just buy a Leica M3 and now??

[francesca_manfioletti]

i'am a beginner on this forum (one week).This morning my new leica m3

ss arrived! :) from an auction won on ebay (i pay 650 US for the

camera and 250 US for this old summ. 50 collap. nice price?) I try to

check, but i'm not expertise, the shutter speed seem a little bit

different at 1 second near my olympus OM3Ti, then i hear a little noise

after the end of exposure on all low speed, finally focusing on

infinity in the viewfinder double images of far object doesn't match

toghether for a few...any suggestion about? now it seem to me to have

a ferrari in my hand..and looking the place where put the key.. ; )

thank you for your support!...sorry for my english

Francesca Manfioletti, Italy

[bert_keuken2]

The funny noises you hear on all lower shutter speeds are normal. The rangefinder needs horizontal adjustment and probably the shutter speeds too. Have your M3 checked by an experienced Leica technician or give it a full CLA (clean, lubricate, adjust). M3's are old by todays camera standards and if it has seen much use (and/or abuse) a CLA can bring it back into specs.

[luisarguelles]

Ciao Francesca,

 

Congrats for your new M3!. Although it seems your Leica asks for a CLA, we, southern Europeans, are very entusiastic people :), so don't be afraid to put a film inside the camera and try the firts exposures with it. Since it seems that the rangefinder is not pefectly aligned, try a 400 ASA film, thus resulting in a convenient Depth Of Field. Salutti de la Spagna, Luis.

 

PS.: Some pictures made with my Leica IIIf and a collapsible Summicron can be seen at: http://www.photo.net/photodb/folder?folder_id=275117

[patricks]

Francesca, $650 seems like a fair price if M3 is in good condition (btw, did the seller disclose the fact that the alignment is off and the shutter speeds are not accurate?) A good CLA (cleaning, lubrication and adjustment) should run you about $175-200 USD (or Euro equiv.) which will give you a camera that will last for a very long time.

 

Also, closely inspect the viewfinder for signs of fungus and decementation (that it is coming apart).

 

Otherwise, you should good to go. It is a fantastic little machine and a joy to use!

 

Ciao,

[roger_michel]

your camera may or may not be functioning perfectly.

 

to test shutter speeds, do a reciprocity test. shoot the same exact subject (identical lighting) at 1/1000 and f2, 1/500 and f2.8, 1/250 and f4, 1/125 and f5.6, 1/60 and f8 1/30 and f11 and 1/15 and f16 then do a second group of 1/60 at f2, 1/30 at f2.8, 1/15 at f4, 1/8 at f5.6, 1/4 at f8, 1/2 at f11 and 1 sec at f16. in each group, the density of the negatives should be identical. this will tell you whether the speeds maintain accurate reciprocity relationships which is more important than absolute accuracy (for which it easy to compensate). also remember that an m3 is in spec with a 30% deviation at the extreme ends of the shutter speed range.

 

as for your ostensible RF problem, many people make the mistake of checking alignment at infinity by focusing on something that is actually much closer than infinity. to check alignment at infinity focus, focus on something that is at least a mile away. the moon makes a good target, as do distant skylines. a few hundred or even thousand feet is not infinity. needless to say, this applies only to issues of horizontal, not vertical, misalignment. there should never be any vertical displacement at any focus distance.

 

i hope this helps.

 

finally, if you are really curious about absolute shutter speed accuracy, any good, honest camera repairer should test your shutter in two minutes for free. you can also buy the very fine calumet shutter tester for $50. however, there are really some things you don't want to know about your mechanical camera (like how much shutter speeds wander during fast sequence shooting, etc.)

[doug_hagerman]

1.) Buy film.

 

2.) Take pictures.

 

3.) Don't worry too much. :*)

[erik_l.]

Francesca,

 

Make sure you are engaging the infinity lock on the Summicron. It is very easy to focus to what you think is infinity, and the image will never line up. Be sure to click the infinity lock into place and then focus on a VERY FAR OFF object.

 

Hope this helps,

Erik.

[albert_smith]

<I>...then i hear a little noise after the end of exposure on all low speed...</I><P>

 

Here is a sequence of events for the shutter, and a description of the sounds you are hearing... especially at the slow end of the dial.<div></div>

[francesca_manfioletti]

eheh Doug..

thank you very much everybody i just printed out all your suggestions

i go out for a holiday with some tx400 rolls...

i hope some day i could post a photo here..

 

i love this forum..

francesca, Italy

[paolo_folzani]

Ciao Francesca, congratulations!!! Enjoy in your holiday with your "Ferrari" camera. If your M3 needs a CLA, there are many Leica repair in Italy: I can suggest you Sam.Ca. a Sampierdarena Genova, very expert and super reliable.

Good shots!

Paolo