Leica R 5 - shutter problems

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Hi guys,

 

I've got the old Leica R5 from my father but I tried to use it after quit a while I guess and I recognized some problems with the different shutter speeds. Only the mechanical shutter speed 1/100s is working properly without any problems. The other speeds are sometimes not working. The film is loaded and I press the release button but nothing happens. After some tries it's working again as nothing happened. I don't know whats going on there but I guess it has something to do with old, resinous oil/fett.

Had somebody the same problem already? Do you know how much this will cost to fix it?

 

 

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[earleygallery]

Have you tried it with new batteries?

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Indeed I haven't tried it. But the LEDs are still working fine but probably the electricity is to low for the shutter to work properly...

[Maarten]

When the mechanical speed is working properly it's likely an electrical problem.

You can try to clean the battery contacts with a glass fiber pen. You can get these in an electronic parts shop.

Cleaning the battery contacts carefully worked for me in a similar case.

 

Maarten

[wagner]

Hi "like it"!

 

Your guess is quite right. It has something to do with "something sticky". In cases like that, it is normally a sticky mirror release magnet. Had it with my R4S - and R4 - as well. The magnet contactpoints need to get cleaned. You have to give the camera to a cameraserviceplace or, if you have some "finemechanic hands", you should even be able to clean the magnet by yourself.

The magnet is reachable after removing the bottomcover and the batterieholder.

I cleaned the one from my R4S last year and since that service the camera did work without any problem.

 

Greetings from capetown,

 

Torsten

[Guest suilvenman]

If you were considering getting the shutter serviced professionally, then CRR Luton (UK) quote £85 (a complete service is £185).

 

This is a page from their website about several models of the Leica R series:

 

Buying a used Leica R4 / R5 / R6 / R7 ?

 

 

Ken.

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Hi and thanks for your replies,

 

I've tried a new battery now but still it wasn't working properly.

I also found the old motorwinder from my dad so I tried it and now it's working fine with it.

But actually I don't want to use my R5 with a big Batterypack. I guess the motor is strong enough to release the shutter (mirror magnet)...

After a few shots with the motorwinder, the R5 is now working fine - also without it.

I don't konw how long this will last, probably I have to clean it.

 

The CS is quite pricy and I'm a student....

 

 

@Thorsten

I already did some repairs on my iPhone, isn't the same but I already made some experience in "some sort of fine mechanics" but I don't wanna destroy it.

 

Do you have any kind of an instruction manual or can you send me a more detailed instruction? I'd really appreciate it

 

cheers

[wagner]

Hi Marc!

 

Well, first of all: the motorwinder has no direct influence to the release magnet. It´s just, that the mechanism get´s more used with the winder under the camera. Guess, you "played" a bit with the winder on the camera. It will work probably fine, as long as you are using the camera. When you put the R5 away for some days, it will start again giving problems.

The cleaning of the magnet is not very difficult. It´s actually an advice from a local camera technician, who worked as well for Leica.

As I said, at first you have to remove the bottom plate. At next you have to removew the battey compartment. (Again 2 screws) Then you can see - towards the mid of the camera - a lever arm with a "little block" a the end, sitting on an e-magnet. This arm gets released , when you press the shutter release.

After centuries of usage - or even not usage - this contact gets dirty - sticky - and needs to get cleaned. Therefore you have obviously to get the switch to get open. This can be done on "b" and with the help of a "wire remote" the camera will stay on "b". Then you have to try to get the contact plates cleaned with isopronayl. You have to be very careful while doing this. If you, by a mistake, bent the lever, you will be in trouble. ( Took me hours to straighten a bent lever on a Minolta XD 7; the Minolta XD has the same main mechanic. Might make sense to download the service manual for this camera, which you find on the net.)

The best tool to clean is probably a thin plastic stick, on which you can put a small piece of a fine tissue.

 

After this procidure the camera should work again without problems.

Of course, there is no guarantee, but it´s worth a try.

 

Good luck,

 

Torsten

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Hi Torsten, et al

 

 

I tried to clean it today with your instruction, unfortunately I couldn't really figure out, where I have to clean my Camera. I made some pics while I was working, so probably you can try to help with this pics. In one picture I marked the magnets and lever arms I found. Sorry for the bad quality but I had just my iphone around me to take pictures.

 

I guess what you ment is marked as "magnet 1" and "lever arm 1" if so where do I have to clean it? This was the only component, which was moving while I pressed the shutter. But I can't really clean it. Another problem was, that there was some sort of plastic bag around the magnets. Do you had the same problems with your camera?

 

hope these pics helps you to help me

If you can't explain it with these pics, let me know

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[wagner]

Morning Marc!

 

It's the M2 magnet. You have to remove - carefully - the plastic, to get access.

 

Then you can see the lever with it's little block sitting on the magnet core.

 

Your M1 is the 'apperture stop magnet' one.

[rsisti]

Hi Torsten,

 

I ran into the same issue with my R5. I got into the Leica R's in the end of 2014, when I bought a Leica R4 and a 35-70 Vario Elmar lens. I have been since then amazed with the world of manual focus and real photography. When I started taking pictures, in my 20's, autofocus was already pretty well developed. My first SLR was a Minolta Maxxum and I did not know anything about manual focus and manual aperture. Now that I am in my 40's I am discovering all that.

