There's been some reports (including mine) about battery drain issue with the 40d and 85 II combination, where the battery seems to drain empty after a few shots or a very short session. Take the battery out and back in, full battery once again. My experience made the combo useless.
I sent mine in separately, and thought that the issue was resolved till recently, where it started the same behavior.
Remembering the issues with the early grips for the 20d and a simple velcro fix to keep the connection with the body, I took a closer look to see if I can find a simple fix for this one.
I looked at the 40d's battery compartment, and saw that if I toggled the metal connector (is that what that is called?) that closes the circuit when you close the battery door, I was able to recreate the battery drain. It seemed that the nub on the battery door (or the one in the grip) is not long enough to keep the connection constant, or the circuit closed.
So I added... scotch tape.... between the door and the metal strip to help the battery push the strip more for a better connection, and I have not had the issue. Kept the tape with the grip, and still no issue.
If you have this challenge on this combo, give it a try, and see if it resolves.
When I sold the basically unused grip of my 20D to a guy he brought in his 40D test it out, and I was surprised that Canon had chosen to simplify its design (which could only explained as an attempt to cut cost). Canon must take care not to employ their cost cutting techniques on their non-entry level hardware, or they will damage their reputation (some will say they've already done so).
krobatshov wrote:
I can't confirm your experiences with that combo -
I took like 400 shots with the 85L + 40D combo on a wedding -
without getting any errors etc.
I believe you. When it initially happened to me, I looked for similar experiences, and saw 2 total threads anywhere, and neither had a solution.
The VERY first time I put my new 85L on my 40D a few weeks ago, I immediately switched to AI Servo and High Speed shooting mode and started shooting my two young boys. It wasn't 40 shots later that the camera shut off. I knew my betteries hadn't been charged for awhile and so, just attributed the incident to the batteries being on their last bit of charge. While they were charging (I use the BG-E2 grip) I did a bit of research and ran accross a few threads mentioning this phenomenon. I got nervous and thought I would try AI Focus and Single Shot mode. I haven't had the battery drain again after that but, really haven't pushed it either; too nervous.
Can the OP please post a few pictrues of his fix? Has anyone experimented with different camera settings or noticed a difference between the two grips; BG-E2 and BG-E2N? How 'bout different type of third party batteries?
ok guys, taking back my statement from above -
shooting at ai servo DOES seems to be an issue with that lens
for the reason that it's slow and "THE" lens for portraits, I keep using it at ai one shot mode -
however, I once tried to push the lens to the "extreme", getting af to servo and trying to catch some yougner boys playing soccer - 6 shots later(burst mode...) ...I got some bat. issues - ....some secs later...I got shutter failure -
still not positive about the fact whether it was the camera or the combo -
I wasn't just brave enough to tell the canon reps when I got the shutter failure for the reason that they wouldn't do the replacement under warranty -
Just got a 85L today and have the exact problem with my 40D. Went from 3 strips to empty in less than 30 shots
I tried recharging the battery, and it took about 1 hour...can't recall if that's long or not. All up the battery load took 200 shots with liveview usage (150 or so had been taken by another lens), but usually I can get at least 800-900 or so
When it started charging, it went to the double beep almost instantaneously
Edited by Dawei Ye on Jun 30, 2008 at 02:47 PM GMT
pawlowski6132 wrote:
Has anyone experimented with different camera settings or noticed a difference between the two grips; BG-E2 and BG-E2N? How 'bout different type of third party batteries?
thanx
I have the BG-E2 on my 20D and the BG-E2N on my 40D. The differences that I noticed. The BG-E2N has the weatherseal (not much to call home about) and the battery door pops open when you move the switch to open it. The BG-E2 does not pop open automatically, at least mine never did. The tolerance of the part that inserts into the battery chamber of the camera on the BG-E2N seems more tight (meaning more snug fit) than the BG-E2 (even when put into the 20D body). NOTE: the 40D battery chamber is tighter than the 20D, less space inside.
So....those with the grip...can you take the grip off and use just one battery in the body and get normal performance with the 85 L on the camera? If it is a loose connection in the grip...I think this would show if the camera can handle the lens.
I dont think its a battery, or grip issue. I think the root is in the battery compartment in the 40d. I dont have photos, (try to have them later), but when you look at the battery compartment, the circuit closes with a metal strip. Thats the strip I pushed around to simulate the issue. Once I made sure the contact stays in contact, I have not had any issues.
On the 20d, its a button type. Dont remember the 30d, and dont have one handy.
I think I understand your theory, the faulty battery compartment is usually still able to deliver enough power for other lenses, but due to the high drain nature of the 85L II it can't keep up?
Sorry for being dumb but...whereabouts is the strip? I can't seem to locate it
Thanks a lot for posting your thread in any case, without this I thought I was the only one
Dawei Ye wrote:
I think I understand your theory, the faulty battery compartment is usually still able to deliver enough power for other lenses, but due to the high drain nature of the 85L II it can't keep up?
Sorry for being dumb but...whereabouts is the strip? I can't seem to locate it
Thanks a lot for posting your thread in any case, without this I thought I was the only one
My theory is pretty much that, the 85 has a higher drain/need (or more sensitive to constant power) for its functions.
The small metal strip (as in size of a pencil lead tip) is located on the other side of the hinge. You'll see the small recess there, and inside is the strip.
I first thought that you needed it in there. And was trying to fix something quite intricate. My wife suggested scotch tape, and I was not even giving it a second thought. I should learn that everytime I disregard what she says, I'm usually wrong.
Actually, right on top of it was more than sufficient to do the job.
Sorry to be a pain, I notice as you close the battery door, the nub on the battery door pushes down on the plastic piece on the battery grip. Am I correct in saying that in your method, you stuck some extra stuff onto the nub on the battery door so that it extended this nub, helping push down the plastic in the battery grip better?
In essence, yes. But it was too difficult to add something to the nub. And I was afraid of losing the nub correction somewhere in the cam. I actually just folded the tape while leaving some sticky-ness available, and put it right on top of the recess.
I used it both with the grip and without. The door (and grip) together with some of the tape keeps it on.
Its crude right now, but works. I'm still looking for something a bit more stable, though its pretty stable right now. Its the size of the strip/recess/nub that is giving me issues.
My 40D reported the battery as empty, I tried your fix and suddenly it's full again, even after 8 shots and Live view usage
Thanks heaps for your help! I'll evaluate my results over the next few days and get back to you about my results
Once I get a spare 2 weeks from photography, I will also see Canon and demand they change over my battery door to a better one as I suspect later models have a better door. Is yours an early model 40D? (I got mine in November)
Thanks again for your help, I really really really appreciate it, let me know if you ever need anything!
