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My beloved M-E is currently in the hospital in Allendale, NJ, for a corroded sensor replacement. The cost of this, as most of you know, is $1,595 + shipping. I also had the option to upgrade to the CL (body only) for the same price. The CL offers a host of technological upgrades, better low-light performance, blah, blah, blah. And in full disclosure: I told myself this was the right move to make... that lasted for about an hour. The thought of being without this instrument which feels so pure and so aligned with my film photography actually made me nauseous. I passed on the CL. Here's a pic of "my precious" mounted with the beautiful Canon 50mm f/1.8 (Canon Seranar). Carry on.

I just got a great deal on an M6 Classic, but it has very few bubbles here and there. (nothing major) I'm sure this subject has been written about multiple times on this forum and some of you may be tired of reading the same thing again and again. However, I was wondering if it would be possible to reverse the oxidation by getting it to bare zinc and painting it. Would it need to be treated with some type of chemical? Would it happen again? Sending it to Leica is not an option for me and M6 Classic top plates are hard to find online. So, is there any ways to reverse this zinc plague on the top plate?

I bought a Leica Monochrom (M1) after many years using a beloved M8. As many, I was hypnotized by the huge potential of the Monochrom: the sensor, the high ISO, the details.. because of the price, I didn't buy it when it came out but as soon as the M246 hit the shelf it was the moment the price was a bit more convenient. I loved the camera. After few months of regular use it developed a fault, every once in a while the camera would 'jam' whilst taking pictures so I brought it to Leica Mayfair for inspection and it went away for repairs in Germany. I was gutted, such an expensive purchase and it already showed faults? Anyway, Leica repaired with their own time (which we all know!) but at least it was a free repair. When the camera returned the 'silent shutter' didn't really worked anymore...it suffered a bit of lag but I didn't really care. Flashforward a year after I notice some black spots on my pictures. Jump on the Tube, Leica Mayfair....again, shipped to Germany. One month goes by, the camera return with a new sensor: yes the sensor had corrosion that many of us experienced. Ok, about two years with the camera and quite a lot of hassle to deal with...I'm scratching a bit my heads here, I bought something to enjoy and yes I do enjoy when it works...but I haven't experienced anything so faulty from any other brand? Flashforward to last month, I went to Japan for some work and I decided to bring the Monochrom with me for such a great opportuniy. Enjoyed the trip, loved Japan, had a fantastic time with my Monochrom. Soon after I came back I went out for my usual stroll and I noticed the rangefinder on my Monochrom wasn't aligned anymore...vertically off, to be more precise. Off to Mayfair - again, off to Germany. I thought it was a rangefinder alignment problem but instead Leica told me there is a sensor alignment problem too. And it comes with a bill of £500. From Germany, they is stating the camera is been dropped and because of the shock the sensor (and rangefinder) is a bit off now. I haven't dropped the camera, the body is in great conditions free from scratches, dents or heavy marks. I mentioned I had the camera in my backpack the whole time but they are firm the camera is been dropped. They also mentioned this could happen even by just having the camera in a backpack. Now, I'm aware a lot of people buy the camera to keep it in a shelf, to maintain the less usage and to have it into as many sort of protection as possible....but I actually brought it to use it and bring it with me, always doing my best to look after it but never forgetting the purpose of the camera, which is to be used. I'm really disappointed at this point with this whole thing... I never complained about all this hassle I had to go through those years with malfuctions and all sort of problems that the company 'included' with the camera (is not my personal case, I read tons of post about corrosions and all sort of problems), now I even have to deal with (bad) assumptions and being charged quite unreasonable prices for situations I didn't even create? I actually went to Japan to film some stuff, Im a filmmaker and I do carry a lot of equipment. How come none of my video cameras, not even my Ricoh GR suffered of anything? I'm seeking advice, as I'm really really fed up with this whole thing. Yeah the camera is great when it works.... but I can't keep up with these sort of things: let's face it, probably one of the most expensive brand for photography, they carry themself as this synonymous of craftmanship and precision....but they still manage to mess up a whole series of Monochrom? Camera is on hold in Germany now. Not sure if I'm wishing to carry on the repairs...seriously thinking about just moving away from Leica as I got the feeling their main target is people's pockets.

So, in May, 2017 I sent my ME to Leica NJ for repair of the corroded sensor. You'll recall, this was well before Leica announced the August 15 deadline for free repairs. After the announcement, I sent my M9M to Wetzlar through Leica Store Miami. At this point, I was willing to place money that the M9M would arrive from Wetzlar before the ME arrived from NJ. Although I was very bummed about not having either of my Leicas I was mostly OK because I still had my trusty M8. I've used the M8 since then without issue until last week. Several of us caravanned down to Key West on a relief mission after Hurricane Irma. I took my M8 along with me for once-in-a-lifetime shots. Well, you can probably guess what happened. I suffered a catastrophic shutter failure at the worst possible time. No photos of the trip. None. Nada. Zero. Zilch. . . . sigh. This also presented another issue. Now I was left without any travel camera. So, yesterday I bought the Canon 40mm f/2.8 pancake lens for my 6D. Today, I mounted the lens, took some test shots and deemed it acceptable. So, I removed the vertical battery grip and the handstrap that I use along with it. This last part is a major issue as it is cumbersome to attach and to detach. Well, you can guess what happened now. Fifteen minutes later (yes, 15!) UPS arrives with my ME. Yup. All I had to do to get the fates to deliver the ME was buy the Canon 40mm! Anyway, I've tested the camera and there does not appear to be any evidence of corrosion. Still, the receipt is very cryptic. How can I be sure that the sensor has actually been properly upgraded? It does bear firmware number 1.210. Does this indicate the proper upgrade? Thanks in advance. RV