Thanks to the responses we got here and help from Zeiss over the phone we identified the problem and figured out a manual fix until the replacement part is shipped.  The problem is a shutter sticking in the barrel to the eyepieces which causes a safety interlock to stay open.  A gentle tug on fishline taped to the shutter closes it and the lasers switch on.
Regards,
Michael

From: Pedro Almada [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Monday, August 20, 2012 12:41 PM
To: Cammer, Michael
Subject: Re: help with Zeiss Observer Z1

Hi Michael,

We have a 510 with an AxioVert 200 body and had a similar issue, no error messages on the logs. There is a safety shutter on the binocular head and it broke down. It was easy to replace it. We tried removing it completely but there is an interlock that prevents imaging without it. We just unscrewed the shutter and had it laying on the floor of the inside of the binocular so we could image until the service rep replaced the shutter. It's quite easy to unscrew and have a look, see if it's moving.

Best of luck,
Pedro

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