semi-broken fl50

[xwingkiller]

i just got a used fl-50 from somebody. he said that the ttl mode didnt really work on it, but it was fine in auto. i got it cheap enough that it would be fine even if all i used it for was off-camera manual.
anyways, i got to try it out a bit today. it's the craziest thing because it works sometimes, and sometimes it doesnt. sometimes in ttl mode, the flash will go off but it wont sync with the shutter. also, sometimes i noticed that the flash just wont trigger at all.

about the only thing i could find by searching around online was that the contacts could be dirty. too bad, that doesnt seem to be the case here. also, i read that it could be a symptom of the tube dying. they say that the flash will discharge, but it could be out of sync due to it not actually being refilled at the right time. the problem with that is the flash works perfectly in auto mode. i can blast 4 or 5 continuous shots all perfectly.

has anyone on here had any type of experience with this kind of an issue?

i'm just trying to figure out if i should attempt to open the casing and see whats going on inside of this sucker or not. i have some buddies that are sound and lighting tech's at a theatre here and are pretty good with electronics. if i could somehow find out what is causing the problem, maybe i could fix it. =)

[Greg McCary]

Maybe a cold solder on the connection to the base? You might crack it open and see how the wires, if any, connect it the base that connect to the camera. If sometimes it works and sometimes not?

[xwingkiller]

thats a good suggestion. should be easy to check too. maybe a messed up contact inside the base of the flash. thanks.

[Greg McCary]

If it is just heat it up and touch the solder joint up. Could get lucky.

[xwingkiller]

cracked the flash open. all of the connections look perfect.
i guess it's gotta be some kind of weird thing that only olympus could fix.