 

My R4 started malfunctioning 2 months after I bought it (in eBay, of course), and I decided to upgrade to a R5. I love this camera, and the TTL capability takes me right where I want. I also bought a Summicron 50/2 and a Vario Elmar 75-200 lenses. After some 10 rolls my R5 started presenting the same sort of issue that Marc described, first at random but going back to normal after shooting in mechanical mode (100), and later the shutter became completely inoperative.

 

I opened the camera and followed your instructions. I rubbed the contacts with a thin bamboo stick saturated with denaturated alcohol. After assembling it all back, it works again ! I hope the problem does not come back. I just wanted to thank you for your instructions.

 

I want to later upgrade to a R6 or R6.2, but I believe I need to improve my skills in manual mode first. I always wonder for how long more films will be manufactured - and I hope they stay in production for a long time - for people to enjoy doing photography as I believe is the true way. Thanks.

 

Rodrigo

[wagner]

Hello Rodrigo!

 

I'm glad to hear, that you could fix your R5! Maybe you can now even repair the R4. :-) 

 

 

 

Torsten

[shankara100]

Hi guys,

 

I have just read through this thread. I have two R5's both have similar issues, the shutter sometimes work ok - then maybe 1 in 5 frames releases at around a 1/2 second for any shot. I'am now guessing this is the same issues you have had? I am waiting on new batteries first before doing the procedure above, little scared I may not be able to do this seems quite difficult!

 

Also do you happen to have a link to where I can find the service manual?

 

David

Edited June 19, 2016 by shankara100

[Holio Cornolio]

Morning Marc!

 

It's the M2 magnet. You have to remove - carefully - the plastic, to get access.

 

Then you can see the lever with it's little block sitting on the magnet core.

 

Your M1 is the 'apperture stop magnet' one.

I'm having the same issue with my R5. I've taken off the bottom plate and located the magnets. The lever arm 2, I can see lifts away from the magnet a fraction of a mm when the shutter is cocked, and returns to rest, when released, but apart from that, I can't really see either lever arm doing anything when the shutter is fired. Also, the only way I can see to remove the plastic, is to cut it away. Is it safe to do this? I presume it (the plastic) needs replacing once the contact points are cleaned??

Thanks in advance for the help.

[danier222]

Morning Marc!

 

It's the M2 magnet. You have to remove - carefully - the plastic, to get access.

 

Then you can see the lever with it's little block sitting on the magnet core.

 

Your M1 is the 'apperture stop magnet' one.

 

Dear Torsten ,

I opened up my R4 and noticed the lever does not trigger when shutter fires, but it will trigger when I move it with a toothpick (I know it's not the best tool here).

Do you know what is going on?

 

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

Best,

Lee

[wagner]

Hello Lee!

 

Well, oit seems you have exactly the problem, which has been mentioned in this thread. The release magnet(M2) doesn't work and most probaly just need some cleaning. The procedure has been described above.

 

Good luck!

 

Torsten

[Scomy]

Hello,

I have an interesting shutter problem with my newly acquired R-5.

The shutter sticks on all speeds, but if I turn the camera upsidedown, the shutter fires normally.

When I remove the lens, I can see that the mirror stops in midpoint of it's travel, when the camera is right side up.

If I turn the camera upsidedown, the mirror finishes it's travel and the shutter fires.

I checked to see if the foam walls of the mirror box were interfering with the mirror - but that doesn't appear to be the problem.

Is it possible that a dirty magnetic switch could also cause this fault?

I noticed that the DOF preview switch is very stiff also. If I lift the the actuator  lever inside the lens mount, I can move the DOF lever, easily, Otherwise, I feel that forcing the switch, might cause breakage.

Thank you,

 

 

[Dr Davidson]

I had a similar problem on my R5, all of a sudden the electrics would die, no meter but the shutter still fired. Once that happened the camera came back to life, the battery test LED was always working and indicated a good battery. A very experienced technician friend recommended that I remove the lens flange, and the underlying circular slider to reveal the aperture potentiometer tracks that relay the lens aperture setting to the meter. Carefully clean these with a cotton swab moistened with iso-propyl alcohol. With a piece of aquarium tube taped on the end of a vacuum cleaner suck the area clean in case some fibres were left behind, and re-assemble. It is a little fiddly with all the thin delicate rings that have to go in, but with care and common sense it can be done safely. That cured the problem, it came back a couple of years later and was corrected the same way. It would seem that moisture somehow gets back there and messes up the contacts, it is after all, a precision instrument! Good luck!

[Scomy]

Dr. Davidson, thank you for your reply and great advice.

luckily, the light metering system in my R5 Is working  properly.

However, it is good to know how to clean the potentiometer for the future.

the mirror problem with my camera also happens when it is in the B setting ...which is all mechanical.

the mirror sticks, and the shutter only fires if I turn the camera upsidedown.

That makes me think that the fault may be something mechanical in the mirror box.

Has anyone seen this problem before?

Thanks again...

 

 

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[granislav]

On 11/12/2018 at 3:34 AM, Scomy said:

I noticed that the DOF preview switch is very stiff also. If I lift the the actuator  lever inside the lens mount, I can move the DOF lever, easily, Otherwise, I feel that forcing the switch, might cause breakage.

I had the same problem - try dipping some IPA underneath the lever, dirt may stick it. In my case - I had to take off the lens mount and a plate or two to get inside to clean it. no lubrication needed on the levers. Watch out for the rollers of the lens levers.