Warning -- Don't drop your Xpan

[AusDLK]

I had a horrible day back in early November and dropped my Xpan II right on the corner of the top plate near the viewfinder. The damage was bad news.

I sent the camera almost immediately to Hasselblad in New Jersey for repair.

And it appears to have disappeared into a black hole...

Some part needs to be ordered ... from Sweden. Interesting since the camera is made in Japan so far as I know.

No one can tell me when the part will come in and I still don't know for sure how much the repair is going to cost me.

Not to mention I still have no idea almost two months later when I will get the repaired camera back.

So, Xpan lovers, keep a firm grip...

[flipflop]

damn, that sucks...sorry to hear it!

[AusDLK]

Hasselblad had some guy hand carry the necessary part(s) back from where ever, Sweden I think, and finally got my Xpan II repaired.

I sent it in at the beginning of November but now I have it back in my grubby little hands...

But my "don't drop" advice is still worthy of your attention...

[peterm1]

Its pretty heart rending when it happens to you - I always feel such a total DICK! I dropped a nice M3 a few years back when I ran for a cab and the strap slipped off my shoulder. The camera was in its ever ready case and had a Leica meter on top of the body. I stuck my foot out so it landed om my shoe first , the result being a slight ding to both the meter and to the top plate of the camera. But still that angished me as it was still a new and lovely thing in my eyes.

A few years after that I had a "new" M4P in what I thought was a well padded camera bag sitting on a low bench seat at a bus stop. Somehow it slid off the seat (I think my ex girlfriend bumped it) and even though the seat was perhaps only 18 inches off the ground it got a small ding in the corner of the top plate. And this is from a guy who is obsessively careful - OK I know it does not sound like it.

I think you have to adopt the Buddist attitude - every time you own something beautiful, (whether its a crystal vase or a leica or Hasselblad or whatever pushes your buttons ) regard it as something that is already destroyed even as you own and admire it as one day it almost certianly will be. That produces a mind shift which decreases the anguish. (but sadly not the cost!)

[sjw617]

Dave,
What was the actual problem? Misalignment, light leak, rangefinder issue?
.
.
Steve

[AusDLK]

The damage to my Xpan II was pretty severe.

The top plate was badly dented on the edge near the eyepiece; the plastic eyepiece cover thing was bent out from the body about 3/4 of an inch on the right side; the 90mm frame lines didn't work. The camera functioned otherwise but it was pretty much smashed.

The camera (with the 30mm lens and the finder attached) tumbled from my bag and hit a concrete floor from a height of about 3-4 feet.

The finder broke off too but I was able to fix that myself.

I suppose this shows that the camera is actually pretty tough since the innards survived a pretty severe impact.

The repair cost between $600 and $650.

[JohnM]

Four or five years ago, I was at a high school basketball team taking photos for our sports magazine - not the normal HS basketball game, it was televised on ESPN due in part to the presence of LeBron James.

I used to be in the habit of keep one camera on a strap around my neck and one on a strap slung around my shoulder. The camera on my shoulder would essentially be free when I was using it because the strap would fall down.

When I needed the second camera, I would basically drop the camera around my neck and let the strap hold it. It was second nature.

At this game, during halftime, I was taking a photo of Sonny Vaccaro, adidas basketball guru. For whatever reason, my brain was of the opinion that I was using the camera strapped around my neck....

So I let go of it - knew in an instant that a Canon DSLR and an L lens was now heading towards a hardwood floor.

Memory card flew out, screen broke, lens mount damaged, etc.

Thankfully, I was standing on a sideline section of the court and instead of wood, it was some sort of synthetic surface with some give to it. The repairs cost me $400, but it could have been worse and I'll never forget the sickening feeling of letting the camera go.