Even disconnected from the camera it does not fire. The under exposure code comes up with no flash.
I can get it fixed for $131 by precisioncamera.com
KEH has them used for between $360 and $400 depending on condition
B&H has them for $220 to $250 and they sound about as beat up as mine
My other option is an SB910 $475 used like new; or new SB910 for $550.
I’m guessing the reason my SB800 has failed was firing too many times in a row as it’s not protected and I use a battery pack. The SB910 has protection for this.
Does anyone have experience with flash repair and is it worth it?
How long should a new flash last?
Morris, sorry to hear about your flash, I got 3 800s and 1 900, I would get another 800 from the for sale section here, I've seen some for 280 in great condition and that is a steal for 800s.
Best of luck.
Go with the sb-910, I own 1 and just bought another used for 480.00
Great flash, easier to navigate thru menu , zooms to 200 and does not overheat like the 900
I have 2 other 800s though and refuse to sell them as they are bullet proof..
Have you checked the price of Nikon repair? Not familar with Nikon repair facilities but Canon fixes EX series flashes for a fixed price of about $130. The price might wind up being the same or a bit more than precision camera, but you'll have the advantage of a warranty for the repairs.
Honestly, I would not trust a repair on a speedlight to last very long. The shop might think they got it all correct and slapped it together again but who knows that for sure? The hassles of sending it back again and not having it would not be worth it to me. I wouldn't buy a used speedlight either. Yes, I am paranoid about speedlights and I carry three to a wedding because I once blew a flash capacitor very early at a wedding, doing pre-ceremony group shots. Luckily, I pulled out my first spare and started shooting again. The other spare was in the trunk. It would have been really scarey to shoot all day with only that one backup but not too scarey having two backups.
i got 3 speedlights as well and all had been preowned, not one had let me down once. the only one i bought new was a sb600 and that was the first one to sell
morris wrote:
Does anyone have experience with flash repair and is it worth it?
How long should a new flash last?
One thing you must not do - is to touch the parts inside the housing - if you open the unit yourself - it can give you quite a shock - if the capacitor is charged up
Hey Morris,
Glad I'm not the only person to have done this .... too many shots on a battery pack , and fried the gun !!!
I got Nikon UK to repair mine, not cheap, but not the cost of a new or even used SB800 and it was warrantied.
Used it for quite some time after the repair, then as a back up to my SB 900's finally sold it to my brother-in-law also a pro-photog, and he is still using it.
So if you get the repair price right and you get a warranty with it, you could be cooking again.
Morris - sorry about your flash. I've always bought used SB800s (have three now) and they are all perfect. Never had to pay more than $300 for them. FM and Nikonians would be a fine starting point but wouldn't overlook Craigslist or Ebay either.
