The screen on my DMC-FZ18 camera is scratched. I thought that it needed a new LCD, but after dismantling, I found that it...

I wantto ask a qusetion about an DMC-FZ18 camera. Why am I not allowed to specify this model and instead am forced to...

I have just replaced the handle on the interior freezer/evaporator compartment of a LEC refridgerator. I had to use brute...

Well, I don't remember much about this from so long ago, but there is a diagram on page 22 of the A701a service manual, and I have a photograph that I took of the switch itself. I can't remember where I found the manual or whether a link was posted in another thread. The manual is dated December 1976 and I haven't noticed a copyright notice. I doubt that it is still (or ever was) incopyright. Try duckduckgo on "A701a service info". Not sure what you mean by calibration unless you are refeering to the two adjustment screws. I think that too has been covered in other threads.

Have you tried with an external power supply? 8.4V power supplies are widely available and cheap. You will probably need an adapter to fit the socket on the camera. Search on ebay (for example) for something like “8.4V 1A Mains AC-DC regulated Power supply” and then for “8 in 1 AC DC Power charger adapter tips”. But maybe check the switch first: the switch on the case can come disengaged from the “real” switch on the circuit board. That would explain the problem. But that involves opening the case. The service manual is available online, but doesn’t exactly match my FZ18. I would post a link to a blog where I describe how to open the case, but ifixit seems to dislike such links.

Your can download the service manual here: http://elektrotanya.com/panasonic_dmc-fz18.pdf/download.html Have you tried with an external power supply? 8V4, 1A power supplies are widely available and cheap, although you only need 500mA, I think. You may need a barrel adapter, but sets of those too are available and very inexpensive.

I have probed my A701A and looked at one of the relevant patents. My provisional schematic is here . As I say there, it is only guesswork based on probing with a simple multimeter without C and H ranges in circuit. On my machine, it has become clear that the only problem was that the "points" (the centrifugal switch) no longer closed when the motor was not running. It was easy to remove the retaining screws and bend the copper support a little. The relevant patent (best in pdf) is US3701935.pdf. I can't for the moment find where it was freely available, but avoid some of the suspicious sites that seem to want to charge or collect information to download it. That patent by Prof Collie is about adding a triac to the circuit precisely to reduce wear on the "points".

Well, if the translation is correct you are saying that the motor does not rotate and there is a rough noise.

That sounds unlikely, so perhaps that means that the rotation is slow, otherwise I am not sure whether there would be any noise, although I guess that there could be some vibration. It all sounds dangerous, so don't try again until you have followed the guide and disassembled to see what is wrong.

Why might that happen? Who knows, but the very first thing is to check the brushes. If they are OK, presumably it could be a broken gear box.

Once you have disassembled that far, you can see whether the gear box turns freely. Next could be the bearings. I can't think of anything else obvious unless the grinder has overheated and distorted the plastic body out of shape.