Leica M240 back focus and RF calibration

[Victor Luo]

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Hey guys,

I recently got a M240 but noticed it has back focus issue. I tested it on 2 lenses(VM 35mm+50mm, one of them is brand new) and they show a consistent amount of back focus. I can also see the focus patch is slightly off at infinity. Had it checked by a local shop(Los Angeles area) yesterday and they confirmed it's the body out of calibration and gave me a quote of $380 which I think is lot...?

So just want to ask you guys if this is a common issue for M240? If so, what would be the best way to get it fixed? Does $380 make sense? Thank you!

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[jaapv]

Buy a 2 mm Allen key (1 $) and adjust coincidence at infinity  by minimal and incremental movements of the roller wheel adjustment nut in the mouth of the camera. 90% chance that it will solve your problem. 380$ is crazy for a five minute job that is an easy DIY.
If that does not work, send camera and lenses to a third party repair shop for a fast and reasonable fix. Don't send it to Leica They are  too slow and charge too much for this kind of simple adjustments.

[Victor Luo]

46 minutes ago, jaapv said:

Buy a 2 mm Allen key (1 $) and adjust coincidence at infinity  by minimal and incremental movements of the roller wheel adjustment nut in the mouth of the camera. 90% chance that it will solve your problem. 380$ is crazy for a five minute job that is an easy DIY.
If that does not work, send camera and lenses to a third party repair shop for a fast and reasonable fix. Don't send it to Leica They are  too slow and charge too much for this kind of simple adjustments.

Thank you for the info! yeah that's what I thought, it definitely shouldn't cost that much.

I don't really feel comfortable adjust this myself tho haha. If anyone here in the US had similar issues, it would be great to know what a reasonable price for a fix like this is.

[jaapv]

You have no idea how easy it is... To most of us used to older models it is routine maintenance. Newer cameras are more stable.

[Victor Luo]

3 hours ago, jaapv said:

You have no idea how easy it is... To most of us used to older models it is routine maintenance. Newer cameras are more stable.

Haha maybe I'll try to do it myself first then!

And yeah that's what i thought...M240 shouldn't go out of calibration randomly. Maybe someone dropped it or something.

[jaapv]

More likely hit the roller arm when mounting a lens.

[Adam Bonn]

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With the camera positioned as per the photo.

Turn the allen key anti clockwise to cure back focus (or clockwise to cure front focus)

move it a TINY amount at a time

You’ll need to test it with something that’s ‘infinity’ away, a star or the moon can work, although they can look a bit ‘glowly’ which makes it hard to judge (crescent moon works quite well) or if you’re lucky enough to have such a view, a radio mast, pylon etc that’s some kilometres/miles away

Once you have infinity fixed (ie your infinity test point exactly aligns in the rangefinder patch when the lens is on infinity) then take some shots of things close up to confirm close focus

FWIW (and I’ve been told it’s worth sweet FA) I always mount lenses with the lens in the closest focus setting (eg 0,7m or whatever that lens is) so that it doesn’t touch a lot the roller when I’m mounting the lens

HTH?

 

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[Jean-Michel]

Hi,  See post number 15 here: https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/118043-m9-coincidence-at-infinity/  Please note that it is important to only use small increments and, very important, not to apply downward pressure on the roller.

Remember that infinity is quite a distance. I happen to be able to clearly see tall hydro towers some kilometres away to check infinity. I only had to do this once as my camera's rangefinder was slightly off at infinity. 

To check the rangefinder or lenses for close distances you can either purchase a calibrating device, or, download this DIY calibrator from http://squit.co.uk/photo/downloads.html  You need to be careful in assembling the device — I printed on smooth paper and mounted the parts onto self adhesive foam core boards — it is well worth the effort. Checking using the screen or EVF is not sufficient; check the file on a computer screen.

Jean-Michel

 

 

[Victor Luo]

6 hours ago, Adam Bonn said:

With the camera positioned as per the photo.

Turn the allen key anti clockwise to cure back focus (or clockwise to cure front focus)

move it a TINY amount at a time

You’ll need to test it with something that’s ‘infinity’ away, a star or the moon can work, although they can look a bit ‘glowly’ which makes it hard to judge (crescent moon works quite well) or if you’re lucky enough to have such a view, a radio mast, pylon etc that’s some kilometres/miles away

Once you have infinity fixed (ie your infinity test point exactly aligns in the rangefinder patch when the lens is on infinity) then take some shots of things close up to confirm close focus

FWIW (and I’ve been told it’s worth sweet FA) I always mount lenses with the lens in the closest focus setting (eg 0,7m or whatever that lens is) so that it doesn’t touch a lot the roller when I’m mounting the lens

HTH?

 

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!

 

21 minutes ago, Jean-Michel said:

Hi,  See post number 15 here: https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/118043-m9-coincidence-at-infinity/  Please note that it is important to only use small increments and, very important, not to apply downward pressure on the roller.

Remember that infinity is quite a distance. I happen to be able to clearly see tall hydro towers some kilometres away to check infinity. I only had to do this once as my camera's rangefinder was slightly off at infinity. 

To check the rangefinder or lenses for close distances you can either purchase a calibrating device, or, download this DIY calibrator from http://squit.co.uk/photo/downloads.html  You need to be careful in assembling the device — I printed on smooth paper and mounted the parts onto self adhesive foam core boards — it is well worth the effort. Checking using the screen or EVF is not sufficient; check the file on a computer screen.

Jean-Michel

 

 

Thank you guys so much! It's really helpful and I feel much more confident to try it myself now. Will give it a shot today!

[Victor Luo]

Alright guys, good news! (mostly...I think!) 

So I tried the adjustment myself with a 2mm alan key and it was indeed very easy and straightforward. At first, I fixed the infinity focus alignment and the close-range back focus is reduced but not completely gone. Then I tried to adjust the close range and now it's pretty good to my eye but the patch is slightly off at infinity...I took some photos of faraway landscapes and they look fine and sharp on my computer zoomed in. So...I think my back focus issue is revolved but should I worried about the infinity? 

[mike240]

On 7/4/2021 at 2:16 PM, Adam Bonn said:

With the camera positioned as per the photo.

Turn the allen key anti clockwise to cure back focus (or clockwise to cure front focus)

move it a TINY amount at a time

You’ll need to test it with something that’s ‘infinity’ away, a star or the moon can work, although they can look a bit ‘glowly’ which makes it hard to judge (crescent moon works quite well) or if you’re lucky enough to have such a view, a radio mast, pylon etc that’s some kilometres/miles away

Once you have infinity fixed (ie your infinity test point exactly aligns in the rangefinder patch when the lens is on infinity) then take some shots of things close up to confirm close focus

FWIW (and I’ve been told it’s worth sweet FA) I always mount lenses with the lens in the closest focus setting (eg 0,7m or whatever that lens is) so that it doesn’t touch a lot the roller when I’m mounting the lens

HTH?

 

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

thx thanks for the clear instructions/ mike from sweden