Leicameter MR4

[cris_doepp]

I got question to the latest version of the leicameters.

Does a Leicameter work with a CDS Cell?

Can it happen that it sometimes won't work like the MC ?

Or will work always as long as it has enough battery power?

 

I'm asking because I got the opportunity to get a new never used

Leicameter MR4 black!

 

REGARDS

[stuart d]

Cris,

 

The MR4 is totally battery-dependent, so no, it's not like an MC meter. And the type of battery used is mercury, which is banned in the US (sorry, can't remember the voltage off the top of my head). There are a couple of alternatives, including one made by Wein. These non-mercury batteries are widely available at photo stores.

 

The MR4 has a self-test function which allows you to see whether the battery power is sufficient to give a meter reading. It's probably the best way to tell whether the meter works at all. The meter has a vertical bar on its front. With a new battery loaded, slide the bar across to the right (as you're looking at the front). If the battery / meter are working, the needle on the top of the meter will move all the way from the front to a circle approximately 2/3 towards the rear.

 

Older meters tend to need recalibration, so the other thing to consider is that, although the meter may work, it might not give you an accurate reading.

 

I have an MR4 on my M2, and I find that it tends to give me accurate results most of the time. Once in a while I will double-check with my M6 meter, or a hand-held Weston.

 

Good luck,

Stuart

[furcafe]

I have a Leica-meter MR (the model immediately preceding the MR 4) & I believe it is a CdS cell. While it's very accurate in daylight, it's not as sensitive in low light conditions as today's silicon cell meters. It will only operate as long as the battery operates, but seems to be much more energy-efficient than my my modern Cosina Voigtlander VC meter. When I had my Leica-meter refurbished, I had it re-calibrated to take the modern silver oxide batteries, but you can buy adapters (CRIS?) that will allow you to do the same thing in a non-recalibrated meter.

[gerald_widen]

I had a MR4 meter a ways back and found it to be very useful especially how it couples to the shutter dial and locks itself in place after a reading. The angle of measurement is I believe that of a 90mm lens. It worked from around 1970 until about 5 or 6 years ago. If yours is accurate use it. That being said, if Leica came out with a new batch essentially the same design with a new battery I think they would sell very well. Basically they are simple and if sold for a reasonable price (for Leica) say $ 350 how many of us would purchase it.

[cris_doepp]

First thank you guys for all your answers!

Do you think, 400USD is to much for a new (old) Leicameter?

Would buy a Vc-Meter?

[furcafe]

I personally wouldn't pay $400 US for even a new-in-box MR4 black, but I'm not a collector. I never would have bought my MR if it hadn't been so cheap (although it ended up needing a lot of work, anyway). It's a neat accessory & I like the fact that it can hold a reading & couples to the shutter speed dial. However, for practical use (especially in low light conditions), I think the new Cosina Voigtlander VC is a better user (& smaller, too).

[eliot]

The Leicameter MR4 in my estimation is an oustanding meter that has never failed me. It is MUCH more convenient than the stupid little VC meter that doesn't couple to anything (my apologies to those that own one) and is VERY accurate. And unlike the built-in meters of the M5, M6, and M7, the baseline (zero point) is adjustable.

 

The issue with batteries is described above. I have some older mercury batteries that still work (these batteries are still available outside of the USA), which tells you how little battery power this meter requires. One nice thing is that this meter conveniently shows you all of the different combinations of shutter speeds and f-stops that will work if you twist the shutter coupling dials.

 

As mentioned above, it reads about like a 90 mm lens (27 degree diagomnal angle), so if you set the frameline selector to show the 90 mm frame, you will see what you are reading. There are two metering ranges: 1) low light (red dot, for night and indoors); and 2) regular light (white dot, outdoors/daytime). Like all cadmium sulfide meters, there is metering memory, so try not to inadvertently meter in bright light with the meter set to the low light setting.

 

As far as the price, at $ 400 you are paying a collector's price for a new in box unit, so if you wanted this meter as a user, you could get one for probably half that or thereabouts. The black chrome MR4 meters are a little more expensive than the silver chrome meters, but are otherwise internally identical. As long as the electronics is intact when you buy it, little is likely to go wrong, unlike the situation with MC and M meters (which are selenium meters that all go bad, sooner or later).

[eliot]

To answer a few questions raised above: The mercury battery for which the MR4 meter was designed produces 1.35 volts. Because the voltage of this battery is so precisely maintained, it was not deemed necessary to add a voltage regulator circuit to allow batteries with different chemistries to be used. However, if you can't find a mercury battery, the Wein cell should work fine.

 

The Leicameter MR4 was catalogued and distributed by Leica but was actually made by Metrawatt, a company from Nuremberg, Germany. They stopped making them when Leica stopped producing their last meterless M camera, the M4-P. Although the early M6s had the same top plate as the M4-P, they no longer provided a notch in the shutter speed dial, so you could not couple an MR4 meter to an M6 camera. I thought this was too bad, since if the notch were there, the MR4 meter could still be used if the M6 meter failed or the camera battery went dead.

[robert_byrd1]

I recently went to Ken Hansen, in NYC, looking for an MR meter. He sold me a perfect one for a hundred dollars. To use his own words, most MR meters are "ridiculously overpriced."

[stuart d]

$400 is definitely way too much to pay for an MR4, black or chrome. I've seen many for sale around the $125 - $150 mark, but I picked mine up in EX+ condition for $75.

 

This is my second MR4. My first was black, mint- at the time of purchase, but it was attached to the M4-2 I left on a plane last fall. It didn't stay mint- for long: within a month of regular use, the black coating under the path of the activation lever started to wear away significantly. In contrast I haven't seen any new marks on my chrome MR4 in 4 months' use.

[eliot]

Cris was talking about a "new in box" black chrome MR4 meter. For those of you who are not aware of this, the MR4 meter was last made in the early to mid 1980s. A balck MR4 meter that is new in box is a very uncommon item, and probably would cost $ 350-400, no matter what Ken Hansen or anyone else says about it.

 

BTW, I have NOT seen black chrome MR4 meters offered for sale in the range of 125-150. For nice working condition meters of this type, say E+ to E++, dealers are charging on the order of $ 250 or so. Anyone who thinks you can buy a new in box black chrome MR4 meter for $ 125-150 should buy all such meters he can. New in box means never used in perfect condition in original box. This is worth a considerable premium to a collector.

 

It shouldn't be necessary to say all of this, but the last two posts seem to indicate that people are not distinguishing between equipment in perfect condition that was never used and equipment that is well worn from use, even if in perfect functional condition.

[stuart d]

Eliot,

 

Once again the distinction between collector and user rears its head. From Cris's questions, including the requested comparison between MR4 and VC meter, I think it's fair to assume he is in the second category. Maybe a collector would pay the premium. This user certainly wouldn't.

 

Regards

[victor_randin]

Many of us have seen many Leica�s with scratched top due to use of a MR/MC. Maybe not all of us know that any MR/MC� shoe is controlled to prevent touching and scratching the top camera cover with the bottom of MR/MC. There are two tiny regulator-screws on the bottom of the MR/MC shoe by turning which you can adjust the regular clearance between the MR/MC� bottom and the top cover of the Leica.