Help! Broken Plug in Headphone Jack
 

I was recording audio with my XL-1 the other day with my reliable Sony headphones. I'd had them for almost a decade, and they'd suffered a bit of abuse, but I accidentally swiped the plug with my hand and it broke off inside the camera. I tossed the headphones, but I'd like to salvage my XL-1 - any suggestions on how to get the plug out of the jack? I called a camera shop and they told me that Canon doesn't authorize anyone else to perform repairs on the XL-1, so I'd have to take it to Canon for a professional job. However, I hear this is rather expensive, so if I could do it myself or have a pro do it for me without damaging the camera that would be my preference. Anyone have any suggestions? Thanks for your time.

Best,

Matt

Hi

Assuming that there is no part of the jack left outside the female (so you could pull it out using a pair of tweesers), the best option is sending your camera to Canon service.

There are other ways in wich you could try to extract the rest of the jack, but they in fact could do more harm than good to your camera.

Good luck
Arnaldo Paixao

You could try to pull it out. There are these cool little metal tubes that when u press the top three very small prongs come out like a little crappling claw which may be able to grip the broken piece to pull out the remaining plug. I dont know where you could buy them where you live, but they sell them in medical supply stores as they are a tool used by surgens and medical personnel. So you could get a better grip than just normal tweesers as the sprongs that come out are very small. Its worth a shot.

Another possible way could be to try a watch maker whoe used very small precise equipment that could perhaps slightly drill into the top to get a grip thread to pull it out.

I could save you a bit of cash than sending it to Canon!

Good Luck!

The female (receptacle for PC types) could also be damaged. The part that is jammed in there might not extract that easily.

A jeweler or watchsmith might be able to do the job, but sending it to Canon is safest bet.

A touch of glue to the end of a 3.5mm stick might might allow you to glue to the end of the piece left in the camerqa and let you pull it out when set, Of course, if you are a bit messy, it could make things a lot worse.

A trip to cCanon could be the best bet, and maybe have an annual service while there.

Don is right.

In fact as I said earlier in my reply, you could try other methods, but they should be carried out with extreme care.

Like Don said, if you still have the other piece of the male, you could put a tiny drop of super glue in one side, presse it VERY GENTLY against the other side (not to much pressure as you might end with a piece of metal inside you camera), wait that it glues, and extract. This should be done with good local light and a magnifying glass. Try to duplicate the situation first in an old walkman or other equipment wich does not work or has no value ( yes, thats right, brake a jack inside that old walkman and try to take it out).

Also, as Nathan said, a jeweler or watchsmith might help you, but any solution you choose, other than Canon service, take your time to study it, don't rush, as you can be VERY sorry after a bad choice.

Good luck.
Arnaldo Paixao