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Olympus PEN E-P1 disassembly and workaround for broken IBIS gears

widicamdotnet

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Documenting the disassembly of an Olympus PEN E-P1 from 2010, and explaining a workaround for broken IBIS cogwheels resulting in a misaligned sensor. This doesn't fix the red flashing IS indicator, but gets the sensor centered to avoid vignetting.
I hope this helps you understand if/why your PEN has that problem, and decide whether you want to tackle the repair yourself.
This is my first time doing voiceover in a video, please excuse my somewhat rusty english. I'm generally not a great speaker.

Inspired by Olympus E-PM2 Camera IBIS Repair where Markus Koch fixed slipping cogwheels on an E-PM2.

19 Comments

@MrHBaung 3 years ago

I have ep 1 with the exact same problem. Still cannot find time and courage to do like you. Thanks to your video now I know what is giving problem.

@MikeRinzOptics 3 years ago

Thank you for documenting this disassembly! :)

@diewurzelwandert 1 year ago (edited)

I just did this repair on my E-P2. I just had to get to the point where I could see the little plastic cogs of both IBIS-axis. Both were loosely sliding on the motor shaft. I glued them to the shaft with a tiny drop of superglue, which seemingly fixed the problem, IS is no longer flashing red. But be aware, it is a delicate procedure.

Also thank your very much for your effort, this helped so much.

@galacticusX 1 year ago

You are very delicate and patient, congrats! Wow, no wonder almost every early pen camera I see on listings has a malfunctioning IBIS. Implementation is not very sophisticated. I have bought a PL5 and a PM2 (quite cheaply admittedly) and both have malfunctioning IBIS. I don't know much around the relevant tech but I think other approaches like electromagnetic stabilizers are more reliable.

@notinterestedw6432 1 year ago

Im not familiar with camera hardware but I'm planning to attempt this haha. Question, did you glue the big movable cog so that it doesn't move anymore and that fixed the ibis issue? Should i also glue the spring or no? Thank youu

@Viewer990 2 years ago

Will you make more camera disassembly videos ?

@gerwinpereyras5996 3 years ago

can I request disassembly of olympus pen ep3

@absurdfool 3 years ago

should you remove the battery n sd card first?

@damienjwatt 3 years ago

Have you had any issues with the directional buttons? Mine seem to be playing up, the OK button and wheel seems to be fine. I was going to attempt to open it up but noticed your video doesn't show this step.

@tomfenn7149 3 years ago

I wonder if 3D printing has become good enough to be able to reproduce cogs this small? I have an E-PM2 with the same problem.

@MichealOSeaghdha 1 month ago (edited)

I admire you so much for your skill, care and patience. But to get that same error message at the end must have been disheartening. My E-P1 showed the same flashing warning after only about 1,300 shutter actuations, but I'm not convinced the stabilisation has actually failed. However, equally annoyingly my battery door won't close. All this in what appears to be a well-built metal camera. Looks can be deceptive!

@brucechong8564 8 months ago

I just need to open the back panel to deoxidize the button. Do I have to open the side, top panel like what you did?

@Akirilus 1 year ago

Can yall say it with me? Planned obsolesence!

@melk8306 2 years ago

Thanks for this teardown video and sharing your solution for this. I wonder if you managed to measure the nylon white gear used on the stabilizers? If you did, could you share what the dimensions are? Like what the center hole measures, the outer diameter, and the longitudinal length is? Hopefully in metric units. Thanks!

@mote99 2 years ago

Have you ever replaced the small RTC (real time clock) lithium battery in this camera? It seems to appear at 12:40 of your video, in the upper-left corner of the camera.

If you did replace this battery, was it difficult to do so? I know these small lithium batteries die eventually, and I think they're in all of Olympus Pen cameras... at least the older ones.

BTW, nice video! It's very informative. Keep up the good work! 🙂

@ArminHirmer 2 years ago

still not sure if I am going to do that. But other question. did you check, once open, if the IR filter would be easy to remove, so I could convert my EP directly? Thank you

@_I_Hear_You 3 years ago

Hey!
Just lock broken mechanism, instead fix them.. Is so annoying final.. Moreover the thing is in one small f***en gear...
But yes, it's not a standard module gear.. fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu ))
On Ali I find similar 9 tooth... named like 'RC pinion gear"
Unfortunately available gear have slightly bigger outer diameter, so they dont match as is.. and need some trim work..
And i tried to match that pinion gear.. only with magnifying glass and skalpel))... this is damn hell!!.. without special equip.
Its fit, but so-so.. Camera can now move stab. mechanism.. And red error blinking gone!
But seems stab mechanism doesn't work properly. Matrix do On an Off movement sequence.. But in l other time just stay still...
Obviously that's need more precise trimmed gear..
Billet pinion gears from Ali, we have.. But how can we reasonably trim they in DIY circumstances?? That is the question!)
Any opinion will be great to hear!))