Without Advance Warning M7 Quits

[rgh]

Just packed up a bag I seldom use with the M7 and a few lenses, glad I saw this thread and It

reminded me to pack a spare set of batteries just in case (they are in a couple other bags).

 

The M7 I have here still has the original batteries, sometime they will need to be changed,

that's AE life - batteries... film... life is just too complicated :-)

[ray .]

Could be batteries, could be electronics. Both have been known to fail. Still a great

cam when it works, and worth doing what's necessary to get it to work.

[simonpg]

FWIW,

 

EVERY single device I have bought in recent years that comes with batteries fails within weeks - I am convinced these no-recognisable-name-non-battery-company batteries are made so cheaply the equipment makers know they will only works for a short time - "get you started batteries" is all they are.

 

My M7 did the same and yours Paul; my 32" LCD TV's remote did the same; my financial calculator did the same; my XPan II did the same. So now I trash the equipment company freebies and have REAL batteries on hand and use them from day one.

 

BUT Paul, you still could have used the M7 on 1/60 or 1/125 - not a bad alternative when you're desparate!

 

AND, take comfort - My M7 has functioned perfectly on its secon set for 2 years now and I shoot 1 roll of 36 per 2 weeks as a minimum average - I multi meter 50% of my frames to be sure the optimal average is taken; I often hold the exposure for 30 seconds before taking the exposure; I often walk around for hours with the camera on! IT IS NO BATTERY EATING MONSTER!

[jongraham1]

Simon- I must agree with you 100%. My experience has been the same.

[Alex_Es]

According to Leica's own instruction book, as best as my after-dinner wine-soaked

memory remembers it, turn off the M7 when not in use or you will have battery drain.

There are times when I neglected this advice and got a dead camera as a result. What I do

is this. I keep extra batteries in the Rapidgrip. In July it went dead on the train as I was

heading to a meeting of the Kobe Classic Camera Cliub. (My Domke bag's plastic strap lug

broke on my way to the station but I did a field repair.) So there I was at the station

jiggling old and new batteries. Some dork had to sit near me and knock by batteries from

the seart next to me on to the ground. I used curses that would make a the proverbial

drunken sailor blush. But I got it working. By the time I met my best friend in Kobe, a

sailor who is an avid photographer and a gentleman, I was quite my usual charming and

weell-spoken self. I gave a smashing presentation at the club in utterly hideous Japanese.

But my fellow club members were kind.

 

Anyway, do shut off the M7 when not in use. The same goes for the R3A and R2A.

 

Over the last year, my M7, bought used at Tamarkin with a year Leica guarantee, has been

a good soldier. It also came with the MP finder upgrade.

[dead_metaphor]

<...sell the m7 and get an m4.

 

But don't forget the batteries for your handheld light-meter.>

 

 

What hand held light meter? Ever heard of the sunny 16 rule and your brain?

[vinay_patel]

"Leica made a battery-operated camera that doesn't work without the battery. They should be flagellated for that. With a record like that, how dare they even consider making a digital camera that will also require batteries. heck, it won't work without the batteries either!"

 

I've seen a handheld crank-operated generator for cell-phones, maybe one of the Leica aftermarket genii will adapt one, so the batteryphobes won't stroke out.

[35mmdelux]

- is the shutter cocked? You get nothing in the finder unless you've cocked the shutter.

 

OUCH. tweedle dee, tweddle dumb.

 

Where can I hide now?

 

Thanks for helping isolate the problem (me)! Paul

[craig_zeni]

Glad to help out...I've had my M7 for about a year now and have yet to fool the meter. I'm very pleased with the camera.

[piotr_panne]

I\'d have Leica by the throat demanding to know why such vital information isn\'t in the owner\'s manual.

[peter_n1664876959]

<P><I>OUCH. tweedle dee, tweddle dumb</I></P>

 

<P>Don't worry about it! I've done the same thing and I'm sure many others have too. My experience so far is the same as Simon's above; no problems with batteries in either of my M7s. I also carry spares for each camera. Enjoy your M7 Paul!</P>

[joel_matherson]

"Electronics are like that, hence my preference for mechanical cameras."

 

Do mechanical cameras give you fair warning before they break down? LOL

[albert knapp md]

I have learned to carry two sets of extra batteries. It weighs nothing and provides incredible peace of mind.