Jessestr Posted May 28, 2014 Share #1 Posted May 28, 2014 Advertisement (gone after registration) Hi all I'm trying to find out what causes viewfinder separation. Can it happen on any M? Is it from 0 to separated, or is this a process that evolves? I might buy an M2 which is in top condition, everything works fine (even brighter viewfinder than my M6). Slightly more blue. But I don't want to end up with a viewfinder that's separated in a few months or years. As for now it looks splendid. And if it's separated, what can be done to fix it? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted May 28, 2014 Posted May 28, 2014 Hi Jessestr, Take a look here Viewfinder separation. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
Stealth3kpl Posted May 29, 2014 Share #2 Posted May 29, 2014 Buy it. Life's too short. Pete 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
normclarke Posted May 30, 2014 Share #3 Posted May 30, 2014 The problem with the early M's was that the main prism was cemented with canada balsam which can be effected by age. This form of costruction was used until the mid M4 range when a more durable synthetic resin was used, this has been the case until now. It is not such a complex job as would seem to be the case. Both leading UK experts can provide a cure for this malady at a reasonable cost. I myself have had success useing a top grade U/V resin and the help of a vacuum silvering service. If you view through the front of the finder evidence of a speckled gold line at the top and bottom edges of the prism will warn you that separation may be imminent. Best, normclarke. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stealth3kpl Posted May 30, 2014 Share #4 Posted May 30, 2014 I have an M2 which shows some separation, and another which is unaffected. If it looks good now buy it. I don't think there's a reliable way to predict if it will be affected in the future. It sounds like you've found a nice M2. Buy it and don't worry. Pete Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
yossarian123 Posted June 5, 2014 Share #5 Posted June 5, 2014 I have a DS M3 with pretty bad separation, I sent it off to Youxin Ye to re-cement the front prism. The difference between a finder with separation and one without is night and day - there's a big difference in brightness. When I bought the M3 5 years ago it had only mild separation around the edges and in that five years it steadily worsened until it covered maybe 1/3 to 1/2 of the total VF area. So it's gradual and not sudden. The cost to re-cement? $120. So it's really not that big a deal - if you like the rest of the camera don't worry about it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
normclarke Posted June 5, 2014 Share #6 Posted June 5, 2014 $120 is a very reasonable price to pay for this service. I'll wager the coating was still good and it only required re-glueing. Re-coating can be tricky as the ratio of transfer needs to be between 65/35 and 70/30. This is the difficult operation, I found a vacuum coating service that could meet these requirements when I needed it. I don't believe Leitz offer this service any more, can anyone clarify this point. Best, normclarke. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maarten Posted June 5, 2014 Share #7 Posted June 5, 2014 Advertisement (gone after registration) Leica Wetzlar will not touch individual components of a broken viewfinder. I dropped my M2 which resulted in a complete separation (black viewfinder with just the focusing rectangle visible). Wetzlar suggested to replace with an M6 viewfinder. I hated the idea because of the cluttered frame lines. In the end Will van Maanen could bring the viewfinder back in its old glory (and even brighter). In my case re-silvering was not needed. The price was in line with the numbers already mentioned. When the viewfinder of the camera you are looking at is bright then don't worry too much! Maarten Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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