YYE Camera: Behind the Scenes of Vintage Leica Repair

[apotelyt8]

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On 5/21/2022 at 9:10 AM, logan2z said:

I figured this would be most applicable on this forum.  Moderators, please move if there's a more appropriate spot...

 

Just beautiful..really honoured to see the time and care that goes into his work. Thanks Youxin and Wen Ni for your labor of love in continuing to keep servicing our Leica cameras. 🙏🏼

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[Mikep996]

"Below is the total due:

Leica M2 adjust rangefinder/shutter brake & speeds	$60.00
Shipping	$100.00
Total	$160.00"

Wow, I'm impressed that he would even open a box with a Leica sent to him for only 160 bucks!  If I ever have to send my 1984 M6 for it's first CLA/service, I'll definitely send it to him!!

[spydrxx]

I just got back a iiF and a iiiF I sent him for a CLA and possibly other work late last fall. Came back last week in great shape, one needed both a curtain replacement and new beamsplitter, and what a remarkable difference! His charges were reasonable, communication was good (as it has been in the past with him). It is really great to have several outstanding independent Leica technicians in the USA, and not unrealistic wait times like I read about in the UK.

[GregNski]

That was a marvelous video. I sent my IIIf to him last year for a CLA, and it came back in the best shape since my father had it in the Korean War. He is a master at his craft.

[Fookuda]

Has anyone here had their lenses serviced(specifically for fungus) by him? He’s relatively low priced compared to most folks here in Los Angeles.

 

[grahamc]

On 4/7/2023 at 6:33 AM, Fookuda said:

Has anyone here had their lenses serviced(specifically for fungus) by him? He’s relatively low priced compared to most folks here in Los Angeles.

 

Sorry I haven't had fungus removed but had a lens recently returned and couldn't be happier in general (lens performing very sharp wide open, smoother focus throw and was speedy service).   

[zeitz]

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On 4/6/2023 at 3:33 PM, Fookuda said:

specifically for fungus

Fungus affects a lens in two ways.  There is the active fungus, and there is the damage caused by the fungus to coatings and glass itself.  Active fungus is easily killed by a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and ammonia.  Some also add vinegar to the mix.  If the coating or glass are damaged, which occurs less often, only an optical shop with polishing and coating equipment can fix it.  There is no reason YYE can't kill the fungus when cleaning a lens, if he accepts them.  I doubt he polishes and re-coats lens elements as these require specialized equipment.

[qqphot]

On 3/8/2023 at 5:37 AM, spydrxx said:

I just got back a iiF and a iiiF I sent him for a CLA and possibly other work late last fall. Came back last week in great shape, one needed both a curtain replacement and new beamsplitter, and what a remarkable difference! His charges were reasonable, communication was good (as it has been in the past with him). It is really great to have several outstanding independent Leica technicians in the USA, and not unrealistic wait times like I read about in the UK.

Have you looked at the curtain edges on your cameras on which he replaced shutter curtains?  I discovered on mine that I needed to spend some time with a blade cleaning up the glue used to hold the cloth folded over the supports, as it was left with a globby, rough edge that caused lines across the frame at higher speeds.  I'm not sure if that cleanup is meant to be part of the service or not but it wasn't a ton of work to do, so whatever. If you never shoot over 1/125th I doubt you'd even notice it.

[spydrxx]

Mine were fine, no rough edges or glue. If I was you, I'd contact him with your issue. Constructive customer feedback can be very useful.

[jaques]

I have an early DS M3 in superb working condition except for one issue: very low contrast on the RF patch. I had a tech look at it and he said that the camera was in super original condition with no visible delamination in the RF. I am wondering if it just needs an internal clean- and what the costs for that might be. I think I will contact Youxin? I am in Australia though- so shipping both ways might be a bit of pain and expense.

[ellisson]

A nice video and very nice to "meet" Youxin Ye after many repairs and reconditioning projects that he completed for me over the years.  I found the background so interesting.  The video gave great insight into his work standards, values, and the respect he holds for the lenses and cameras he works on.   Meaningful work.  

[kiwidad]

On 4/13/2023 at 1:14 AM, jaques said:

I have an early DS M3 in superb working condition except for one issue: very low contrast on the RF patch. I had a tech look at it and he said that the camera was in super original condition with no visible delamination in the RF. I am wondering if it just needs an internal clean- and what the costs for that might be. I think I will contact Youxin? I am in Australia though- so shipping both ways might be a bit of pain and expense.

I called Youxin about my m3 (I had just bought it and it arrived n less than perfect condition.) with an almost invisible patch. It was impossible to focus. He immediately commented on the approximate serial number being in the 7x range and felt that cal was needed. I sent it to him with a rush request and he turned it around the day he received it and I have to say the rangefinder is amazing now.  he told me it was probably somewhere in the 90% of perfect range and I also had it reskinned also. Very happy with the camera now