Leica M6 light meter repair

[iimikeii]

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Hi All,

I'm struggling to find this information anywhere on the internet and hoping someone may be able to chime in.

I have a Leica M6 (#168xxxx) and have a meter that is underexposing by 1 to 1 1/2 stops. I have confirmed this in 3 ways:

1) I've metered a gray card with an external meter and it differs from my M6 meter

2) I've metered a gray card with a Contax G2 meter and again, it differs from my M6 meter

3) all the photos I get back from the lab are consistently underexposed.

I shoot 400 speed film and set the camera's ASA to 200 to let another stop light in and this fixes the problem. I'm curious if anyone knows if there is an adjustment that can be made to the meter so that I don't have to compensate this way forever. I had new light shields installed by DAG in July because of a light leak issue and the camera was apparently also checked for accurate shutter speeds, rangefinder and meter. I've emailed him again but haven't heard back in 3 days. Hoping someone else might be able to point me in the right direction. 

 

Thanks!

mike

[Bobitybob]

The M6 meters off a grey/silver spot on the shutter blinds which appears when the shutter is cocked.  It would be worth checking it’s condition because if it is contaminated or degraded then that may be some or all of your problem.

Edited January 7, 2021 by Bobitybob

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[iimikeii]

43 minutes ago, Bobitybob said:

The M6 meters off a grey/silver spot on the shutter blinds which appears when the shutter is cocked.  It would be worth checking it’s condition because if it is contaminated or degraded then that may be some or all of your problem.

Ah, I never considered that. Here are pictures of the gray dot on the curtain. Looks to be in relatively okay shape to me. It seems like if the gray was worn and more black was showing on the spot, it would want to let more light in and therefore overexpose, rather than under- which is my problem. Maybe I'm wrong...

IMG_8604.heic IMG_8608.heic

[TomB_tx]

If the spot were dim / darkened I would expect the camera to overexpose, as it would see less light than it should. There is something else wrong in the circuit.

[Bobitybob]

20 hours ago, iimikeii said:

Ah, I never considered that. Here are pictures of the gray dot on the curtain. Looks to be in relatively okay shape to me. It seems like if the gray was worn and more black was showing on the spot, it would want to let more light in and therefore overexpose, rather than under- which is my problem. Maybe I'm wrong...

Well that looks better than mine, so it can't be that.

Worth Remembering that the meter is a semi spot meter so will probably read different from a 'normal' light meter and even other cameras if they use an average metering system, and because of this metering can also change with focal length.  This is explained in the instructions, if you don't have any you can download them from here https://www.butkus.org/chinon/leica.htm

You didn't say if its a classic or a TTL as I believe they have different systems.  Also, you don't say if you are using B&W or colour film and who is doing your development, all of which can make a difference, particularly the development and it may be worth using an alternative to check.

If DAG haven't replied it's worth chasing them and getting it checked again.

Good luck

[zeitz]

Since Don Goldberg checked your meter, it includes the spot on the shutter curtain and the circuitry when the meter is checked.  That is, he would be looking at the aperture / shutter speed resulting from a reference light source.  I also wonder how your film is being developed and if you are looking at the negatives or prints from the negatives.  You might want to shot a roll of slides which is more sensitive to exposure differences.

[iimikeii]

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9 minutes ago, zeitz said:

Since Don Goldberg checked your meter, it includes the spot on the shutter curtain and the circuitry when the meter is checked.  That is, he would be looking at the aperture / shutter speed resulting from a reference light source.  I also wonder how your film is being developed and if you are looking at the negatives or prints from the negatives.  You might want to shot a roll of slides which is more sensitive to exposure differences.

Again, the underexposure is being confirmed before I expose any film. I am filling the entire frame with a gray card and consistently getting a full stop underexposure compared to other camera's meters. For what it's worth, I'm shooting Portra 400 and usually go out shooting with two cameras, the M6 and a Contax G2, both loaded with Portra 400. The shots from the M6 consistently come back underexposed whereas the G2 shots are perfectly exposed. The film has been developed in 4 or 5 different labs all across NYC and the results are unfortunately the same. 

Still no word from DAG so if anyone else has any other techs they'd recommend, I'm all ears.

[zeitz]

Take it to a local facility.  Nippon Photoclinic on W39th St.

[oldwino]

You need to call Don (DAG). He’s not that great at responding to emails.