Wisner Posted April 3, 2023 Share #1 Posted April 3, 2023 Advertisement (gone after registration) Just a general question - I requested an estimate for a CLA of the M6 and the Summicron M 50mm f/2. The estimate from Steve's Camera in Los Angeles seems really high. The estimate for the M6 CLA is $650.00 dollars and the Summicron - M is $450.00 dollars. I expected to spend a few hundred dollars on the CLA's but this estimate seems out of the ball park. I would appreciate any input on this and if these prices are high then where would I send my equipment for the needed CLA? Steve's repair timeframe is 6 weeks. The M6 finder has a little haze in it otherwise the camera works well. The 50mm Summicron - M has a good deal of haze so really needs the CLA, otherwise the lens works well. Thank you Brent Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted April 3, 2023 Posted April 3, 2023 Hi Wisner, Take a look here Leica M6 and Summicron - M f/2 CLA. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
andybarton Posted April 3, 2023 Share #2 Posted April 3, 2023 Have you got a full list of what’s included in the CLAs? Those prices don’t seem too bad to me if it’s a proper CLA to each item. The work won’t just be confined to the hazy viewfinder for example. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huss Posted April 3, 2023 Share #3 Posted April 3, 2023 42 minutes ago, Wisner said: Just a general question - I requested an estimate for a CLA of the M6 and the Summicron M 50mm f/2. The estimate from Steve's Camera in Los Angeles seems really high. The estimate for the M6 CLA is $650.00 dollars and the Summicron - M is $450.00 dollars. I expected to spend a few hundred dollars on the CLA's but this estimate seems out of the ball park. I would appreciate any input on this and if these prices are high then where would I send my equipment for the needed CLA? Steve's repair timeframe is 6 weeks. The M6 finder has a little haze in it otherwise the camera works well. The 50mm Summicron - M has a good deal of haze so really needs the CLA, otherwise the lens works well. Thank you Brent Seems super expensive. Check Youxin Ye: http://www.yyecamera.com/price_m_body.html Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wisner Posted April 3, 2023 Author Share #4 Posted April 3, 2023 The CLA quote was indeed well past the haze. For the body checking and adjusting of shutter speeds was mentioned. The lens I do not know. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wisner Posted April 3, 2023 Author Share #5 Posted April 3, 2023 Thank you for the y ye camera link. The posted price list is what I expected from Steve's. The prices are reasonable and not stupid. Any idea what his normal turnaround is? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Brown Posted April 3, 2023 Share #6 Posted April 3, 2023 A totally wild suggestion: send an email to Leica Mothership in Wetzlar and ask them about their prices for a body/lens CLA. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
spydrxx Posted April 3, 2023 Share #7 Posted April 3, 2023 Advertisement (gone after registration) Yye's turnaround time varies from a couple of weeks to a couple of months, depending what his backload is. Send him an email and he will generally get back to you within a couple of hours. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
grahamc Posted April 3, 2023 Share #8 Posted April 3, 2023 1 hour ago, Wisner said: Thank you for the y ye camera link. The posted price list is what I expected from Steve's. The prices are reasonable and not stupid. Any idea what his normal turnaround is? Highly impressed by Youxin Ye, I sent him a M6 for viewfinder anti-flare upgrade + a lens CLA a few weeks ago and it was done in days and sent back - the same time as he quoted in response to my initial email. That's very unusual in my experience in dealing with other repairers these days I'm sure it depends on his workload of course, and the full camera CLA will be a bigger job no doubt . but for me impeccable email communication and speed of the job Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktmrider2 Posted April 3, 2023 Share #9 Posted April 3, 2023 Another admirer of Youxin Ye. He responds to emails promptly and does excellent work. My M2's, M4's and a couple screw mount Leicas have seen his service with no complaints. I have also had work done by Sherry who is also excellent but she does not respond to emails but will talk your ear off if you catch her in the right mood. She is also outstanding. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wisner Posted April 4, 2023 Author Share #10 Posted April 4, 2023 Thank you for all of the comments and suggestions. I will be sending my camera to Youxin Ye for repair. His prices are about 70% less than I was quoted by Steve's camera repair in Los Angeles. Steve's comes highly recommended but ridiculously expensive. I spent about 30 min. on the phone with Youxin just talking shop and his immigration from China. He has been through a great deal in his life. