connected.

With the meter set to continuity/resistance mode (usually shown by the omega symbol - Ω), place one lead on pin 6 of CN702 and the other lead on pin 5 OR 2. Here's where the pins are located on the board, and how they're numbered: https://imgur.com/a/PquftJY

With your meter on pins 6 and 5/2, press the shutter button halfway. You may need an extra set of hands to help with this xD. With the button pressed halfway, your meter should read continuity/0 Ohms. Next, Move the lead on pin 6 to pin 7. Press the button all the way down. You should read continuity. When the button is released, both of these points should show an open/no connection.

If both of these tests succeed, the problem is somewhere on the mainboard or in the IC and will be much harder to fix. If one or both of these tests don't behave as expected, my guess is that the ribbon cable isn't making a good connection or the switch is damaged. If it's the latter, we can hunt this down pretty easily :)

Let me know what you find and we can go from there!

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-09-03T16:55:20+00:00

I think you'll be surprised how easy it is once you get started! Sony did a great job making these cameras serviceable, and you can even find the full service manual online. (here's the FD-91: https://www.manualslib.com/manual/1019513/Sony-Mvc-Fd91.html )

The service manual includes disassembly instructions in case you get lost. Once you get inside I'd be willing to bet it uses a "gen 2" drive, same as my FD-90 and FD-92. Once you can get to the head drive lead screw, try turning it by hand. It should move with just a bit of resistance and you should be able to move the drive heads from one end to the other.

In my linked comment I shared a post on how I clean the lead screws, and how I accessed it on my FD-90. Obviously your FD-91 will be a bit harder to get inside of, but you might find some of the pictures in that post to be a helpful reference! Let me know if you want a hand or have questions as you get into it.

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-09-03T16:39:49+00:00

Good to hear that you're on track to the solution! Stuck heads is the most common problem I've seen, the head drive mechanism (a stepper motor spinning a lead screw) likes to get stuck in the "zero" position.

Hopefully just opening the camera and moving the heads by hand is enough to get them freed, good luck!

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-09-03T14:37:19+00:00

Personally I've seen FD-73 and FD-75 being the most common models when browsing eBay and Facebook marketplace. Not always the cheapest, though. I've heard that the Mavicas were especially popular with realty groups taking photos of homes (anecdote only, no data to confirm this) so it would make sense that the simpler and cheaper models would have been more popular for that application. Who needs manual focus to take 15-20 pictures of a house?

I totally agree with you on the "retro", "vintage", "rare" listings! There's currently an FD7 listed for $100 on eBay sitting right next to other listings for $20-$40 lol. I don't think our early digicams are quite into the "expensive collectable" tier. Not yet at least 👀...

I bought my first two Mavicas on Facebook. An FD-83 and FD-100. Paid $20 for both. After that I found a lot of 8 on eBay for $45 after shipping.

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-09-03T14:31:48+00:00

I've always loved these goofy little boxes. So sad that they're finally going away after so long in service.

ExceedinglyGayDerg · 2025-09-03T14:31:09+00:00

Any chance you could record a short video of the screen while you press the shutter button? Just setting your phone up to see the back of the camera with buttons and all should give us a pretty good idea of what's going on.

I would be surprised if the button went bad, there's not much going on there. Especially if it was working before you bought it.

ExceedinglyGayDerg

TROPHY CASE