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Leica M6 strange light leak, please help me try to locate it.


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I originally had this posted one a difference part of the forum but this seems like the correct spot. Sorry for the double post....

 

Hello,

After saving for a long time I was able to do two things I’ve always wanted: Travel to Japan and buy a Leica M6!! I bought the M6 from a reputable dealer in Tokyo I was told it has just had a CLA. 
Long story short when I got home the 5 rolls of porta I took had a strange light leak. Not every frame and it moves slightly. It happens mostly mid roll say shots 15-30. 

I contacted the dealer and they paid to ship it back to Japan. They said they could not find the light leak but replaced all the light seals anyways. They tested it with film and could not duplicate it...
I received the camera back and ran a roll though and still have this damn light leak. 
On thing I can think of is when I sent it to Japan I did not include the strap....

Thanks for reading and any help is appreciated. I’ve been searching for days and have found some info but the threads are old, pictures are no longer uploaded and original posters are not responding. 

Sorry for the small photos, it’s the only size I could attach. If it helps I can post more/bigger ones from another site.

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Looks more like a reflection than a light leak, but it may just be how it looks on my monitor.  Typically, light leaks on these cameras are at the edge of the frame and usually start brighter and taper off darker into the frame.  If it's a leak it's leaking through the shutter.  Having never had a hole in a shutter I'm not sure how it presents itself though.  Others maybe have.  One thing you could try is take the lens off and flip up the back flap, then go in a pitch-dark room and look from back while shining a flashlight (or the one on your phone) through the lens opening. Try it with the shutter charged and discharged to check both curtains.  IF there's a pinhole in the shutter you might see it that way.

Edited by bocaburger
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A strange shape, but yes, it might be a hole in the shutter curtain rather than a light leak. The other thought is that there might be a chip in the lens which is producing this hot spot when shooting directly into the light source. You can check this out by opening the back, holding the shutter open with a cable, and placing a translucent piece of ground glass at the film plane, and examining the image with a loupe.

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It looks like it might be coming in from around the focusing mechanism. One thing is for sure the leak is directional, so not likely to be a hole in the curtain, but is still near enough to the film surface for the flare to be sharp.

Edited by 250swb
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Posted from the other thread:

 

 

Thanks for everyone’s help. Specially Adams advice I was able to find it. Unfortunately I don’t think I can fix it.

Looking at the pictures it seems when the camera was pointed towards a light source it flared! It flares on the film side. You can only see it when the shutter is up.

 

Anyways with a powerful flash light pointed in the left rangefinder window you can see the light leak.

I was able to get some pics of it.

 

Now....not sure what’s next

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Edited by callmedave
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  • 1 year later...

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Hi everyone,

I have been searching quite a while for this type of leaks and I am very sure to have the same issue. Looking at the negatives from my M6, I am seeing the same shape on my pictures. As described in the post, the leak is not present on every frame within the film. The intensity changes and the location is moving horizontally, while staying at the same height (landscape orientation). It seems to be independent from the type of lens I use (50mm / 90mm) and I have not yet found a connection between the pictures. The only that has been constant is bright light.

I cannot reproduce the leak at the shutter when illuminating the front. Still I guess the problem has the same cause.

@callmedave: Have you managed to solve the issue on your camera? If you did, what has been the solution - a repair/replacement of seals?

Thank you for your help and best regards!

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