I have a Kodak C875, lens won't retract. Jammed.

Kodak C875 with lens extended was dropped. Now the lens won't retract. When I turn it off and on, it starts to make this horrible clicking noise before it gives up and shshuts off. I suspect it is jammed in such a way that if I disassemble and reassemble, it would work again, but I'm not sure what I'm doing. Any ideas?

I wouldn't mess with trying to take it a part. If you have any warranty left, it'll void that. I'd try cycling the camera on/off several times to see if you can get the lens to work it's way back onto the rails (this is a fairly common problem with compact cameras). But don't force anything. It's way too easy to strip the gears on a camera like this.

Chances are, if you can't cycle the lens back into place, that you'll need to repair it. But understand that without warranty coverage the average cost of a camera repair is around $180. As such, it may cost more to repair than it is really worth. The rule of thumb is that if the estimate for repair is north of 50% what you paid for it, you're better off taking that money and buying a newer and upgraded model.

Go ahead and send it for an estimate. Can't hurt.

James is 100% right. I just wanted to add that, based on the age of the camera, if you DO decide it's not worth repairing, some people have had luck fooling around with stuck lenses and getting them to work. Myself included!

A very similar thread with various people's responses/ solutions/ results is here:

http://www.digitalcamera-hq.com/digital-cameras/kodak-easyshare-c643_question.html?qid=6262