wheelie52

Hi All,

 

I have recently obtained a very early M3 ... '54 model. The

rangefinder patch is extremely faint and can only be used in good

light with plenty of contrast in the subject! I hear that they can

be re-silvered which I guess is probably the problem. I live in

Brisbane Australia and would not have a clue where to start trying to

find someone to do this job. Probably not in this country I suspect!

 

Can anyone give some info as to where I should send the camera and

approximately how much it may cost? The camera is exteremely

original .... so is well worth the effort!

 

Keith

Richard ... my lense is marked exactly as you describe and it is all metal mount. The serial no of the lens is 1023969. It was supplied with the camera and matches the serial numbers on the box. They are a lovely little camera but no M as someone pointed out. I'm very fond of the little Rollei 35s and in fact have four of them but these CLs are a big step up from the Rollei with their rangefinder! The Cl also seems to me to be very ergonomically similar to the M5! I sort of like the chunkiness of the M5 and the CL looks like a smaller little brother, or maybe sister !!!!!

 

......Keith

Actually I have just noticed that there is a 50mm Summicron lense on the docket but there has been a cross put throught that item. What would a CL have cost back then ... maybe the $740.00 was for the summicron as well?

Interesting what you say about the production dates Joel. The docket, from a camera shop in New York, is dated 1978 and is for the camera and ten rolls of film totalling around $740.00. That was a lot of money for a small rangefinder back then! Keith

I have read Stephen Gandy's info on the lenses and rushed off downstairs to see what it is ... it's the CL lense not the CLE as it has the serial no. on the filter ring. This identifies them apparently.

I bought the camera off ebay and was stunned to find when it arrived here in Australia, that it was in it's original box with the leather case and strap .... and tucked away under the styrafoam was the original purchase receipt and warranty card! It looks like it's hardly been used at all and the only issue I have is the light meter which seems rather erratic ... but obviously it has not been used in a long time so may settle down. If not I have one of those very pretty little VCII Voigtlander meters courtesy of Stephen Gandy again.

I also bought a Voigtalnder f1.9 28mm Ultron from him a while ago and it looks a treat on the CL! Doesn't quite suit the 40mm brightline but oh well.... I guess I'll just shove my eye right inside the viewfinder ... :-)

I've recently bought a CL Leitz Minolta in absolutely mint condition

and I'm curious about the lense. The camera is a very late model

one ... possibly the last year of production and the lense is a

Rokkor 40MM. I know how highly regarded the 40MM Summicron is on

this camera but I know nothing about the Rokkor. How does it compare

to the Summicron of the earlier camera? Keith

Hey Dmitrii ... here's more stuff on this link to spin your head.

 

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/minoltadimage5/

 

Keith

Ahh Peter..... you are refreshingly analytical. People like you on forums are a good reason to return ..... constantly ..... and yes, let's get back to photography. I am however not the least bit misogynistic .... I do, however, not want too many things in life to be homogonised.

 

hugs and kisses ..... Keith

No I didn't .. he's a man before he's a photographer in my eyes and this individual is a male. His unique perspective enhances his artistic ability as a photographer or whatever. When I refered to him as 'the man' it was a direct description of who and what he is. Also I don't think it pays to become trapped within precision and correctness in any area .... art photography or language! It all has to evolve to improve or otherwise. We have new words appearing in the various dialects of this planet daily. The approach to photography should never be a constant either or it will fail to grow and develop surely! When a certain laterally thinking individual worked out a way to use 35mm movie film in a still camera I'm sure he was howled down by a lot of the estabished experts of the time! Keith

Yes lense is good and we spell color .... COLOUR here downunder in Aust. (the Queen's english) And hey Dmitrii the Turkish photographers photos are stunning ... I agree! But I also agree that it's not the camera ... it's the man. He would take great photos with a box brownie!!!! Keith

I have a D70s with the 18-70 lense and as far as the Nikon is concerned the camera is the best thing I've ever used (digital) If you can afford it though start saving your dollars for the Nikon 18-200 VR (anti vibration)lense They are hard to get and not cheap, in fact I have had one on backorder for a month or two. With that camera it is all the lense you will ever need.

