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M7 eats batteries


kivis

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Suggest U get your M7 checked out. I just pulled my M7 out of its bag for about 4-5 yrs and shockingly the battery still works. Yes, I know I shouldn't store batteries in my M7 :D. Glad it didn't leak.

 

I've not heard of a battery drain after 3 rolls. Even if the M7 was left on the whole time 3 rolls is a bit short.

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Could be something as simple as a loose or dirty (corroded) connect in the circuit somewhere. My R6.2 went the same way fading the battery in about five minutes, but I havent done anythingn about it yet. My MP is really really sus maybe the meter is working maybe it isnt, mind of its own, but you have to expect that with a camera that has been to leica three times to get fixed, probably a dodgy contact. Who knows who cares. The circuitry in any of the 2x1.5v circuits is sus I figure, not coming good till the R8/9 which goes on forever in any condition, wet dry, hot, cold.

One thing I learned was to use cheap batteries that lose voltage to the end giving you ample warning, rather than the sort that give full discharge till the point they die because they will catch you out one day.

If I was you I'd piss it off back to service sooner rather than later because it isnt something you can fix, and lets face it, the 7 is a cripple duck without power.

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My M7 is going thru batteries at a rate of only 3 rolls of film. Tried 3 different brands. And the worst of it is that when I test the used batteries, they still have plenty of charge. Back to Leica?:(

 

Usually, when a M6/M7 is chewing though batteries it's because it it being put away into a bag without switching the camera off. Even a neoprene case will put enough pressure on the shutter button to activate the light meter, and this will drain the batteries quite rapidly. On the M7 there is the power switch under the shutter button/winder assembly. If you are switching the camera off - it's possible the switch is not working properly - test by partially depressing the shutter button when the camera is 'off' and see if the diodes light up in the VF.

 

If you're sure you are not having this problem, then I agree with the other posters - that kind of battery life is not normal and you should have the camera checked.

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Usually, when a M6/M7 is chewing though batteries it's because it it being put away into a bag without switching the camera off. Even a neoprene case will put enough pressure on the shutter button to activate the light meter, and this will drain the batteries quite rapidly. On the M7 there is the power switch under the shutter button/winder assembly. If you are switching the camera off - it's possible the switch is not working properly - test by partially depressing the shutter button when the camera is 'off' and see if the diodes light up in the VF.

 

If you're sure you are not having this problem, then I agree with the other posters - that kind of battery life is not normal and you should have the camera checked.

 

Yes, but that assumes that on the M7 the shutter has been wound before putting in bag ie there is one in the chamber, otherwise pressure will not have any effect.

Mine seem to last for quite a long time.

Falstaff

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Hi all LUF friends,

For one year, i always have the same battery in my M7 (Varta)

Here is what the note of Leica M7 says :

" A game of new battery is sufficient .....for a length of measure of 10 sec.

by view, for about 65 films of 36 views...

for about 2340 views (according to norms of control of Leica).

... Usable piles: Piles lithium

-Duracell DL 1/3 N

-Kodak K 58 L

-Philips CR 1/3 N

-Ucar 2 L 76

-Varta CR 1/3 N"

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Akiva -- I'd say definitely back to Leica. My M7 -- about three years old or so, from new -- had what I now think were three inter-related problems: (i) battery drain similar to yours; (ii) the well-documented DX reader problems; and (iii) what also turned out to be a malfunctioning circuit board. It took two visits to Solms (via Milton Keynes) but was eventually all sorted out and the finder upgraded to an MP finder at no additional charge...and the body returned to me in a little Leica black velvet drawstring pouch (a nice touch).

 

I'm now tempted to say that the battery drain problem may be a 'false positive' -- i.e. that the camera reads and reacts as if to a drained battery but that it's actually a malfunction of the circuitry.

 

I would send it in and tell them you want battery problem looked at but also the DX reader and the circuit boards checked. Might save subsequent visits...

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Well David Farkas and I tested a number of batteries and it appears no brand batteries are bad for the M7 and possibly the Kodak's were just very old. I have a pair of Sanyo's and so all is well. So far....

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