kevin m. Posted February 6, 2005 Share Posted February 6, 2005 The camera cover I ordered from Camera Leather finally arrived, and it took about 20 minutes to install. It's an improvement, grip-wise, over the original factory cover, but if you want something with some real tack in the hand, he has covers he rates as being grippier than this one. FWIW, I guess he's started cutting the front cover piece in two to make it easier to install, as that's how mine arrived. Personally, I'd have prefered a one piece front cover, as it wasn't at all difficult to install, but I don't know if he offers the option. Other than that, the quality is really nice, and it fits even better than the factory cover did.<div></div> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ben z Posted February 6, 2005 Share Posted February 6, 2005 Kevin, do you know if those covers are designed to be peeled off and reattached or if the adhesive is made to stick for life so the cover would stretch beyond re-use or tear if it were removed? Reason I ask is because on the M6 and later bodies the covering covers up the screws that need to be removed to get the shutter assembly out of the body casting. The Leica covers are made so the service people can peel them off and re-stick them afterward. I was thinking of re-covering my MP with something grippy like that, since my fingers seem to slip off the OEM material when it's hot outside. I was figuring to order a body cover from Leica, since they now offer the vulcainte-pebble look as part of the a la carte, but I shudder to think of the cost and these cameraleather or asahi covers are reasonably priced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevin m. Posted February 6, 2005 Author Share Posted February 6, 2005 I don't know if it comes off readily, Ben. It seemed a little stickier than the factory covering. You could check out the FAQ's on his site, and if the answer isn't there, just shoot him an email. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marke_gilbert Posted February 6, 2005 Share Posted February 6, 2005 Ben, I recovered one of my hasselblads, and Im pretty sure I could remove the covering without excessive stretching. Im thinking about a cameraleather covering for my MP as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul_neuthaler Posted February 6, 2005 Share Posted February 6, 2005 I had Morgan at Cameraleather recover my M3 with Matte Black Ostrich. It's subtle and beautiful. I don't think it's supposed to come off & then be re-applied. Why would anyone want to take the new cover off & re-apply it? (One day I'll take a picture & scan it). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marke_gilbert Posted February 6, 2005 Share Posted February 6, 2005 Its hideous, but I love for that very reason...<div></div> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
new hampshire john Posted February 6, 2005 Share Posted February 6, 2005 I think the cameraleather.com covers are quite a bit stickier than the OEM ones -- but they do come off (I had a stickiness issue with my K1000 cover, it came off pretty clean and Morgan re-tacked the edge glue for me), not that you'd want to do it much. They also stretch a bit, so I'm not sure I'd plan on doing it more than once or twice for that reason. Further, depending on the leather, they can be a bit brittle -- too much handling off the camera and stretching and I would think you'd have something of a mess on your hands. I, too, was surprised to see the two-piece front covers -- got an M3 covering yesterday that was split below the lens mount, and I wondered if maybe I had done that inadvertently. Little bit of a gap down there now, but nothing you'd notice, obviously enough. Here's a plug for brown-on-chrome, too -- saw a K1000 SE (brown on chrome) a few months ago and thought I'd give it a spin on the tatty old M3 -- came out purty good. And what can I say about that Hasselblad except "WOW"?<div></div> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevin m. Posted February 6, 2005 Author Share Posted February 6, 2005 Peter, it's standard black chrome. When DAG did the finder upgrade, I had him replace the red dot with a black one, then I filled the white lettering in with black paint. Looks pretty stealthy, eh? The camera was a user, so the lettering was pretty grungy anyway, as was the factory cover. BTW, I had DAG remove the 28, 75 and 135mm framelines from the finder leaving just the 35, 50 and 90mm like the M2 had. Much nicer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wayne_murphy8 Posted February 6, 2005 Share Posted February 6, 2005 Kevin, You have forgotten to blacken out the lens name and serial number. I think it would be better still if you could also blacken out the intrusive white shutter speeds and the glaring aperture/focus numbers on the lens barrel. Cool. Has anyone done a makeover with gold fill in the body and lens numbers? Black and gold - wow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ben z Posted February 6, 2005 Share Posted February 6, 2005 "Why would anyone want to take the new cover off & re-apply it?" Paul, you wouldn't on any body through the M4-P, as the screws that a repairman needs to remove to get the innards out of the body casting are exposed on the outside of the vulcanite or its replacement. However on the M6, M7 and MP those screws are underneath the body covering and it needs to be peeled off for the repairman to get at them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eliot_rosen1 Posted February 6, 2005 Share Posted February 6, 2005 Kevin, what did you do to that M6? Besides the new skin, the Leica M6 on the front should be in white and the Leica roundel should be red. The factory will not be very happy about this. :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
r_quan Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 Kevin, I just love your M's new look. DAG has black dots? I thought only Leica factory service had them. I want to do exactly what you did to my own M6TTL. What did DAG charge for the mods? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monsoonphoto.net Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 What's the grip you've got there Kevin? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevin m. Posted February 7, 2005 Author Share Posted February 7, 2005 I sent the camera to DAG to do the flare-free finder upgrade and asked him to replace the red dot with a black one when he put it back together. He said he has to order them from Hong Kong, and charges $15 for them. I filled in the lettering myself with SEM satin black automotive trim paint. The grip is an ebay special. I'm not sure who makes them. It's stamped "M-GRIP PHOTO EQUIP USA" inside the base. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vic_. Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 Kevin, Your grip is the GMP grip. New ones are sold by Rich Pinto at www.photovillage.com When I used grips, this is the one I had. It is much better than the Leica grip. All metal (the Leica is plastic), won't slip off your hand as it is not rounded. Good solid feel without being bulky. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevin m. Posted February 7, 2005 Author Share Posted February 7, 2005 Thanks, Vic. I knew it was "G" something or other. ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gerald_mullen1 Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 Hi ; Camera leather has a great product. I covered an old IIIC with his real leather product in black. similar to vulcanite but very much nicer. His die cutting is very accurate and the leather fit like a glove. Great product/nice guy to deal with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephen_w. Posted February 9, 2005 Share Posted February 9, 2005 I used fingernail polish remover (acetone) to rid the engraving of the white "paint". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevin m. Posted February 10, 2005 Author Share Posted February 10, 2005 Stephen, I'm leary of using such volatile chemicals on a still-assembled camera. Acetone, lacquer thinner and the like really play havoc if they should leak in behind the rangefinder window! You're a braver man than I. ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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