I bought an M6 classic last august. It is dated 1997 (SN 2415341) and is very near mint externally. I have shot about 30 rolls since and generally speaking, I have aboslutely no regrets. I even traded all my Canon outfit for a Summicron 28, an Elmarit 90 and an Elmarit 21 ASPH.

I have noticed three things that bother me somewhat:

- picture spacing on the film is not constant. The variation is between 1 and 2 millimeters. It can make the cutting quite tricky.

- the placement of the picture is not in the exact center of the film. On pne side, it is quite close to the sprocket holes.

- on some films, the edges have been exposed to light. I can see that because the edges are black at some places. It is not of constant widht, it is not even on films.

Besides, I think a rangefinder tuning would not hurt.

One last thing: I have a Leica factory tour booked in May. I know that they somtimes accept to do some check on the visitors camera during the tour, maybe even adjust the rangefinder. I can perfectly well wait until then, but I feel somewhat sleazy to take advantage of that free check to hand them a camera while I already know it has some problems. I don't like the idea of abusing the kindness of people, even of a commercial company. I called my dealer to inquire about the price of a CLA with rangefinder calibration and some (hopefully) minor reparations. He told it could be about $800, which is half the price I paid for that camera and I have spotted another one which seems in great condition, albeit older (SB 19xxxxx) for $1,500.

My choices are the following:

- stop worrying and take picture, without changing anything

- run the camera through a CLA whatever the cost

- bring it to the factory tour and see what happens

- sell it and buy the other one which might have its own problems as well

Any idea ?

Thanks

-- Stephane Bosman (stephane.bosman@2ci.net), March 01, 2002

Answers

Keep the camera. The $800 quote is way too high. When you go thru a dealer they make an extra markup. Deal directly with DAG or Sherry they do excellent work and will probably charge around $300.

-- Gerry Widen (gwiden@alliancepartners.org), March 01, 2002.

The uneven spacing is caused by a loose nut in the wind mechanism. I am not too sure why the film is not square in the film gate. However both those problems and adjusting the rangefinder should be part of a regular CLA. CLAs run about $150US to $250US depending on where you get the work done. I would send it to either Gerry Smith at Kindermann Canada, DAG or Sherry Krauter as they are the best.

-- John Collier (jbcollier@powersurfr.com), March 01, 2002.

A CLA by Leica USA in New Jersey costs about $300. They will give you an estimate before doing any work. They have CLA'd (and completely overhauled) two M3 cameras for me. Their work is very good, and both M3 cameras now look like new! Your M6 should be good for another 10-20 years after a CLA.

-- Muhammad Chishty (applemac97@aol.com), March 01, 2002.

I think your dealer is full of crap. Check Leica USA repair facility in NJ. They repaired my Leitz M6 RF, and gave me a CLA for under $300. When it came back, it was actually quieter than when I sent it. Plus you get a one year warrenty. I did everything by e-mail and telephone. These guys gave me first class service, plus it's authorized by Leica. But you better hurry if you want it back by May. Typical time was three weeks for me.

-- Glenn Travis (leicaddict@hotmail.com), March 01, 2002.

Stephane, With respect to the spacing issue, the frame to frame gap variance can result from using different lenses. My experience is the gap is quite narrow, about 1mm, when I use my (formerly John Collier's) 21/3.4 Super Angulon. When I use a 50, the gap is 3mm. It's a matter of geometry, the angle at which the image is cast by the lens.

-- Henry Chu (henininden@yahoo.com), March 01, 2002.

Thanks everybody. I should have mentionned that I live in Belgium (Europe). I'll ask Monday to another dealer to double-check. Then I'll ask a German dealer as well. Germany is only one hour and a half driving for me so I could just go there if it sounds more in line with what you tell me.

Regarding the image placement dependent on the lens, I don't get it. The image on film is limited by the camera window, not by the lens. To my (limited) knowledge, the lens projects a circular image that's wider than the 24x36 diagonal and that image is cropped by the camera window, so the spacing should be nearly constent, I think.

-- Stephane Bosman (stephane.bosman@2ci.net), March 02, 2002.

Stephane, Could your dealer be Alpha? I equally bought my 2nd hand M6 from them. So far no problems with my camera, thankfully ,when I see the price they quoted for you for the CLA. Maybe you would like to try the Maison de leica in Paris. I know it's a bit further but I've only heard good things about them.(www.lamaisondeleica.com). Good luck.

-- William Westergren (westergren@skynet.be), March 02, 2002.