A series shutter squeal

chelsea517 · Oct 11, 2012

I've had my Canon A-1 for a while now and it's recently developed the infamous A series shutter squeal. I looked online for repair techniques and found some that seemed like they'd work. However, I've tried everything and I can't get any of the screws it's telling me to remove to budge in the slightest. I was wondering, is there a way to go in and fix the squeal without having to unscrew anything? When I first purchased the camera, the man I bought it from told me that there was a shutter squeal but fixed it on the spot by simply inserting the tip of a small lighter fluid container somewhere below the mirror. In retrospect, I wish I'd paid more attention to what he was doing so I could do it now. I was told that weapon oil would work well to fix this so I've got some of that and a syringe that I could use. Does anyone know where I'd inject the fluid? As I said before, I'm pretty sure there's absolutely no way these screws are coming out of their sockets without using forces that would most likely damage my camera a lot. I'd like to get it back in working order so I can resume using it without risking any damage.

Big Mike · Oct 11, 2012

Welcome to the forum. I don't know the answer to your question, but there are a few 'old timers' around here that will probably be able to help you out.

As for risking damage...yes, that is a possibility with any moving mechanical components when they run out of lubrication...but if I remember correctly, I think I've heard that many people use their A series cameras for years and years with that squeak. It's annoying, but unlikely to fall apart.