Jump to content

Black Chrome Finish

SiOnara

By SiOnara
in Leica M10

 Share

Recommended Posts

waterlenz

waterlenz

Posted
Posted

I'm guessing the black chrome won't get brassing as it's erm chrome? Did I answer my own question? Twice.

My M6 and M8 have the black chrome finish and yes it is possible to see where it is thinning due to wear. The underlying metal color shows through.

Link to post
Share on other sites
jaapv

jaapv

Posted
Posted

My M6 and M8 have the black chrome finish and yes it is possible to see where it is thinning due to wear. The underlying metal color shows through.

Being pedantic: you are not seeing the underlying metal but the next layer of the chroming process, usually nickel. So the wear process of a black chrome camera is first silvering at the edges and with extreme wear or damage brass showing through.

Link to post
Share on other sites
waterlenz

waterlenz

Posted
Posted

Being pedantic: you are not seeing the underlying metal but the next layer of the chroming process, usually nickel. So the wear process of a black chrome camera is first silvering at the edges and with extreme wear or damage brass showing through.

I am not sure if either the M6 or M8 had brass tops. What I see is a grayish metallic look. Could be the nickel you mention which is a metal too.

Link to post
Share on other sites
wattsy

wattsy

Posted
Posted

 I was indeed talking about brass-top M cameras, which is most of them, including the M10.

 

 

Yes, probably easier to state that all M cameras have a brass top plate with the following exceptions:

• M4-P (zinc - apart from early ones?)

• M6 (zinc)

• M6TTL (zinc - except the black paint special editions and "the last 999" which were brass)

• M typ 262 (aluminium)

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites
UliWer

UliWer

Posted
Posted

Maybe the tech data sheet is wrong !   Hopefully !! :-)

:D

 

Yes, the usual confusion about detailed Information by Leica leaves you a slim chance. Though I did check every photo of a black version I could find: nowhere I saw something which looked like black paint. Otherwise I'd have to cancel my order.  

Link to post
Share on other sites
euston

euston

Posted
Posted

Confusingly, the official Leica spec is stated as "black paint finish": http://uk.leica-camera.com/Photography/Leica-M/Leica-M10

 

Elsewhere on the site it says the camera is available in black and silver chrome, which seems to be the consensus of people who’ve seen the camera.

 

I’ve written to Leica HQ to suggest that they correct the misleading statement at the top of their main M10 pages.

 

On its German language sites the black version is called SCHWARZ LACKIERT which I take to be the equivalent of BLACK PAINT FINISH.

Link to post
Share on other sites
colint544

colint544

Posted
Posted

The M10 seems to be the standard black chrome over brass finish, which they've been using on and off since the M4.

 

I can testify that black chrome is extremely durable. Ludwig, my M Monochrom mk1 is now in his fifth year with me, and is in use most days.I look after the camera but I don't baby it. If I'm using it in the rain, then it gets wet. Although I do always make sure to carefully wipe it dry, and never put it away wet. The finish is silvering here and there, especially on the top cover, but there is absolutely no sign whatsoever of the brass underneath showing through. The nickel plating seems to be very tough indeed.

 

It might not be as pretty as black paint, but black chrome is my favourite finish. It's reminiscent, to me, of a sort of gunmetal - practical and industrial.

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

  • Like 14
Link to post
Share on other sites
adan

adan

Posted
Posted (edited)

What is black chrome anyway? How do you make a silvery metal black? Is it paint? What makes it more durable than "black paint finish"?

The great thing about this forum is that someone can probably write me a thesis on the subject.

 

Chemically alloyed or treated chromium. The exact process and chemistry (used in a lot of industries besides Leica cameras - e.g. black chrome plated onto nickel plated onto copper in solar thermal collectors) has varied a bit over the years, due to both new technologies, and environmental concerns (plating baths can contain carcinogens, acids and other nasties).

 

It's a bit like COR-TEN steel, which is a supposedly silvery metal that comes out rust-colored (but a very tough "rust" that blocks any further oxidizing or corrosion). Due to additions of copper, silicon, and even chromium in small proportions to the iron and carbon normally in silver steel.

 

Chrome of any kind is more durable than paint because it is a metal surface, not pigmented binders, which are relatively soft oils or plastics/polymers. Plus, the chrome is electrostatically plated onto the underlying metal - you hook the object up to one pole of a battery and the chromium anode up to the other, and the current between them through the plating bath gloms the chrome metal onto the metal object. So you get stronger interatomic bonding between the coating and the object. Paint can also be electrostatically applied (e.g. almost all auto paints), but it is still easier to scratch and wear away than hard chrome metal.

 

As with COR-TEN steel, black chrome is generally much tougher and wear-resistant than paint. The surface, BTW, can be matte, luster or high-gloss, depending on how the process is tweaked, the finish of the underlying nickel, etc. The finish on the M10 as shown in the video above (#14) looks glossier and more reflective than classic M4/M5/M6 black chrome.

 

And as you can see from colin's MM above, Leica is using a less-wear-resistant (and probably less expensive) black-chrome process on the digital bodies, which have a more limited expected lifetime. I've seen a few M5s/M4-2s that are almost that worn and rubbed - but after 40 years, not 5. ;)

 

https://www.cameraquest.com/jpg3/leica_m5_worn01.jpg

 

For that matter, today's silver chrome Leicas have a different look than the 1950s/60s silver chrome cameras (not just Leicas), which had a slightly more granular texture, with sparkles of color that come and go on the grains as the camera is tilted in the light.

Edited by adan
  • Like 11
  • Thanks 1
Link to post
Share on other sites
adan

adan

Posted
Posted

Addendum - silver chrome will appear to wear less than black chrome, simply because the underlying surface (a nickel layer) is silver in either case.

 

Rub off silver chrome, and you see silver nickel. Not very noticeable. Rub off black chrome, and you also see silvery nickel, which gives the "dusty gray" wear pattern.

  • Like 10
Link to post
Share on other sites
derleicaman

derleicaman

Posted
Posted

Thanks Adan for the thorough explanation. I went through this with Leica when we were working on the original black paint camera for the LHSA. The argument from Solms at that time was that their black chrome process was more durable than the black paint we wanted. At that time, they didn't understand the appeal of black paint and the patina it develops over time. At the beginning, I was working with Sonke Peters, and he recently confirmed that Leica had to come up with a new formulation for the paint, as the original had not been done for many years, environmental reasons, etc.

 

As part of the Solms factory tour, they used to have a board with the M6 top plate showing the various steps of the plating process.

  • Like 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
 Share
Go to topic listing
×
×
  • Create New...