Nikon D800 10-pin Connector Issue and Fix

I had been using it on my second-hand D800 from 2012 to connect a di-GPS unit and that had been working great.

However, after I took it out for whatever reason and went to plug it back in, the GPS would no longer work. I then realized that the connector seemed loose (in specific the black stubby bit inside the socket, not the metal screw ring), and upon a quick web search, I found this is a common issue with early units, and my unit was apparently one of those.

Before I realized it was sunken below the height it was supposed to be at, I tried moving the connector using a pair of electronics tweezers, but that didn't help much as it kept moving in a swivelling motion, and slipping from the tweezers. I then tried a pair of sturdier cross-locking tweezers, and those were able to grab the connector without slipping too much. I then gently rocked the connector side to side while grasping it, and gently pulling it outwards. To my surprise, the technique worked, and although the outer portion of the plastic connector got a few deformed edges, the connector still produced a good electrical connection with the GPS unit, and it is now working again (and likely never coming off the camera again 😄).

Since I didn't expect this to work, I didn't take photos of the process, and I am not removing the GPS unit for that purpose, so you'll have to use your imagination. But if you have a camera with a similarly broken connector, and Nikon is quoting owners ~350 CAD for the repair (when I paid 500 CAD for my unit), this might be a potential last-resort fix before sending the camera away.