quietglow Posted March 23, 2022 Share #1 Posted March 23, 2022 Advertisement (gone after registration) I am hunting for a good film camera for multi-day hikes. I have owned several Ms over the years, and my initial inclination was to get an M3. I shoot mostly 50mm these days, and I trust the early Ms to withstand the rigors of backpacking. Then I thought of the CL, a camera which I have neither used nor owned. I do own and love a Summicron C, which is permanently glued to my M8 these days. On paper, the CL looks like the ideal hiking camera: smaller, lighter, and usable in completely manual mode (for hiking pics, sunny 16 works great for me). I have one hesitancy: the apparently fragile film takeup spool teeth. I am particularly concerned how these would do in sub-freezing temps, where plastic tends to be brittle. I hike more often in cold weather than warm. So if you have/use a CL: how fragile are these really? Do you use your CL in sub-freezing temps? Many thanks! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted March 23, 2022 Posted March 23, 2022 Hi quietglow, Take a look here Leica CL in the cold?. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
TomB_tx Posted March 23, 2022 Share #2 Posted March 23, 2022 I used a CL for bicycle touring for years without problems (still have and use it some - had it since about 1980). No film transport issues, but needed a CLA to cure sticky meter and recal the meter. Never used it in Winter conditions though... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
calijax Posted March 23, 2022 Share #3 Posted March 23, 2022 Get a Minolta CLE instead. Looks much better too. Problem solved. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pyrogallol Posted March 23, 2022 Share #4 Posted March 23, 2022 (edited) A tooth broke off the takeup spool of mine a few weeks ago. It caused the film to loose contact with the centre core and the centre slipped round inside without advancing the film. Luckily it was towards the end of the film, it may have happened then as there was more film on the takeup spool and probably more pressure on that part? I looked into the replacement spools advertised for sale but after reading on the forum about the difficulty of fitting one I just glued the broken part back on. I will also tape the film to the spool in future to be sure. I works with a test film. There is a post about it, but I cannot find it at the moment. My Leica repair man has Minolta CLE’s he works on but it appears they have electrical contacts that keep needing to be repaired. Edited March 23, 2022 by Pyrogallol Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerzy Posted March 23, 2022 Share #5 Posted March 23, 2022 vor 2 Stunden schrieb Pyrogallol: I will also tape the film to the spool in future to be sure. film spool is one the problems with CL from the first batch (below 1 35x xxx), it will work however with workaround as Pyrogallol described. Film spool design was changed later, left one the photo below. 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! More serious problem with the first batchis weak or missing patch in rangefinder, result of corrosion of silvering on one small prism. And replacement prisms are scarce, old-new-stock only. It is worth to check condition of rangefinder when considering purchase of CL from the first batch 1 Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! More serious problem with the first batchis weak or missing patch in rangefinder, result of corrosion of silvering on one small prism. And replacement prisms are scarce, old-new-stock only. It is worth to check condition of rangefinder when considering purchase of CL from the first batch ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/330970-leica-cl-in-the-cold/?do=findComment&comment=4406183'>More sharing options...
Pyrogallol Posted March 23, 2022 Share #6 Posted March 23, 2022 Mine is 1397*** and the rangefinder has faded completely away. The meter also only works when it wants to. But it cost me nothing so I don’t want to spend any money on it. The shutter works ok. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
iPacific Posted March 24, 2022 Share #7 Posted March 24, 2022 Advertisement (gone after registration) I replaced the plastic one with a brass. Also you may find some 3D print solution on web. 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! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/330970-leica-cl-in-the-cold/?do=findComment&comment=4406506'>More sharing options...
iPacific Posted March 24, 2022 Share #8 Posted March 24, 2022 1 minute ago, iPacific said: I replaced the plastic one with a brass. Also you may find some 3D print solution on web. 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! One more photo It is perfect fit. And easy to install. I replaced by myself But hard to buy. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
quietglow Posted March 24, 2022 Author Share #9 Posted March 24, 2022 I ordered one, a Minolta branded one, so we'll see! I considered the CLE, but it has an even worse fault: a failed meter/battery means a dead camera. My hiking camera needs to function without a battery. I shoot b&w exclusively and rarely need a meter out of doors. For those rare times, I have a reveni meter (and my phone). There's a person selling replacement spools on the UK ebay here: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/325075878407?hash=item4bb0084207:g:CiYAAOSwQWtiCCS7 They're not cheap shipped to the US, so I kinda want to see how flimsy the spool seems before ordering one. iPacific did you make that? It looks so much like these brass pieces of hardware that I cannot think of the name of right this moment... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
iPacific Posted March 24, 2022 Share #10 Posted March 24, 2022 2 minutes ago, quietglow said: I ordered one, a Minolta branded one, so we'll see! I considered the CLE, but it has an even worse fault: a failed meter/battery means a dead camera. My hiking camera needs to function without a battery. I shoot b&w exclusively and rarely need a meter out of doors. For those rare times, I have a reveni meter (and my phone). There's a person selling replacement spools on the UK ebay here: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/325075878407?hash=item4bb0084207:g:CiYAAOSwQWtiCCS7 They're not cheap shipped to the US, so I kinda want to see how flimsy the spool seems before ordering one. iPacific did you make that? It looks so much like these brass pieces of hardware that I cannot think of the name of right this moment... It is casted from a mold frame in Korea. The maker only make a small batch and I brought the last one Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
quietglow Posted March 25, 2022 Author Share #11 Posted March 25, 2022 I got my CL yesterday. Apparently I won the KEH lottery, as it was rated as "bargain" but it is indistinguishable from new. There really is no sign that the camera has even been used. The meter is supposed to be inop, but I suspect KEH may have listed it as such to avoid having their 6mo warranty apply to that. I've got a couple of Wein batteries incoming to test. This was the last M mount camera I had never actually held, and it might be my fav of them all. When I was a poor grad student back in the 90s, I shot a Canon QL17 for a few years. Not surprisingly, the CL feels like an upscale version of that. I really like the 40mm FL, so this really does look like my ideal super-portable camera. I had some thoughts before getting it that if I had an doubts about it, I'd just get a beater M3 etc, but that idea vanished as soon as opened the box from KEH. So on this one (a Minolta branded one), the film tabs seem pretty robust. I suspect the time they'd break is during that initial wind-on when the film is being creased. It'll be awhile (I hope!) before I am shooting in very cold temps again, but if I manage to break a spool tooth, I'll come back an update this thread for posterity. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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