Whilst I was in Japan there was the unfortunate incident where the GF3 hit the pavement while rushing towards the train. Only when we were settled into our hotel that I was able to evaluate the extent of the damage that had occurred.
The front lower right corner was hit squarely and was “pushed in” creating a gap on the otherwise straight bottom seam. Now this hadn’t any effect on the functionality, and the lens, having a filter on it didn’t get a scratch on it (thank goodness). So one day at my table I proceeded to get rid of the gap to relieve the unnecessary stress it was putting on that side of the body.
The following tools were what I used to bend the body back into shape: a screwdriver and a part of a compass (just the end that connects to the rest of the compass). What I did was I opened up the right side through two screws seen below:
and I proceeded to bend the inset body with the use of the pronged end.. the body is a surprisingly thick steel material and I’m glad that its sturdier than it looks… made it harder to pry back into place though. I had to rehammer the pronged end to normal because the stress bent it along with the bending that was happening to the body.
Notice below that the gap has been closed after the operation:
And now my camera of two years, while not good as new, can operate with a sense of normalcy once again!
Here’s to more adventures with the sturdy little number!