samuelphoto Posted September 20, 2010 Share #1 Posted September 20, 2010 Advertisement (gone after registration) I'm thinking about picking up a Leica M motor drive, #14408, but have some concerns as to how rough it might be on the film advance gearing, etc. Some of the old Nikon MD drives could be pretty tough on the camera itself. On the other hand, aggressive hand winding isn't necessarily so gentle either. Maybe the motor is designed to provide just enough torque and stops at just the right place so that excessive force on the camera is minimized? I don't know, do you? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted September 20, 2010 Posted September 20, 2010 Hi samuelphoto, Take a look here Which is tougher on body - hand winding or motor?. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
jaapv Posted September 20, 2010 Share #2 Posted September 20, 2010 Depends whether you have paws or delicate fingers. All cameras ( well, all Leicas) that can take motordrives/winders have gears that are designed for the forces they will have to take - overengineered in fact. I have yet to hear of a motor breaking or wearing out a Leica camera. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
earleygallery Posted September 20, 2010 Share #3 Posted September 20, 2010 They used steel gears for the cameras that take a motor drive (compared to brass). It's designed for it so I guess it's OK. (Jaap beat my post!) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pico Posted September 20, 2010 Share #4 Posted September 20, 2010 I use 14408 winders (or Abrahamsson Rapidwinder) on every camera now (M4-P, M7, MD-2) and it is just fine. One thing that surprised me, but was obviously necessary, is the way the shutter release pushes back on your finger. You might be able to break something if you press and hold the release down with great pressure. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
aesop Posted September 20, 2010 Share #5 Posted September 20, 2010 ...not entirely sure where you're going with this one, samuelphoto, but suffice it to say that new film Ms will happily fire over 100,000 times before showing any discernible wear to the film advance mechanism and/or shutter, whatever the method of film transport. Now that's a lot of frames, and even if you are an über-prolific pro or just downright trigger-happy (pico? ), chances are that you are on to a winner. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
anabasis Posted September 20, 2010 Share #6 Posted September 20, 2010 While I've never measured the torque of motor drives, from the feel and sound of the Leica Motor-M, it seems to be fairly gentle. The frame rate is not that high, and they have only a 6V power supply. There isn't the high torque I've seen in Nikon, especially the older drives. I really don't worry or think that it will affect the life of an M-camera. JCA Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xmas Posted September 21, 2010 Share #7 Posted September 21, 2010 Advertisement (gone after registration) Well the camera is a tool and will need maintenance from time to time. It is possible to strip (sic the brass) gears with wear and the (normal) lever wind, managed that myself... on a M2. The steel gears (M4-2 and later, plus original MP from '50s) should be ok with the Leica winders. The ribbons that carry the fabric roller blinds can snap, with wear or storage but that is a blue moon event, but if you do unrepeatables allus carry a back up body. Noel Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
nickdando Posted September 21, 2010 Share #8 Posted September 21, 2010 Don't forget that the 14408 has three speed settings. Number I is the slow, quiet mode, which is what I use. Number II is the noisier full speed mode. Neither are fast. Number 0 is full manual, or the off switch. Nick Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rolo Posted September 21, 2010 Share #9 Posted September 21, 2010 The Motor-M has a clutch that senses overload and cuts the power. That's how it senses the end of the roll without ripping the tape/film. As a controlled force, it's possibly less likely to cause overload than aggressive hand winding. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
anabasis Posted September 21, 2010 Share #10 Posted September 21, 2010 On further thought, I would imagine that the "rapid winder" systems out there would be the most stressful on the winding mechanism. There you have a fairly long lever arm and significant hand strength along with unchecked speed. JCA Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
samuelphoto Posted September 21, 2010 Author Share #11 Posted September 21, 2010 The Motor-M has a clutch that senses overload and cuts the power. That's how it senses the end of the roll without ripping the tape/film. As a controlled force, it's possibly less likely to cause overload than aggressive hand winding. OK, THAT is the kind of information I was looking for. I was not aware of that feature. I know that, when things get kind of hectic I can be aggressive with the film advance, but wasn't sure about the motors. I have friends with older Nikon cameras that were ripped up by the motors. I think I can put my concerns to rest. Thanks, all. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JBA Posted September 24, 2010 Share #12 Posted September 24, 2010 On further thought, I would imagine that the "rapid winder" systems out there would be the most stressful on the winding mechanism. There you have a fairly long lever arm and significant hand strength along with unchecked speed. JCA I don't know about the Rapidwinder, but the Leicavit has a clutch that will slip when you reach the end of the film. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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