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New Buyer's Advice


CRTZMO

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I'm now looking for a mint M6/0.72 on eBay (there are many), and wish to ask the forum's advice on points to consider before purchase and upon receipt of the body. Please note:

 

• I live in Japan and am only looking at dealers in Japan with stellar ratings that offer 15-30 day returns

 

• visible/published serial number of camera for sale; clean and cosmetically near-mint

 

• Well studied but have not owned a Leica before; undecided about M6 Classic vs TTL

 

• Leica has an excellent service center in Tokyo – happy to pay for a service check

 

Thank you in advance for advice and insights — all comments appreciated!

 

 

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Note that the electronics on both types M6 cannot be repaired any more. The M6 will be able to be shot as a manual camera, in that case, the M6TTL, whilst being able to be used as a daylight camera, will have lost its flash sync too.

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If you want to use it buy the cheapest, if you want to collect it and pamper it and gaze at it lovingly buy the most expensive.

Point taken. Perhaps this is a Japan thing, but I see very little/no well used cameras. A lot of lovingly gazed at kit! Thanks for the advice.

 

 

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Note that the electronics on both types M6 cannot be repaired any more. The M6 will be able to be shot as a manual camera, in that case, the M6TTL, whilst being able to be used as a daylight camera, will have lost its flash sync too.

If I understand correctly, the M6 Classic's only electronics is the light meter functionality. Is this accurate?

 

Thank you for the information.

 

 

 

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I also have the M6 Classic, and it was the fist Leica M which I bought. Main decision point at the time was the price - the M6 TTL is a lot more expensive for not delivering much more IMO. Biggest advantage of the M6 TTL is the larger exposure dial which I find easier to dial (made this experience after getting the M7 which uses a dial same in size as in the M6 TTL). Main drawback of my M6 Classic is the rangefinder patch flare which can be annoying sometimes. This issue rarely happens with my M7 and never with my M3 for known reasons. 

Overall I would still recommend to get a M6 series camera. 

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My advice for first time Leica buyers is always go to a dealer and buy from them on condition they are selling a camera with a warranty.

 

This way you avoid the potential expense of having to then pay for a CLA/repair, you get to see what you're buying and can ask the dealer to take you through the basic 'instructions', show you how to load the film etc., and most probably you can do a deal on lens/es and accessories you may need at the same time.

 

You've also established a contact for future reference.

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My advice for first time Leica buyers is always go to a dealer and buy from them on condition they are selling a camera with a warranty.

 

This way you avoid the potential expense of having to then pay for a CLA/repair, you get to see what you're buying and can ask the dealer to take you through the basic 'instructions', show you how to load the film etc., and most probably you can do a deal on lens/es and accessories you may need at the same time.

 

You've also established a contact for future reference.

 

This might work, but not from my experience. I always found much better deals online from reputable sellers than from dealers selling Leica gear. You can be lucky though - one time I found a used Leica M9 in very good condition in a nearby general camera store for a very competitive price. I checked it out, but I didn't like the camera itself for several reasons (which would go too far off-topic here). 

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I also have the M6 Classic, and it was the fist Leica M which I bought. Main decision point at the time was the price - the M6 TTL is a lot more expensive for not delivering much more IMO. Biggest advantage of the M6 TTL is the larger exposure dial which I find easier to dial (made this experience after getting the M7 which uses a dial same in size as in the M6 TTL). Main drawback of my M6 Classic is the rangefinder patch flare which can be annoying sometimes. This issue rarely happens with my M7 and never with my M3 for known reasons.

Overall I would still recommend to get a M6 series camera.

Thanks very much, Martin. The price and wide availability has me very interested. I've read about the flare problem, seems a big issue for some and a shoulder shrug for others.. I guess it's part of the experience.

 

 

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I also have the M6 Classic, and it was the fist Leica M which I bought. Main decision point at the time was the price - the M6 TTL is a lot more expensive for not delivering much more IMO. Biggest advantage of the M6 TTL is the larger exposure dial which I find easier to dial (made this experience after getting the M7 which uses a dial same in size as in the M6 TTL). Main drawback of my M6 Classic is the rangefinder patch flare which can be annoying sometimes. This issue rarely happens with my M7 and never with my M3 for known reasons. 

Overall I would still recommend to get a M6 series camera. 

In my experience the M6TTL flares far worse.  :( I sold mine for that reason. My present M6Classic has few if any  problems.

I have a suspiscion that there is some sample variation.

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This might work, but not from my experience. I always found much better deals online from reputable sellers than from dealers selling Leica gear. You can be lucky though - one time I found a used Leica M9 in very good condition in a nearby general camera store for a very competitive price. I checked it out, but I didn't like the camera itself for several reasons (which would go too far off-topic here).

Thanks earleygallery and Martin. I see value in both points. I've visited dealers that have been suggested by multiple Leica owners, but available stock has been a problem so far. Indeed there are deals to be made with a lens/body purchase! I've found that some online sellers are open to discounts on multiple item purchases off eBay.

 

Cheers!

 

 

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Thanks very much, Martin. The price and wide availability has me very interested. I've read about the flare problem, seems a big issue for some and a shoulder shrug for others.. I guess it's part of the experience.

 

 

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IMO it is certainly not a shoulder shrug issue - it should have been taken care of Leica many years ago with a full recall of M6 camera series when this problem became very obvious. It is mainly caused by a replacing a part in the rangefinder with a cheaper one for cost cutting reasons. You can live with it, but it is certainly a debit of this film camera which otherwise would be close to perfect IMO. 

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IMO it is certainly not a shoulder shrug issue - it should have been taken care of Leica many years ago with a full recall of M6 camera series when this problem became very obvious. It is mainly caused by a replacing a part in the rangefinder with a cheaper one for cost cutting reasons. You can live with it, but it is certainly a debit of this film camera which otherwise would be close to perfect IMO.

I've read about owners that have upgraded the RF. I haven't been able to determine if this is widespread or a bit of a niche act of frustration – what's your take?

 

Thank you, Martin. Extremely informative!

 

 

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In my experience the M6TTL flares far worse.  :(

 

That's possible, I never used a M6 TTL. I can only tell that my M7 has much less of this issue than my M6 Classic. The M7 tends to "fix" itself a second after the flare occurs by re-shifting somehow the focus patch a bit. The M6 totally blanks out, the patch turns sort of reddish (focusing no longer possible) and it only comes back by shaking the camera a bit. I reduced this issue by a home-made solution and taped some polarizer foil from 3D glasses onto the frame line finder window (not the viewfinder window of course!). It reduces the brightness of the frame lines a bit, but it reduces the patch flare quite significantly for no cost.

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I've read about owners that have upgraded the RF. I haven't been able to determine if this is widespread or a bit of a niche act of frustration – what's your take?

 

Thank you, Martin. Extremely informative!

 

 

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All M6 models have it onwards up to the latest M-P camera series which has much better ant-flare glass coating and uses different parts in the rangefinder, so the M-P obviously doesn't has this issue anymore. But from what I read and personally experience it is most severe on the M6 (and I have also the M3 and the M7). 

Edited by Martin B
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