 

http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/18200.htm

 

Check this link to see what Ken Rockwell has to say about this lense! Keith

I meant "fanatic' in the nicest possible way ... and normal people like ME! Now I'm really worried! I appreciate any help I get and that link to Stephen Gandys's screw mount listing was great .. thanks! It's not my first Leica ... I also have three M3s an M5 and recently a CL and am building up a lense collection. This is my first venture into screwmounts though and I'm looking forward to using it. I gathered the film loading process was a bit tricky and I think I read somewhere that you have to trim the film leader down with a pair of scissors before loading ... or is that earlier still? This forum has been a real bonus to me and is teaching me lot very quickly. I have spent most of my life fascinated by motorcycles and recently switched my obsession to cameras so I am a late starter! Keith

I have bought a Leica recently and was told it's a IIIc upgraded to

IIIf. I have looked at various serial number listings and none of it

makes sense. I'm not precious about what the camera may or may not

be and it's lineage is not why I bought it ... I want to take

pictures with it!! I am learning about these cameras slowly however

and am sure that one of you fanatics out there will be able to tell

me exactly what it is. Serial No 514825 It has flash sync and self

timer. Keith

Yes I thought of that .. the idea of including a moisture absorber in the camera body to remove whatever residual water would be in the air left in the hollow space. The vacuum created by the sealer ... lets not forget .... will minimise the quantity of air ... thus the water content that would be left in there. The fact that there is no air curculating through the camera at all though, must be an advantage surely! In this industrialised world we live in there's a lot more than H2o seeping into everything ... including our lungs too I guess! Keith

I'm new on this site and new to photography but have made a discovery

that may be useful to all camera lovers and collectors who value

their equipment and don't want it degraded by humidity or moisture.

I know about the moisture absorbtion bags and sealed containers but I

reckon this is easier and more effective in the long term. I live in

an area that is warm and humid (sub tropical) and because I'm a

couple of thousand feet above sea level, often buried in cloud!

Over the last few months I have bought about six Leica cameras from

M3s to my latest M5. I have lost numerous expensive items to the

elements in the time I have lived here and wasn't about to see my new

babies go the same way. I bought one of those home food sealing

units that suck all the air out of a plastic bag and then heat seal

it under vacuum! You can buy the plastic in a continuous roll and

use as much as you need to fit the camera in. The unit I bought is

called Seal A Meal and was not much over $100.00 Australian. It

probably costs cents to seal up a camera or lense very efectively ...

if you need to use it, break the seal, use it and when you feel that

you are not going to use that particular camera or lense for a

while ... bag it again! I personally think that a camera or lense

sealed and protected this way would be safe for years ... a great

thing for long term collecting! It seems simple ! Keith

As an ammendment to the ongoing spool disater I have now been contacted by the German seller of the camera who has made a huge apology and is sending me the spool post haste. Somehow it got left out before it was sent. My faith in human nature is well and truly restored ... watch this space !! Keith

To all who have responded to this post with suggestions and offers of help ... thanks! I have been offered a spool by Ronald Moravec (hero) so the M5 will live and give me much pleasure I'm sure. I was so impressed with the response I got to my post that I immediately subscribed to this site! Cheers ...Keith Novak

Hi, I have a problem that I hope someone out there can help with. I

have recently become a Leica fan and have a couple of M3s and have

just bought an M5 from an ebay seller. When I received the camera I

discovered that there is no take up spool. I have been informed by

an informed source that they are all but impossible to get ... true

or false? I am a convert from digital and my Nikon suddenly seems

very uninteresting compared to my Leicas. I hope someone can give me

some info on this because if it's true I have a useless camera!

Keith.