I got my hands on a Canon Sure Shot Supreme not too long ago. In Japan it was called the Autoboy 3 & in Europe it was known as Top Shot. It’s a 35mm point-and-shoot camera made in 1986. The European based Expert Imaging and Sound Association (EISA) voted the canon camera as the best compact camera of 1986-1987. Needless to say I was excited when I got one.
I wasn’t shocked to find out that the camera would need a new battery… I was a bit surprised to find out that, that battery was a 2CR5 6v battery. Not a discontinued battery by any means but good luck finding one at your local CVS.
Fast forward to today when I finally get the battery, put it in, load up some Kodak Gold 400 AND it doesn’t work.
I’m pushing the shutter button and nothing is happening. I hit the self-timer and it starts to blink, working correctly, and the shutter goes off. Now I’m thinking this is very strange so I do some research.
After finding this forum thread I found the problem.
The Problem
The shutter button (big red button on the top of the camera) has a conductive paint, painted on the bottom of it. when you push down that paint closes the circuit and triggers the shutter. Over time that paint wears down and fades, rendering our big red button useless ….
The Solution
… Unless we put some conductive material under it Tin Foil to save the day.
How to Fix a Broken Sure Shot Shutter Button
Step 1:
Remove the battery and any film.
Step 2:
Unscrew the 2 side screws and single screw located on the back of the camera.
Step 3:
Lightly lift and pull to reveal the inside of the camera, most importantly we want to see underneath where the shutter button is located.
When I did this my self-timer button popped out. This was very simple to fix just place it back into it’s position before putting everything back together.
Step 4:
Cut out a small square of tin foil, just large enough to fit safely under the shutter button.
Step 5:
Our most important step, carefully place the tin foil under the shutter button. (Use tweezers for this)
Step 6:
Squeeze camera back into place and screw everything back in. Put the battery and any film you have back in to the camera and give it a whirl!
Below is a video of the working product!
