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Hot Shoe Cover - New owner


MarkinVan

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New owner wondering if the SL should be coming with a Hot Shoe Cover in the box.

 

Manual doesn't mention it in the "Scope of Delivery" but suggests to remove it prior to attaching flash.

 

With their prices a cover should be there, but is not. I think that is wrong but obviously we all like Leica save money sometimes in the wrong places if you ask me.

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The SL doesn't ship with a hot shoe cover ... and it's completely unnecessary.

 

The SL is weather and dust sealed, including the hot shoe in an uncovered configuration ready to be used. There's absolutely no reason to have a cover on hot shoe at all. The only reason there's one on an M is styling ... The only reason I leave it in place on the M-P or M-D is that I only so very rarely fit a flash or RF trigger. None of my film Ms with a hot shoe ever had a cover.

 

With all my 'working' cameras that I might use with flash for tabletop or other operations more frequently, one of the first things I do is remove the cover, put it in a plastic bag, and put it into the box that the camera came in so I don't lose it.

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All the other high end cameras I've purchased have included covers, including those that are weather sealed (Nikon D# series). The flash options for the Nikons are much better than the SL and the Nikons still include a cover.

 

Seems like an oversight to me, whether some think it's necessary or not.

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Is one really necessary?  The only cameras I've ever owned that came with hotshoe covers were the M240 and M246.  And they have covers because the socket for the EVF needs to be protected from dirt and water.

 

Just seems like a needless bit that's easily lost.

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All the other high end cameras I've purchased have included covers, including those that are weather sealed (Nikon D# series). The flash options for the Nikons are much better than the SL and the Nikons still include a cover.

 

Seems like an oversight to me, whether some think it's necessary or not.

 

Is one really necessary?  The only cameras I've ever owned that came with hotshoe covers were the M240 and M246.  And they have covers because the socket for the EVF needs to be protected from dirt and water.

 

Just seems like a needless bit that's easily lost.

 

 

Exactly.

 

Cameras have had hot-shoe flash mounts since the 1960s, if not before. About half the cameras I've bought new have had the cover in the box, the rest have not. I've taken them off nearly every camera I've ever had and it's never had any effect on camera operation whatsoever. 

 

The reason why a camera might have needed a hot shoe cover is to protect the user from the possibility of getting a shock if the flash was connected via a PC or two-bladed contact, AND the flash synchronization at the shutter was implemented as a simple pair of contacts opening and closing, allowing the entire trigger voltage (up to 600V in the old days) to pass through the hot shoe mount circuit. Modern cameras use transistors or logic to effect the flash trigger with trigger voltages in the 2 to 10 VDC range; most switch off the hot shoe when the PC terminal is in use anyway. The other reason why a camera might need such a cover is if that hot shoe includes an additional port for accessory interface, like the Visoflex 020 on the Leica X typ 113, which constitutes an entry into the body for dirt and water. 

 

So the cover is usually a little dime-cost piece of plastic to make the camera look pretty, and gets in the way when you're actually trying to use the hot shoe. As I said before, if a new camera has one, I usually remove it and keep it in the box with the other useless bits that I never use but are supplied with most cameras these days. 

 

I have to admit I was actually delighted when there was none in the box. Yet another useless little widget I DON'T have to keep track of—thank you Leica! 

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The SL is the first camera I own without a cover, so that was the first question I asked the dealer, where is the cover! Some here say it is unnecessary and only gets in the way. That may be so as well as looking pretty. Does it not help though to keep the contacts clean?

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The SL is the first camera I own without a cover, so that was the first question I asked the dealer, where is the cover! Some here say it is unnecessary and only gets in the way. That may be so as well as looking pretty. Does it not help though to keep the contacts clean?

 

 

Hot shoe contacts are self-cleaning ... they 'wipe' across the surface as you mount and dismount a flash unit. Unless the contacts are visibly corroded by leaving the camera sitting a long time in a very "humid with salty air" environment, dirt and corrosion should never be a problem. 

 

All that a cover ever does is cover them, it doesn't wipe or clean them. 

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Hot shoe contacts are self-cleaning ... they 'wipe' across the surface as you mount and dismount a flash unit. Unless the contacts are visibly corroded by leaving the camera sitting a long time in a very "humid with salty air" environment, dirt and corrosion should never be a problem. 

 

All that a cover ever does is cover them, it doesn't wipe or clean them. 

 

Ok that's mostly what I thought they were for. So if that's the case then Leica were right to not spply it for the SL.

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