Vivitar 285

[dirty1thirdee]

So I got a Vivitar 285 from my grandpa, looks to be in perfect condition, and it hasn't been used in many years. (Over 10 probably)

There's just one problem. It won't turn on and fire! I put fresh batteries in it and it still doesn't work. It could be me not knowing how to work the thing; I just flipped the switch on the back so that it shows red and didn't hear any noise of charging or see the red light come on.

What's the deal? I would really like to use this flash as opposed to my other one that I don't even know the brand of. Could it be corrosion? Am I just making a common mistake?

Any help is greatly appreciated, I don't want to have to throw this piece of equipment away.

 

[df3photo]

I would check the metal tabs that touch the battery for corrosion and dried batt acid... make sure your contacts are clean (so metal is showing) other than that possibly might be the wires connecting to those tabs may have corroded. check them out. I have that flash but am lending it out right now, so I dont know if you can take it apart easily or not. if there are screws that you could undo to take a peak inside and look for a wire thats not attached I would do that. but be careful not to hit the resistor (could pack a zap if its holding a charge...)
ok, good luck