I love my… I love my M-A

[IkarusJohn]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

A mixture, but all b&w

[Abram]

Abram,

 

Have you noticed any change in the smoothness of wind on, or any change in the sound the shutter makes after these 50 rolls? Anything tactile or audible that makes you think the camera is "wearing in" (in a good way)?

 

Thanks!

s-a

If I'm perfectly honest the smoothest M I've used thus far was my early button rewind M2. It had the smoothest shutter wind and release of any camera I've ever used. I wouldn't say that my M-A is as smooth as that, but I think the winding mechanism is definitely very very smooth. Much more so than Either M4-P I owned and even more than my MP I previously owned (For reference I've owned and used an M3, M2, M4-P, M5, MP and M-A). That being said I don't think the shutter release is as smooth. I'm hoping that just wears in over time, but it still occasionally feels a bit notchy. I had tried to use a soft-release at one point but it would bind the shutter button to the point where you couldn't easily press it at all so I just removed it and never bothered with it again.

 

If I don't think about it to me it just feels effortless and everything glides.  Especially when I use it side by side with my Nikon F or FM3A (both cameras I really enjoy using).

 

So to try to answer your question. I don't think I've felt any sort of appreciable change in the time I've owned and used the camera but I'll give it some time .

Edited June 29, 2017 by Abram

[a.noctilux]

Shutter release is big point for M-A (compared to metered bodies with two stages release).

 

If not said before, shutter release feelings are different with my two M-A .

One is a bit harder (very very small amount) and longer travel (1/10mm ?).

At that point it's not important for me, just two nice cameras adjusted by two nice different people ( maybe ) in a nice factory in Wetzlar .

[michaelwj]

Maybe people or maybe nice?

[semi-ambivalent]

So to try to answer your question. I don't think I've felt any sort of appreciable change in the time I've owned and used the camera but I'll give it some time .

Thanks for replying. To be honest I've always felt how one's M3 or 2 or 4 feels is unfair grounds for comparison. I'd bet most of those cameras we might own have histories completely unknown. Roll counts forever a mystery. My M3 has the classic soft shutter sound and tremendous smoothness of advance and release but hell, it's fifty-eight years old.

 

I also have an MP for three years now and I remember being almost startled one day when the camera's feel was distinctly different, as if those steel gears actually were settling in. I don't think the shutter will ever sound M3-quiet (I'm guessing it has higher curtain tension), but I won't see another fifty-five years so what do I know.

 

To get back on M-A I've been enamored with getting one of late and have been collecting as much information as possible. There's changes I want to make which will certainly up the price by some amount and chewing on all of this will help the decision/rationalization process. Glad you like your choice.

 

Best,

s-a

[michaelwj]

s-a, the last thing you want to do is try to rationalise the purchase of a customised M-A. It can't be done.

Just get it and enjoy!

[semi-ambivalent]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

s-a, the last thing you want to do is try to rationalise the purchase of a customised M-A. It can't be done.

Just get it and enjoy!

Waiting on email from repair@leica...

 

Your post doesn't help.

 

s-a

[Abram]

Thanks for replying. To be honest I've always felt how one's M3 or 2 or 4 feels is unfair grounds for comparison. I'd bet most of those cameras we might own have histories completely unknown. Roll counts forever a mystery. My M3 has the classic soft shutter sound and tremendous smoothness of advance and release but hell, it's fifty-eight years old.

 

I also have an MP for three years now and I remember being almost startled one day when the camera's feel was distinctly different, as if those steel gears actually were settling in. I don't think the shutter will ever sound M3-quiet (I'm guessing it has higher curtain tension), but I won't see another fifty-five years so what do I know.

 

To get back on M-A I've been enamored with getting one of late and have been collecting as much information as possible. There's changes I want to make which will certainly up the price by some amount and chewing on all of this will help the decision/rationalization process. Glad you like your choice.

 

Best,

s-a

I agree! The old bodies are all more or less fully "worn-in" at this point. I hope I didn't make it sound like the M-A is not a smooth camera, because when I bought it my main camera was an MP and I was surprised at how different it felt. It was so different in fact that I suddenly felt like something was wrong with my MP haha! I chose to have the MP serviced (for a few different things and customizations) and when it came back it was effectively as smooth as the M-A already was.

 

The only thing that I noticed with shooting them side by side was the shutter release, but 99.9% of the time I would never notice any difference. Now that the M-A is my only film M I'm even LESS likely to notice anything and i just keep on feeding it film . 