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpitt Posted April 4, 2023 Share #11 Posted April 4, 2023 On 4/3/2023 at 8:20 PM, Wisner said: Just a general question - I requested an estimate for a CLA of the M6 and the Summicron M 50mm f/2. The estimate from Steve's Camera in Los Angeles seems really high. The estimate for the M6 CLA is $650.00 dollars and the Summicron - M is $450.00 dollars. I expected to spend a few hundred dollars on the CLA's but this estimate seems out of the ball park. I would appreciate any input on this and if these prices are high then where would I send my equipment for the needed CLA? Steve's repair timeframe is 6 weeks. The M6 finder has a little haze in it otherwise the camera works well. The 50mm Summicron - M has a good deal of haze so really needs the CLA, otherwise the lens works well. Thank you Brent 1. These prices seem similar or even cheaper than in Europe. CLA has increased in price about 3x as fast as the inflation. Youxin Ye is one of the few exceptions. Can anyone explain this increase? 2. An other remarkable thing is that M5 seems to have disappeared from the pricelists. M5 was always more complicated to give a CLA so I expected a price 30% higher than a CLA for M2/M3. But I can not understand why it simply can not be done anymore. Can someone elaborate? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktmrider2 Posted April 4, 2023 Share #12 Posted April 4, 2023 Parts are really hard to find for M5's. It is Sherry's favorite Leica and if anyone can do a CLA on an M5, it will be her. If you talk to her, be prepared for a couple hours on why the M5 is the best film camera Leitz ever made. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidmknoble Posted April 6, 2023 Share #13 Posted April 6, 2023 Certainly be sure Steve’s Camera regularly CLA’s Leicas (I’m on the east coast and do not know). Haze is a more expensive fix than just checking focusing and lubricating. It requires taking the lens apart to clean elements, putting it back together and ensuring the light path is perfectly parallel through the center. Same can be true of the camera rangefinder haze. However, you also did not say what else needs done from the estimate. An M6 could need a shutter replacement or other parts. I have had body CLA’s from old M3’s that just required a lot and have had some from MP’s that required only adjustment on the rangefinder. Every camera and lens can be different. I have had experience with the other folks here that is also good. Since you are in the US, I have had good experience with Leica NJ and they do great work. I just sent an M 50 f2.8 collapsable lens (newest version) to get CLA’d and 6-bit coded, 4-6 week turnaround and fixed the focusing mount I did not know had a problem. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpitt Posted April 10, 2023 Share #14 Posted April 10, 2023 On 4/4/2023 at 10:52 PM, ktmrider2 said: Parts are really hard to find for M5's. It is Sherry's favorite Leica and if anyone can do a CLA on an M5, it will be her. If you talk to her, be prepared for a couple hours on why the M5 is the best film camera Leitz ever made. No need for a discussion. I already agree with her 🙂 Still, availability of parts should not be an issue for doing a normal CLA, no? AFAIK no parts are needed for a CLA as long as the camera is in working order i.e. only needs adjusting. Is it the risk for not getting paid when they find an issue they can not fix anymore? Or the warranty they normally give on every CLA'd body after the CLA? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktmrider2 Posted April 10, 2023 Share #15 Posted April 10, 2023 If anyone has parts for an M5, it would be Sherry. However, I agree that parts are probably not needed for a regular CLA. I purchased an M5 from Sherry maybe 10 years ago and she had done her magic so everything was as new. She had adjusted the voltage on the meter so it worked with available batteries, the viewfinder was great and speeds were spot on. I remember I had her add the third lug as I prefer horizontal carry. Ended up selling it to a friend who still uses it. He lives in Hawaii and the salt air is hard on all electronics. M5 is working fine. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CSG123 Posted April 15, 2023 Share #16 Posted April 15, 2023 On 4/3/2023 at 3:26 PM, spydrxx said: Yye's turnaround time varies from a couple of weeks to a couple of months, depending what his backload is. Send him an email and he will generally get back to you within a couple of hours. He told me today, April 14th, that he was at four months for a CLA and replace shutter curtain for my M4. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
spydrxx Posted April 15, 2023 Share #17 Posted April 15, 2023 4 hours ago, CSGreene said: He told me today, April 14th, that he was at four months for a CLA and replace shutter curtain for my M4. Worth the wait. I just got back a couple of Barnacks he did for me. Very pleased with the work. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
William H Posted April 16, 2023 Share #18 Posted April 16, 2023 I'm happily waiting the 6-8 weeks for my LTM 35 Summaron and 50 Elmar. Also in that batch is my M 35 Summaron f/2.8 Should be any day now! Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.