Warranty work and flare-free finder upgrade

[sprouty]

I am about to send in my M6 TTL for a warranty repair of a <a

href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?

msg_id=005PDv">light leak</a> that I�ve had in the base plate for a

number of months now and I was considering having the finder flare-

free finder upgrade installed while it was out.

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Two quick questions though: who to send it to (Leica NJ, or one of

the other names mentioned, Sherry Krauter(sp?), or DAG or ??). And

also for those of you that have had the upgrade, or done a side by

side comparison, was difference noticeable? Was it worth it? It�s

been enough of a problem for me lately that if the improvement is

noticeable that I�d just as soon get it done now.

[john_collier2]

Warranty work can only be done by the distributor. Yes the upgrade makes a significant

difference.

[will_wright1]

stephen...I reviewed you examples of your light leak and wonder

if you've ruled out fog from a lens change. The M6's and

presumably later camera will leak light in certain bright

conditions through the shutter curtain...In my case it make

vertical stripes not unlike what you see in your negs. If you can

remember, did you change lenses between the sucessive shots

with the fog? Just a thought.

[sprouty]

Sorry Will, I realize now that I didn't post the follow up thread. I actually found the leak after following the advice everyone had given. It was a crack in the base plate. You can see it image <a href="http://www.photo.net/photo/1586224&size=lg">here.</a>

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<I> Warranty work can only be done by the distributor.</I>

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Ah, I didn?t realize that, thanks John.

[billsr]

That crack appears to be a manufacturing defect caused by forming dies, assuming the bottom is brass. If the bottom is zinc, which is most likely cast, the cracks could have many causes, as I've found cast zinc to be very brittle. It behaves more like stone than metal in my opinion.

[sprouty]

The baseplate is brass and yup, the defect is clearly visible from the outside if you know what you're looking for (I was a toolmaker in a previous life).

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It's in the box and going back to Leica NJ today, thanks for the help guys.