malligator Posted September 23, 2020 Share #1 Posted September 23, 2020 (edited) Advertisement (gone after registration) This weekend I noticed two specks of...something...in my viewfinder. I held it at different angles to make sure it was in the viewfinder and not on it. I went to get my lens cloth just to see if I could get it off. When I got back I noticed one of the specks was gone. Okay, I thought, It must have been on the VF, but the other one is definitely in it. As I wiped I noticed the 2nd speck was back. I thought maybe it was a loose particle so I moved the camera around to see if it fell in the direction of gravity. Nope. It was definitely moving in a straight line under its own power. The 2nd speck seemed to be stationary. Neither was visible when taking photos. I looked a little while later and they were both gone and I've not seen them since. I am not prone to hysterics so I'm not freaking out over this. I'm just curious if anyone has any ideas? I've called the Leica shop I got it from and they want to send it in. I'm not sure I want to be without my new camera, but perhaps that's best. For the record, my camera is always on my person, sitting next to me, or in a Billingham bag. It goes everywhere I go so I will admit that when we go to a local brewery it's been known to have a little beer dripped on it. When I take it saltwater fishing it's been known to be handled with fishy and salty hands (as little as possible). I don't baby it, but I am meticulous about wiping it down with isopropyl at the end of those types of days. Edited to add: My 49yo eyes are crap and I didn't have a loupe or anything to magnify with. I'm not 100% beyond a shadow of a doubt certain they were bugs, but I am certain there was something in my VF and there were two of them, then one, then two, now none. Edited September 23, 2020 by malligator Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted September 23, 2020 Posted September 23, 2020 Hi malligator, Take a look here Bugs (literally) in my M-A viewfinder. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
250swb Posted September 23, 2020 Share #2 Posted September 23, 2020 If they've gone they probably crawled into your eye, now they are in your brain and typing it was all a hoax. Tomorrow they will clear your bank account out. 6 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
malligator Posted September 23, 2020 Author Share #3 Posted September 23, 2020 Ha! Actually, just the opposite. When I shine a really bright light in my VF I can see one of the little buggers crawling around. They are tiny tiny tiny. So tiny that I can't make out any features, but there is no way to deny its some sort of bug. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lykaman Posted September 23, 2020 Share #4 Posted September 23, 2020 It's obvious the camera needs to be dismantled, and the bugs cleaned out.. A thorough CLA will cover the situation.. L 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted September 23, 2020 Share #5 Posted September 23, 2020 (edited) Very possibly dust mites. For some reason I used to get them - and very often - in an OM-1 (but not any of my other cameras) on either the upper surface of the (removable) focussing screen or else the base of the pentaprism and the little buggers would drive me crazy with their little waltzes! Clearly the M-A doesn't have those play-parks (which were easy places to access) but there are many sugestions out there in web-land as to the 'best' way to deal with the situation ranging from placing silica gel sachets in the lens throat (the mites dry out!) to putting the zip-locked camera body in a deep-freeze chest for an indecent amount of time. They WILL evenually 'go away' (i.e. die) if they cannot find sustenance inside the body of your camera so just stop feeding your M-A sandwiches for a week or so. In all seriousness, though, have a google and see what you fancy trying! Best of luck! Philip. Edited September 23, 2020 by pippy 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
malligator Posted September 23, 2020 Author Share #6 Posted September 23, 2020 14 minutes ago, lykaman said: It's obvious the camera needs to be dismantled, and the bugs cleaned out.. A thorough CLA will cover the situation.. L Sorry to be blunt, but a CLA is the obvious solution to cover most any situation. The engineer in me is trying to figure out the cause and corrective action so it doesn't happen again. If I'm storing or handling it wrong I'd like to know so I don't have to send it in for a CLA every three months. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
malligator Posted September 23, 2020 Author Share #7 Posted September 23, 2020 Advertisement (gone after registration) 12 minutes ago, pippy said: Very possibly dust mites. For some reason I used to get them - and very often - in an OM-1 (but not any of my other cameras) on either the upper surface of the (removable) focussing screen or else the base of the pentaprism and the little buggers would drive me crazy with their little waltzes! Clearly the M-A doesn't have those play-parks (which were easy places to access) but there are many sugestions out there in web-land as to the 'best' way to deal with the situation ranging from placing silica gel sachets in the lens throat (the mites dry out!) to putting the zip-locked camera body in a deep-freeze chest for an indecent amount of time. They WILL evenually 'go away' (i.e. die) if they cannot find sustenance inside the body of your camera so just stop feeding your M-A sandwiches for a week or so. In all seriousness, though, have a google and see what you fancy trying! Best of luck! Philip. Thank you for the input. Like I said, I'm not freaked out by them. They don't affect my focusing or anything. I'd rather not lose my camera for a CLA if they'll dry up and die off. As long as they won't reproduce in there or eat/damage the camera I'm okay. I was just wondering if this was a known issue in wet/humid areas. We were staying at an Airbnb on the beach in San Diego this weekend when I noticed them if that makes any difference. