Nikon 5700 lens erros

There I was one day with my Nikon 5700 taking happy snaps and even some half decent photos when it said "lens error"... I tried the usual tricks of turning it off then on again, swearing at it, giving it a gentle hit, giving it a harder hit, swearing at it heaps and thumping the thing and it still didn't work!

I searched "the net" and found,
http://jancology.com/blog/archives/2003/11/02/nikon_5700_lens_error.html

It seems this error is not uncommon, grrrrr...

What to do?

I left my camera in the drawer for a couple of weeks while I thought about what to do with it. Didn't want to pay to get it fixed $300+

Tried thumping it a few more times.

Tried pulling the lens out with pliers (getting desperate now).

Then thought, let's pull the sucker apart, nothing to lose...

Pulling the sucker apart

So I just started taking out heaps of little scews from around the body of the camera, some hidden well. Soon with a little bit of force bits of the body came off.

Pulling more of it apart

Pretty soon I realised this was a fiddly job. Now a little about myself, I have very little knowledge of electronics, I get very impatient when "technology" doesn't work and I was a drinking a fair bit of bourbon at the time of this "operation".

Needless to say, but "do not try this at home", unless you feel like it. I recommend Wild Turkey bourbon.

Ahhh found the stupid little gears

After a bit more unscrewing and pulling bits off I found the stupid little gears that have died. They were driven by a little motor thingo and hooked up to the lens.

Here's the busted one

Only one of the gears were busted, it looks like 3 teeth are off it.

Put it back together?

This is what it looks like now, bits everywhere, cables pulled out, lots of little screws (some fell on the floor and are lost in the shag pile though). Should I attempt to put it back together? Might have another bourbon and think about it...