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UV/IR Filters not as rugged....


paulchiu

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Just got my 2 free UV/IR filters for my M8 after several months.....

 

I got the E46 and E55, both black

 

Comparing with the black UV filters I already had on my 35 and 90 M's from a decade ago, these new UV/IR filters are much lighter. Seems like the mount is no longer brass....

 

Wonder what it is made of....?

 

 

Paul

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Something that I have noticed, and I don't recall seeing that mentioned here, is how much nicer the B+W IR filters are built than the Leica filters. The B+W filters are nice and heavy, and screw on smoothly. My Leica filters, on the other hand, feel much cheaper, go on with difficulty, and get stuck on.

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Guest guy_mancuso

Interesting you say that. i just sold my 90 macro to a member with a leica 39mm on it and the lens is clean as can be , it's only 3 months old but i left the Leica filter on 39mm one and he e-mailed me and said it is stuck. I never checked it but i had him send it to Leica NJ to fix it under my name and Pro status. Very strange indeed.

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Could it be just these free UV/IR from the M8 purchases?

 

I cannot recall ever seeing Leica filters being this light and not made of brass rings.

 

The FEDEX invoice also had them shipped from Tokyo, Japan. Strange as the box and filter ring said "Germany"

 

 

Paul

 

 

Something that I have noticed, and I don't recall seeing that mentioned here, is how much nicer the B+W IR filters are built than the Leica filters. The B+W filters are nice and heavy, and screw on smoothly. My Leica filters, on the other hand, feel much cheaper, go on with difficulty, and get stuck on.
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Something that I have noticed, and I don't recall seeing that mentioned here, is how much nicer the B+W IR filters are built than the Leica filters. The B+W filters are nice and heavy, and screw on smoothly. My Leica filters, on the other hand, feel much cheaper, go on with difficulty, and get stuck on.

 

Mine went on easily and I recently changed lenses on my 39mm filter form my cv 35 to my new 28/2.8 asph no problem removing or installing.

Gene

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Yes, I agree the Leica filters are not as well made as the B+W filters. The B+W retaining ring is superior to the spring ring used in the Leica filters, which is tricky to remove if you're trying to extract the glass (for the Milich filter holder).

 

I also agree with Carsten that they can get stuck on - when I sent my Nocti in for service, the 60mm was quite difficult to remove.

 

They are slightly lighter construction but on the positive side, there are no problems fitting hoods over them on, for example, the 21mm and 24mm Elmarits.

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thanks guy, are these supposed to be both UV and IR ?

I thought i was getting just IR filters to alter indoor lighting issues with the M8....

 

paul

 

Yes they are both. They cut off both IR and UV radiation very sharply. I have data for B+W 486 filters only. These have cutoff zones of 375–400nm (nanometers) for UV and 670–700nm for IR, respectively, but the Leica-branded filters are of the same general design and should work in a corresponding manner.

 

In the case of the UV, the filter is strictly speaking unnecessary, as Leica lenses since at least the middle of the 1960's lack all transmittance in the ultraviolet.

 

The old man from the Age of Film

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Yes, I agree the Leica filters are not as well made as the B+W filters. The B+W retaining ring is superior to the spring ring used in the Leica filters, which is tricky to remove if you're trying to extract the glass (for the Milich filter holder).

 

I also agree with Carsten that they can get stuck on - when I sent my Nocti in for service, the 60mm was quite difficult to remove.

 

They are slightly lighter construction but on the positive side, there are no problems fitting hoods over them on, for example, the 21mm and 24mm Elmarits.

 

I usually take the precaution when using a non-B+W filter for the first time to apply a suspicion (and nothing more than a suspicion) of Vaseline to the filter's lens-side thread. Remember that the bayonets of your camera bodies and lenses also come lubricated, and that Leica literature does recommend cautious and sparing re-lubrication with Vaseline if this lubrication has been removed. This BTW goes for LTM threads too.

 

The old man from the Age of the IIIa

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Guest guy_mancuso

Lars this is not a bad thought at all and may just do that. My 90mm macro seems to be really stuck . It may have something to do with the screw in lens hood i used on it , just made it tighter

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Guest tummydoc

The coatings on Leica and B+W UV/IR filters are also not as "rugged" nor as anti-reflective as Heliopan's (who have the most exquisite brass mountings of all filter marques BTW).

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During our visit to the Solms factory during our Leica Akademie trip i recall seeing the 60mm UV/IR filiters being removed from a large bulk Hoya box and then placed in the individual Leica packaging. This could explain the Japan/Germany thing.

 

Mark Gowin

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Personally, I would not use vaseline, it will just attract dust and dirt. If a filter does get stuck on, you can buy a gadget to undo the lids of jars and bottle caps from kitchen accessory stores. That's what I used to remove the filter from my Nocti.

 

Yes, you can do that with your lens and camera bayonets too, when they stick to each other.

 

The old man from the Age of the Adjustable Wrench

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Lars this is not a bad thought at all and may just do that. My 90mm macro seems to be really stuck . It may have something to do with the screw in lens hood i used on it , just made it tighter

 

Guy, I put on just two or three VERY small (millimeter-size) dabs with the sharp end of a toothpick, at intervals along the thread. Distribute the stuff on the thread by screwing the filter in and out a few times. What you want is a near-molecular layer. But it does make a difference.

 

The old man from the Age of Axle Grease (and cart axles to use it on)

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How do you guys clean the filters ..... they get greasy after a short while ... and just using a lens-towel does not work? Any fluids or other procedures recommended....?

 

I can highly recommend the following :

 

http://clearsightusa.com/oscommerce/catalog/index.php

 

I use the Cleaning Kit CS-K100, and have done for the past four or five years to clean both my Leica lenses and filters. It is excellent and leaves no residue at all.

 

Regards

Eric

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