D3100 cardslot door loose

Titel says it all. The sd card cover/door on the new d3100 seems very loose and rattly. Anyone else have this on their camera (not limiting the question to only 3100 owners)?

Thanks for any feedback.

Mine is reasonably tight. There is a very tiny bit of movement with the door shut. The gap is no more than a hair wide. It does not really feel 'loose and rattly', but if I try to wiggle it with my finger or tap on it, I can hear the door rattle, telling me it is not 100% solid to the camera. It is not overly noticeable.

With the door open, you should see the tiny spring and just above the spring is a flat clip. Maybe the little screw on that clip is loose. That clip slides along the hinge pin and keeps the door in its lock position.

just found this vid, although it does relate to the d5100, maybe they both share the same issue. Will give it a try tomorrow.

Loose SD card cover, Nikon D5100 - Fix - YouTube

As long as it does not open accidentally (without the push) it is OK - you do not have to touch it. Watching this video, I noticed (at 12th second) that the door is closed completely and opens only when it's pushed. It is LITTLE bit loose (after it's opened), but does it's job correctly...

so the procedure shown in the vid did not help. The problem seems to be too a large clearance between the two location lugs on the door and the holes they locate into in the camera body. Will get out the 5 minute epoxy during the weekend and put a very thin layer on the lugs to thicken em up a bit, ought to do the trick.

You might want to try a couple dabs of some clear or black silicone sealant on the tabs before you try the epoxy. The rubber-like texture of it might work well. (or it might peal right off, lol) Maybe a smear along the mating surfaces too, like a gasket. Just a thought before you go for the very permanent epoxy.

nickt said:

You might want to try a couple dabs of some clear or black silicone sealant on the tabs before you try the epoxy. The rubber-like texture of it might work well. (or it might peal right off, lol) Maybe a smear along the mating surfaces too, like a gasket. Just a thought before you go for the very permanent epoxy.

Click to expand...

like the idea, but due to the high coefficient of friction of the sealant it would probably wear off in no time. I always remove the cards from my cameras and insert them straight into the laptop card slot to transfer files, so silicon sealant would wear off in no time.

so, the epoxy trick worked a treat! two very thin smears of epoxy (maybe 0.2mm or .08" thick) on the inside surface of the two location lugs took out all the play in the card door which now shuts rock solid.