EF-S 18-135mm lens works on everything but my 60D

[mvaughn25]

I just bought a used 60D with an 18-135mm lens. This lens works fine on my Rebel T6, but has a number of bad behaviors on my 60D. After every photo, it displays a "Err 01" message for about 2-3 seconds and then goes back to working. If I turn on the flash, it just goes into "Flash Busy" state and won't take a picture. And if I turn on Live Display, it will not take a picture at all. These features work fine on the 60D with everything but this particular 19-135mm lense. And the T6 uses this lens without any Err 01 or Flash Busy issues. Any clues what I should try? Cleaned the leads, checked the ribbon cables. Everything is fine in any combination other than 1 particular lens with 1 particular camera.

[Tronhard]

Hi and welcome to the forum:

The error 01 error indicates a communication issue between the camera body and the lens.  Considering the 60D is new to you as well, have you considered that the body may have the issue.  One way to explore this is to use other lenses with the 60D and see if they work without error or not.

[mvaughn25]

I have tried an 18-55mm and a 75-300mm lens and all features and functions work fine on the 60D. It is only the 18-135mm that has these issues. And even the 18-135mm works fine on my Rebel T6. It is only on the 60D that it has these issues, and is the only lens having any issues at all on the 60D.

[Tronhard]

Thanks, that clarifies your situation a lot more. There are several versions of the 18-135 lens, what is the exact description as indicated on the front of the lens please?
One thing you could do, if you have not done so is do a full reset on the 60D - if I get a body used, that is always my first step.   Also, make sure you are using full-size SD cards in the camera - a lot of cameras have issues with micro SD cards that have an adapter.  Finally, the last preliminary action is make sure you are using a fully-charged Canon brand battery.

Once you have done all that, please do come back with the results!

[mvaughn25]

I cleared the settings yesterday, then updated from firmware 1.1.1 to 1.1.2 this morning. Just reset the settings again for good measure. Did not resolve any issues. The lens is: Canon Zoom Lens EF-S 18-135mm 1:3.5-5.6 IS 67mm.

[Tronhard]

Thanks again!  I am not sure that this is significant, but the lens is the oldest model of that series, released in 2009, so about 15 years old - the later ones being the STM and USM  in 2012 and 2016 respectively.  That said, the fact that the issue is apparently unique to this combination puzzling.  At the risk of trying your patience, can you try swapping cards after formatting the new one in your 60D and also confirm that your battery is a genuine Canon one with a high charge potential remaining?

[ebiggs1]

Sometimes, very rarely, you run a muck of min/max tolerances. You have lets say a max tolerance body and a minimum tolerance lens. Perhaps you can feel that this lens is a tiny bit looser or tighter than your other lenses that do work? One of the very few times I will recommend you clean the golden contacts on the lens carefully. A qtip and a small drop of alcohol. Beyond that you don't have many options except to send it in for service.

"... then updated from firmware 1.1.1 to 1.1.2 this morning.  ..." That would not help as you found out. 

"Just reset the settings again for good measure."  You did a full reset to factory?  You have a fully charged Canon brand battery? Not a knock off and you know the charger is fully working?

"... checked the ribbon cables ..."  I don't recommend lay people do that so in the future refrain form that practice. Once the lens has been disassembled and reassembled all bets are off as to what the problem could be.

Actually I suspect this is a camera fault and not a lens issue. However it is unlikely the repair is cost effective but that is your call. Good luck.

[ebiggs1]

"... a lot of cameras have issues with micro SD cards that have an adapter."

I, too, don't recommend anyone use micro-SD in a Canon camera but I doubt that is the issue here. In fact the combo should work whether it has an SD installed or not. A simple test is to remove any and all SD and/or any adapters and try it.

BTW, make sure there are no off-brand accessories of any kind being used on the camera.

[Waddizzle]

“ Sometimes, very rarely, you run a muck of min/max tolerances. You have lets say a max tolerance body and a minimum tolerance lens. ”

Yes, this can happen.  But designers are supposed to make allowances for tolerance variations so that electro-mechanical failures do not happen.  In other words, when a perfect storm of tolerances causes issues, that is a quality control failure, IMHO.

The pins on the camera mount are spring loaded for this reason.  Perhaps you have a sticky pin on the lens of the camera body.  Use a lint-free lens cloth to wipe the pins.  Cause them to fully retract and make sure they fully spring back.  You could have a pin that is sticking a little.

[Waddizzle]

If a pin is sticking, then there could be dirt or foreign debris in pin socket.  I would carefully use a can of compressed air to spray the pin(s) in very short air bursts.

Use dispenser with a straw nozzle.  Turn the camera so that objects fall out of the mirror box, instead of into it.  You do not necessarily need to spray all the pins if you find a sticky one.  

Remember less is best.  Give it a quick shot of air, flex the bad pin, and then retest the lens.  You can always give it another quick burst.  It two or three shots of air do not correct the sticky pin, then the mount might need professional cleaning.