Troubleshooting
What to change when it doesn't fit, doesn't record or doesn't look right.
On this page
Fix fit problems in the Builder, not with sandpaper. Never force anything into your camera.
It doesn’t fit
| Problem | Change in the Builder |
|---|---|
| It rocks on the chamber floor | Look where it rocks; don’t press it down. At the front edge: Floor relief depth +0.5 |
| It doesn’t reach the front stops | Spindle to front +0.2 |
| The door won’t close | Height −0.3. Check the lid is fully home and no wire lifts it |
| No shine on the rear pads | Back +0.1 to +0.3 |
| Shine on the locating slot | Slot extra width +0.2 |
| Shine on the window or gate pocket | Sensor depth +0.3 |
The wheel doesn’t turn
- Spin it by hand. It should turn with almost no effort. Pick off first-layer bulges and stringing in the cup.
- Is the spindle central? Measure it on the fit ring (the spindle check in the Builder): it moves the wheel to match.
- The drive doesn’t catch. Lower Lug start (down to 0.30), or set Drive to one lug.
Nothing records
- With the lid off, run
sudo systemctl stop s8cam.service, thenpython3 ~/s8test.py --sensor, and turn the wheel. The counter should climb. - Is the LED lit? It runs from pin 4 (5 V) through 330 Ω, long leg toward the resistor.
- Measure GPIO 4 with a multimeter: above 1.8 V with a torch on the LDR, below 0.8 V with it covered. Too low when lit? Swap the 10 kΩ for 22 kΩ or 47 kΩ. Too high when covered? Look for light leaks.
- Start the recorder again with
sudo systemctl start s8cam.service.journalctl -u s8cam.service -fshows what it’s doing.
The camera isn’t detected
- Re-seat the flex. Switch off, lift the latch, push the flex in straight with its contacts toward the board, close the latch.
- Check the OS. It must be Bookworm, not Trixie.
- Run the installer again:
bash ~/install.sh.
A dark band rolls through the picture
The sensor doesn’t match your motor speed yet. Calibrate at the dial speed you film at. A sound camera can run faster without a sound cartridge, and calibration catches that.
Soft focus
- Gate in place? Then the lens is sharp only up close. For infinity, take the gate out where your camera allows it.
- Gate out and still soft? Check the lens’s focus ring, the viewfinder’s eyepiece, and dust on the sensor.
- A pink tint toward one edge comes from some old lenses meeting a bare sensor. It varies from lens to lens.
Battery and charging
- Nothing happens when you switch on. Check the cell’s polarity, and that the Rider’s own slide switch is on. The cartridge’s switch is off when closed.
- The USB-C board doesn’t charge. It needs 5.1 kΩ on CC1 and CC2, wired to the Rider’s VUSB and GND.
- The cell doesn’t fit. Measure its full length, lead included, and type it into the Builder.
Network
s8cam.localdoesn’t open. Tryping s8cam.local. Still nothing? Log in by IP address and runsudo systemctl enable --now avahi-daemon.- No hotspot. Run
journalctl -u s8wifi.service -n 30, then the installer again.