Re: filmscanners: NikonLS-3510AF

[Arthur Entlich <artistic@ampsc.com>]

I wish I could help, Richard, but I'm afraid you might have 
inadvertently proven something about Nikon...

Nikon has had ongoing stepper motor problems with their LS-30/2000 
series, and perhaps their LS-20/1000 also.  We were just musing 
yesterday as to whether the problems would be fixed on the new LS 
40/4000 and 8000 scanners, but now that we know the problems existed way 
back with the LS-3510AF, it seems less likely Nikon has figured it out yet.


If it makes you feel any better, Nikon charges an arm and a leg to fix 
their current models once out of warranty, as well.  They are an equal 
opportunity repair fleecer.  Not only that, but their repairs are known 
for repeat failures, if you ever get your unit back at all.

Regarding your problem... it could be something is slipping (are there 
any belts of rubber rollers?), or a gear is striped somewhere (I don't 
know the internals of these units), or you could be experiencing logic 
circuit meltdown, discrete components that are going off value, or even 
bad solder joints.  If there are any internal plugs or socketed chips, 
make sure they are cleanly and well seated.

Art

Richard Starr wrote:

> Hi,
> 
> It's great to find this list since I've always wanted a film scanner but
> couldn't afford one.  Recently I took a chance and nailed a Nikon LS-3510AF
> scanner on Ebay for very cheap.  It was untested so I was hoping I could make 
>it
> work.  As it turned out, the thing is disabled, though I have managed to make
> some fine scans with it.  My research indicates this was a very expensive and
> highly respected machine in its day, and is capable of higher resolution (3275
> dpi) than most current models.  Small sections of a slide at this resolution 
>are
> really quite amazing.
> 
> To make a long story short, the drive motor for the film stage doesn't always
> run correctly.  I replaced it with one from the motor manufacturer (expensive)
> but there was no improvment.   Sometime the motor runs at the wrong speed or
> irregularly or stops when it shouldn't.  Most of the time it runs correctly 
>when
> actually scanning so the images are good. But this old bird is a three pass
> scanner (RGB) and the color registration is never perfect in preview or in
> scans.  When I realized that color registration is an easy thing to fix in
> PhotoShop, the scanner became a useful tool though sometimes quite tedious to
> use.  
> 
> I'm afraid that service for this machine, if I could find it,  would cost more
> than buying a new, modern one.  So I'm looking for someone who knows this
> machine well enough to suggest a fix or who can locate a service manual.  (Try
> getting hold of Nikon for any sort of help.  I tried their 24 hour support 
>line
> and it rang for half an hour at three in the morning.)
> 
> I would also love to find an original film carrier for it.
> 
> (If it matters, I am driving it with a SuperMac 500 603e/200 computer OS 7.6.1
> or 8.1, Photoshop 4.01.  The scsi
> connections are correctly terminated.)
> 
> I would be grateful for any help.
> 
> Rich