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reini Posted September 23, 2020 Share #8 Posted September 23, 2020 vor 4 Minuten schrieb malligator: We were staying at an Airbnb on the beach in San Diego this weekend when I noticed them if that makes any difference. Only one thing helps 😁 https://www.indiantradebird.com/shreeji-insecticides-&-pesticides/insecticides-and-pesticide/ITB-EBB926DB Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted September 23, 2020 Share #9 Posted September 23, 2020 2 minutes ago, malligator said: ...I was just wondering if this was a known issue in wet/humid areas......We were staying at an Airbnb on the beach in San Diego this weekend when I noticed them if that makes any difference... I'm hardly an authority but I suspect they might materialise pretty much anywhere. After I posted I remembered the reason that I had googled the issue myself previously was that an old Nikkormat body I picked up came with some dust mites as 'sitting tennants'. My chosen option was the Silica Gel Sachet down the Lens Throat route and I have to say that when I checked a week later there was no trace of the pesky varmints to be seen. But there are many choices out there which might be as effective and, probably, speedier! Philip. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
malligator Posted September 23, 2020 Author Share #10 Posted September 23, 2020 2 minutes ago, pippy said: I'm hardly an authority but I suspect they might materialise pretty much anywhere. After I posted I remembered the reason that I had googled the issue myself previously was that an old Nikkormat body I picked up came with some dust mites as 'sitting tennants'. My chosen option was the Silica Gel Sachet down the Lens Throat route and I have to say that when I checked a week later there was no trace of the pesky varmints to be seen. But there are many choices out there which might be as effective and, probably, speedier! Philip. I appreciate the advice. It's just the one that I can see and it takes a bright LED flashlight for me to see it so I'm going to live with it for now. I will probably put it in a ziplock with a silica pack for a little while, though, to see if that helps. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ko.Fe. Posted September 23, 2020 Share #11 Posted September 23, 2020 If bugs are in the camera, I would put it in the ziplock, take out air and place it in the freezer overnight and then move it in refrigerator for another 24 hours. If where are the two already, they might multiply quickly. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
earleygallery Posted September 23, 2020 Share #12 Posted September 23, 2020 Could be eyelash mites....https://www.medhealthdaily.com/eyelash-mites/ Don't look before or just after eating! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
malligator Posted September 23, 2020 Author Share #13 Posted September 23, 2020 (edited) 6 minutes ago, earleygallery said: Could be eyelash mites....https://www.medhealthdaily.com/eyelash-mites/ Don't look before or just after eating! Oh. My. Lord. Off to wash my eyes...with bleach. Edited September 23, 2020 by malligator Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
malligator Posted September 23, 2020 Author Share #14 Posted September 23, 2020 My plan so far is that I've ordered some silica gel desiccant bags and a loupe. I want to see whether or not it's actually a bug, but either way I'm going to vacuum seal my camera with a desiccant or two to dry it out. If that doesn't work I'll do the freezer trick. I'm also going to freeze my camera bag and all my film. I get my film from a local shop down the block. Who knows how long it sits there these days and what type of stowaways it picks up? No matter what, though, I will send it in for CLA before the warranty runs out. I just don't want to be without my camera right now. Hmmmm...but this might be a decent reason to get a "backup" M3. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BradS Posted September 23, 2020 Share #15 Posted September 23, 2020 (edited) That's nothing. My brand new Leica MA had a dining room chair and an empty can of beer in the film chamber. No worries though - the Leica shop where I bought it sent it back to Germany to be repaired - no questions asked. I should have my brand new $5000 film camera back in my hands in a few months. So thankful that I have an M6 ! Edited September 23, 2020 by BradS Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
malligator Posted September 23, 2020 Author Share #16 Posted September 23, 2020 7 minutes ago, BradS said: That's nothing. My brand new Leica MA had a dining room chair and an empty can of beer in the film chamber. No worries though - the Leica shop where I bought it sent it back to Germany to be repaired - no questions asked. I should have my brand new $5000 film camera back in my hands in a few months. So thankful that I have an M6 ! No reason to believe they wouldn't have gotten into an M6 as well--wherever they came from. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
spydrxx Posted September 23, 2020 Share #17 Posted September 23, 2020 Possibly entered during a lens change? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Herr Barnack Posted September 23, 2020 Share #18 Posted September 23, 2020 (edited) The Q2 has weather sealing. Now Leica must develop eyelash mite sealing for the Q3. Hopefully the M-A can be retrofitted... Edited September 23, 2020 by Herr Barnack Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
malligator Posted September 23, 2020 Author Share #19 Posted September 23, 2020 9 minutes ago, spydrxx said: Possibly entered during a lens change? Possibly. Or possibly a film change? Those are much more frequent than lens changes since I only have the one lens. Or possibly from the film itself? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BradS Posted September 24, 2020 Share #20 Posted September 24, 2020 1 hour ago, malligator said: No reason to believe they wouldn't have gotten into an M6 as well--wherever they came from. My M6 is 35 years old. It has all the bugs worked out. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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