Trouble with shutter curtains

[badmuts32]

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My M8 has some serious trouble with damaged shutter blades/curtains. I sent the camera the next day, after the problem happened, to Solms in Germany. Leica sent my a cost estimate to repair the shutter and to upgrade the mask carrier (my first language is Dutch and I don't know what mask carrier means) will cost € 987,00. Also the estimate mentioned that the cost could be higher because the repair people could not test the sensor due to the defective shutter.

I would like to know if there are other M8 owners on this forum who have experienced the same trouble with damaged shutter curtains, did the reparation cost around € 1000,00 and what mask carrier means. Thank you for your help.

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[ho_co]

My guess is that the damaged shutter blades did some damage to the window itself that lets the light through to the sensor. The window frame might be what they mean by "mask," and maybe there's a holder for it between it and the sensor that they call the "mask carrier." I'm not familiar with the term, so that's strictly a guess.

 

You can also call or write them to get an explanation of the term.

 

I paid a similar amount to have my M8 shutter "upgraded" to the slower, M8.2 shutter, so I think the expense is largely just in getting to the shutter and then having to re-align the sensor after the work.

 

Are you familiar with Mark Norton's "Anatomy of the Leica M8" thread (http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/leica-m8-forum/21331-anatomy-leica-m8.html)? It'll give you a good idea of what's involved in servicing the camera.

[farnz]

You should check whether Leica's quote is for repairing your 1/8000th M8 shutter or replacing it with a M8.2 1/4000th shutter. (You might not be very pleased to pay for the repairs and discover that you have a shutter with a slower top speed.)

 

When you first mentioned "mask carrier" I assumed you were talking about the mechanism that holds the rangefinder frame line masks. It sounds like Leica may be going to update your rangefinder to be optimised at 2 meters (like the M8.2) instead of at 1 meter as it is now.

 

I recall a few years ago that a very small number of people (3 or 4) reported that they'd had shutter blade problems with their M8's. There was a theory at the time that the speed of the shutter blades at 1/8000th might be causing them to slightly distort and contact each other. The theory was never proven and Leica's opinion (as far as I recall) was that a small piece of grit between the shutter blades was likely to have caused the damage. I think the repair cost quoted was similar to what you have been quoted.

 

A search revealed these:

 

http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/leica-m8-forum/178043-m8-shutter-caput-2.html

 

http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/leica-m8-forum/129709-shutter-k-o.html

 

http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/leica-m8-forum/112339-m8-classic-shutter-broken-should-i.html

 

Pete.