Nikon F100 Back Door Latching Mechanism

[PastaOn]

Hi everyone,
I have an issue with my F100. After months of usage (I bought it in mint condition last year), the back door started rattling when I held it. Checking further, I realized I could not close the back door without manually flipping the switch up to get it back to the closed position. The hinges on the door (classic F100 problem) are fine, I believe it is the latching mechanism spring that has broken or it has malfunctioned. I have yet to test it for light leaks but there is a 0.5 mm gap between the door and the rest of the body.
After looking up the repair manual, it looks like I cannot access it without taking the whole body apart. Any idea before I send it to a repair shop? I know my what around electronics (not cameras in particular, mostly laptops and phones) but I do not want to risk opening everything up for nothing.

 

[ic-racer]

Perhaps the plastic hook to which the spring attaches has broken off. F100 is a great camera, well worth fixing.

 

[Sirius Glass]

Welcome to Photrio.

I have not needed to repair my F100's door latch, but the camera is worth repairing. It is my "go to" 35mm camera when I want to do serious 35mm photography.

 

[rulnacco]

Please see this Photrio thread, right above yours: Nikon F100 Metal Latch Replacement.

If it is indeed your plastic door latch that is giving way and causing the problem, one of our own members has made a metal replacement that can be easily installed and seems to solve that particular problem very well.

I had held off on a couple of past opportunities to buy an F100 at a good price for the very reason of the crappy door latch, but given there is a superior replacement available, I'm probably going to snag one whenever I next get the chance, given just how good a camera the F100 is, and how relatively inexpensive they are.