 

I thoroughly enjoy the camera and I plan to continue that trend indefinitely. 

[Guest )-(]

I'm enjoying my M-A very much. I can't think of too much else to say about it really. It's a plain black box that takes pictures.

 

Personally I prefer the rewind style (over the M7 angled one.)

I just twist for 10-15 seconds and the job is done, doesn't seem too hard.

 

I don't tend to think about the camera when I use it and find myself more and more inclined to just take one lens with me, less and less 'kits' for x,y,z situation.

 

I love that I just grab the camera and go take pictures. The only challenge is ripping the right sized square from the film carton for the hot shoe.

[Doc Henry]

I'm enjoying my M-A very much. I can't think of too much else to say about it really. It's a plain black box that takes pictures.

 

Personally I prefer the rewind style (over the M7 angled one.)

I just twist for 10-15 seconds and the job is done, doesn't seem too hard.

 

I don't tend to think about the camera when I use it and find myself more and more inclined to just take one lens with me, less and less 'kits' for x,y,z situation.

 

I love that I just grab the camera and go take pictures. The only challenge is ripping the right sized square from the film carton for the hot shoe.

 

Congrats Richard good acquisition

"The only challenge is ripping the right sized square from the film carton for the hot shoe".

What do you mean ?

I cut a square carton and I put on hot shoe for memory

Best

Henry

[Guest )-(]

My wry sense of humour Henry. I too rip the carton so I can see what film I have loaded. Sometimes I rip a little too big, sometimes too small. This is as 'difficult as it gets' with my M-A. (i.e.; not very.)

[Eric1]

Thinking of getting an M-A to shoot alongside my digital M10.

[Mute-on]

Thinking of getting an M-A to shoot alongside my digital M10.

And so you should! Owning and using both will enhance the experience of each.

 

Old M2 or new M-A. What a wonderful choice to have

[Paul Verrips]

How about the shutter release button?

 

I tried the M-A today in a shop and it felt like the shutter release button is stiffer as the one on my M7 bodies.

 

I'm in love but this is a doubt for me.

[sblitz]

How about the shutter release button?

 

I tried the M-A today in a shop and it felt like the shutter release button is stiffer as the one on my M7 bodies.

 

I'm in love but this is a doubt for me.

its a matter of usage, mine felt the same compared with my M4. Over a little bit of time, and that time depends on usage, the MA will feel so smooooooth in every respect. It feels better today than my M4...... as an aside, I love it with the 40mm summicron and a 40mm viewfinder from Voigtlander. Will post a photo in the next few days.

[Mute-on]

My MP initially lacked the smoothness of my M2. About 20 rolls of film sorted that out nicely

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[A miller]

its a matter of usage, mine felt the same compared with my M4. Over a little bit of time, and that time depends on usage, the MA will feel so smooooooth in every respect. It feels better today than my M4...... as an aside, I love it with the 40mm summicron and a 40mm viewfinder from Voigtlander. Will post a photo in the next few days.

 

I agree with Steve.  To some extent, these new cameras need to be broken in like a pair of shoes.  The oldies have already been broken in and so naturally may be smoother from the outset.

[Abram]

How about the shutter release button?

 

I tried the M-A today in a shop and it felt like the shutter release button is stiffer as the one on my M7 bodies.

 

I'm in love but this is a doubt for me.

 

That's effectively what I was mentioning earlier in this thread. The shutter does feel a bit stiffer to me than the release of older Ms I've tried. However I found that now I happened to have one of those match technical little bips, or bops (or boops? WHICH ONE IS IT?!) with the rubber gasket and that stays firmly in place on the shutter button and I've found it has improved the shutter feel. I'll continue to "condition" the camera and break it in over time.

[wattsy]

Anything mechanical where surfaces rub together will loosen (get smoother) over time but none of the M-A bodies I've owned from new (4 so far, for various reasons) have had a shutter release that has been anything other than smooth and refined out of the box. The M-A shutter release also has a noticeably shorter travel than the MP and M7. Just the right side of a 'hair trigger' for me. I no longer have the MP, but when I did, and I used it after long periods of using the M-A, I found that I would occasionally miss shots because I was failing to press the shutter release sufficiently hard or far enough (having become accustomed to the M-A release).

[Advertisement]

Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[Paul Verrips]

Thnx for all your feedback. Tomorrow i will visit a store that has a black one second hand (october 2014).......... Do i need one? No, got 3x M7's, 1x M2, 1x M4. Only use 2 of my M7's. Is it tempting to buy the M-A? Yes......

 

To be continued!