rainer_viertlb_ck Posted April 4, 2003 Share Posted April 4, 2003 do i understand right that the MP is a M6 without meter? great innovation.................well i love my M4-p whcih i use aside with my M7 0,85,- so this seems to be the most actual combination isnt it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rainer_viertlb_ck Posted April 4, 2003 Author Share Posted April 4, 2003 sorry my posting......now i was reading more about. too fast my reaction after realising that the cam is only mechanical.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jay_. Posted April 4, 2003 Share Posted April 4, 2003 The MP is an M6 stripped of a number of things (the crank rewind, the ergonomic wind lever, the nicely-textured body covering, the strap-rub protectors, the availability of a black-chrome finish) but it does have a meter, with same sensitivity and 3-diode display as the M6TTL, but stripped of the TTL flash circuitry and with a battery-status diode in place of the flash-ready diode. The battery-status diode is lit anytime the meter is activated--kind of an oxymoron of sorts since the battery-condition diode is actually using up the battery (and is redundant because the diodes themselves still indicate battery condition as they always did in the M6 and TTL). The great news is that you can have an M6 without a meter for half the cost of the MP: buy a mint M6 and don't put batteries in it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roger c Posted April 4, 2003 Share Posted April 4, 2003 Nope...it's a modern MP! Looks almost exactly the same, but they've shoe horned a TTL meter in there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve_barnett2 Posted April 4, 2003 Share Posted April 4, 2003 Where do I look for the battery status diode Jay, its doesn't seem to be on all the time on mine? I only expected to see it when the battery was low? Do I need to send it for a CLA already? Or are you talking crap? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve_barnett2 Posted April 4, 2003 Share Posted April 4, 2003 No, wait, here it is, page 62 of the German/English instructions 'If the battery-shaped LED lights up in addition to the light balance LEDs, the batteries will soon need to be replaced.' I guess the word 'If' is the important one. And to think people read the archives and actually believe whats written here. Now there is a potential shot in the foot in the making ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jay_. Posted April 4, 2003 Share Posted April 4, 2003 The one I handled in the store had the battery symbol lit whenever I pressed the shutter to light up the meter diodes. The Leica rep who was present said the battery was brand new and that's the way it's supposed to work. Guess that body *does* need to go right back for service and guess that rep needs to go back to Leica Schule. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfm Posted April 4, 2003 Share Posted April 4, 2003 Jay, You are a bundle of information and joy. jm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob F. Posted April 4, 2003 Share Posted April 4, 2003 The M6 without a meter is something you already own, Rainer. It's your M4P. I agree, it's a camera one gets attached to very quickly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy_piper2 Posted April 5, 2003 Share Posted April 5, 2003 More accurately the MP is an "antique" M6 'classic' with the rewind knob and flareless RF of an M3. I haven't commented much on the MP yet. Basically, I'm glad it exists, since it means an extra 20-year stock of 'classic'-sized parts for my M6s: finder windows, shutter knobs, etc. I'm not sold on the reversion to the knob rewind, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve_barnett2 Posted April 5, 2003 Share Posted April 5, 2003 In practice Andy the film rewind is very good. Not maybe as fast as the canted crank over the time it takes to rewind one film. But it doesn't unwind the film if you let go. In trying conditions when speed is of the essence, and your fingers slip off the canted crank and the film unwinds, well, thats when you may wish it was an MP. But by far the best solution would be for Leica to modify the canted crank to perform that trick as well! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jim_a Posted April 5, 2003 Share Posted April 5, 2003 I'm glad to hear the first reports that the rewind knob on the MP is good to use. I have an M2 that lived a hard life in the pool locker of a newspaper. I doubt if the canted rewind crank of an M4(2,p) or M6 would have survived all this camera has apparently gone through, based on all the dents and scrapes. <P> Some people think the rewind is a nostalgia item but I will take the few extra seconds it may take to rewind film for the superior durability. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djphoto Posted April 5, 2003 Share Posted April 5, 2003 I can't believe so many people are rallying 'round to tell us what a blessing the outmoded rewind knob on the MP is. I use an M3, and if I could swap the rewind knob for a canted crank without losing the other features of the M3, I would do so in a heartbeat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ralph_barker Posted April 5, 2003 Share Posted April 5, 2003 Where is Tim Taylor (from TV's late "Home Improvement" show) when you need him? With a special chuck to fit the MP rewind knob, the 22,000 RPM motor of a battery-operated Dremel MotoTool would seem the perfect solution to the slow rewind of the MP. ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy_piper2 Posted April 5, 2003 Share Posted April 5, 2003 Ralph: I LIKE it! (Except maybe for static marks.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy_piper2 Posted April 5, 2003 Share Posted April 5, 2003 Jim: I like the patina on that beater M2, too. Maybe Leica could make a commemorative "War Photographer's Memorial" MP - Titanium for the 'chrome' parts and Cor-Ten steel (that brownish 'pre-rusted' architectural stuff) in place of the vinyl covering. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ray_moth Posted April 8, 2003 Share Posted April 8, 2003 I don't see why the MP has to be battery-dependent. If they put a selenium cell in there, instead of a silicon blue diode, it wouldn't need batteries and then there would be space for a self-timer. It wouldn't be able to drive an LED display, of course, so you'd need a sensitive match-needle galvanometer visible in the viewfinder and the meter wouldn't be very sensitive but it would probably work - after a fashion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cameron_sawyer Posted April 8, 2003 Share Posted April 8, 2003 Why are you all so paranoid about batteries? A selenium meter cell is much less sensitive than modern (battery driven) ones. What's the big deal? Keep spare batteries in your pocket. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ray_moth Posted April 8, 2003 Share Posted April 8, 2003 The selenium cell meter for the MP wasn't really a serious suggestion, but who knows? There's many a good idea said in jest. ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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