Possible to DIY shutter replacement? Where to buy?

Question

https://vimeo.com/124027823

This problem occurred all of a sudden to my 2 year old E-PL5 and the replacement E-PL5 I bought also had the same issue after a few years.

Whenever I hit the shutter button, the screen gets stuck on black - seems like the curtain is stuck because normally there would be a 2-phase sound that represents the opening and closing of the curtain. Currently, it gets stuck on opening the curtain, and then the camera shuts down by itself after 2 seconds.

Have tried using all different modes - PASM/Auto etc, and it doesn't work. Video mode works fine, but when I try to take a snapshot within video mode, the same problem is exhibited.

Any idea what is the problem with the camera, how much it would cost to get it repaired by the official Olympus team, and whether it is possible to DIY the repair myself?

Seems to be a shutter problem to me, even though both cameras had less than 15k clicks. Checked on eBay but couldn't find the shutter mechanism for replacement.

would welcome advice on where and how to DIY.

Thank you so much!

Answer 1

TL;DR - do not try this at home.

While some jobs are suitable for the enthusiastic amateur to attempt, this kind of repair requires experience, tooling and a clean-room type work area.

From my experience those who have those facilities also have suppliers to obtain the parts they need.

Since the camera is out of warranty I would recommend finding a local repairer rather than sending it to Olympus. If you can't find someone then a local store can recommend someone reliable or act as intermediary.

That said if both cameras were bought new or have failed after 15k actuations (bearing in mind that the Olympus has an electronic viewfinder, so that count will be considerably higher than images taken) then I would look at your local laws as irrespective of the warranty goods sold should be 'fit for purpose' and if that number of actuations is to be believed I think the goods you have purchased may not be...