SL3 Body covering durability

[Manicouagan1]

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I've worn a hole in the body covering of my SL2.   I guess my fingernails are too long, however I've never had the problem with Canon and Nikon Cameras held in much the same way.  There was a thread on the body covering issue a while back, but I never followed up on the thread.   Is the SL3 black body covering the same as with the SL2?

Edited March 8, 2024 by Manicouagan1
left out a word or two

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[Jean-Michel]

I don’t know. However, there appears that no one has suffered from unusual wear of the SL3 body covering 😀

[JohnSantaF4]

2 hours ago, Manicouagan1 said:

I've worn a hole in the body covering of my SL2.   I guess my fingernails are too long, however I've never had the problem with Canon and Nikon Cameras held in much the same way.  There was a thread on the body covering issue a while back, but I never followed up on the thread.   Is the SL3 black body covering the same as with the SL2?

I think you need a manicure. I’ve never heard that problem before, except on Reporter and Seal editions.

[Photoworks]

22 minutes ago, Jean-Michel said:

I don’t know. However, there appears that no one has suffered from unusual wear of the SL3 body covering 😀

I would try covering myself with SL3, I need to start a gofundme campaign!

 

[Kreeshp]

12 minutes ago, JohnSantaF4 said:

I think you need a manicure. I’ve never heard that problem before, except on Reporter and Seal editions.

Respectfully - just because you haven't heard of this, does not mean it is not a problem.

This has been well documented in the following thread and a few other places.  Perhaps the new, deeper SL3 grip was Leica's work around for this.

 

 

[Manicouagan1]

I remember reading the 2021 comment shown above.  What I observed with my SL2 is similar.  My succession of sports oriented Canon cameras (1Dxxx, and R3) never showed such a wear spot and they are used for 10's of thousands of frames a year, an order of magnitude more than the SL2.

[chris_tribble]

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My one reason for eventually getting the SL3 might be the increased depth of the grip. This would maybe solve the problem of my (very short, beautifully manicured 😎) finger nails digging into the faux leather fabric.  In the meantime the real leather half cases I mentioned earlier have solved the problem (much as I dislike using these) - oh, and ironically, the original problem body has had a second re-skinning as a result of the shutter being replaced after the System Error issue.  My SL2 is beginning to feel like “my grandfather’s axe”…

Edited March 9, 2024 by chris_tribble

[AnnieP]

I would like to thank everyone for their help. Wish I had thought to post this sooner!

Anyhow, I called the camera store and they are going to replace the lens for me. Apparently this is not the first time they had heard of this issue. Fingers crossed the replacement works as it should!

Thanks again.

[Markey]

The body covering of my SL2s is worn where I grip the camera.

That and the sticky "play" button.

 

Edited May 6, 2024 by Markey

[LEGEND]

14 hours ago, Markey said:

The body covering of my SL2s is worn where I grip the camera.

That and the sticky "play" button.

 

I also got that “sticky“ Play button and the same issue start do mission creep down to the FN button.
It is not pronounced as Play button but still... In any case the both are working only that are some how 
“sticky“ also with “click“ noise when pressed. Al other buttons and wheels on my SL2-S are OK...

I got used to this issue slowly with time.   Is it possible some how to remedy this? WD40 ...

Now I think that this SL2-S will stay with me for a long time because the resale value has dropped 
to much because of this. Nobody want to pay much for a camera with this issue when they can 
get enough better ones else where...

I don't stress about this to much about this...
The Leica SL2-S is excellent camera that give excellent quality 
pictures. It has very high ISO and DR performance , excellent Leica colors ,
quick response when shooting and has enough matured to be work with very little issues...
A real work horse for a photographer...

The 24MP are more than enough for me. Video capabilities are very good but moving pictures
are not my thing. I tried to get into it more than once and find out I can only think one photo at a time.

That is the reason I mostly shoot in single mode, I guess.
“Old habits never die“ as they say, or something like this...

And there is also my  wonderful Leica M9 Monochrom to play with...   

Nikola

[Markey]

2 hours ago, LEGEND said:

I also got that “sticky“ Play button and the same issue start do mission creep down to the FN button.
It is not pronounced as Play button but still... In any case the both are working only that are some how 
“sticky“ also with “click“ noise when pressed. Al other buttons and wheels on my SL2-S are OK...

I got used to this issue slowly with time.   Is it possible some how to remedy this? WD40 ...

Now I think that this SL2-S will stay with me for a long time because the resale value has dropped 
to much because of this. Nobody want to pay much for a camera with this issue when they can 
get enough better ones else where...

I don't stress about this to much about this...
The Leica SL2-S is excellent camera that give excellent quality 
pictures. It has very high ISO and DR performance , excellent Leica colors ,
quick response when shooting and has enough matured to be work with very little issues...
A real work horse for a photographer...

The 24MP are more than enough for me. Video capabilities are very good but moving pictures
are not my thing. I tried to get into it more than once and find out I can only think one photo at a time.

That is the reason I mostly shoot in single mode, I guess.
“Old habits never die“ as they say, or something like this...

And there is also my  wonderful Leica M9 Monochrom to play with...   

Nikola

Yes  I`m stuck with mine too because in addition to these issues discussed I`ve put a ding in the top plate which has impacted a function button.

As you say the resale value doesn`t seem to have held up well on this model .

 

[jaapv]

I don’t quite understand the design policy by Leica. Not only did they change the bombproof design of the SL 601 ( wearproof material and metal where the nails touch the camera next to the grip), they also used wallpaper grade material. Why not solid rubberoid stuff like any other maker? Maybe one should stick on a piece of adhesive rubber as protector? 

[Manicouagan1]

The choice of material for the covering would seem to have been driven by something other than function.  From looking at the damaged area, the covering appears to be a complex overlay of a rubber like material bonded to a fibrous material that is in turn bonded to the body.  Not only is the SL2 covering flimsy and not up to its job, it is probably more expensive to purchase and difficult/expensive to apply than the single tough rubber-like covering of previous cameras.   I will make a guess that the new material's advantage is that it could be procured in multiple colors to appeal to certain segments of Leica's market.

[Stuart Richardson]

In their defense, this only seems to be a problem for people with a certain length of fingers, or a certain way of holding the camera. This is not happening to everyone, and certainly in my case, I have used the camera for years on a professional basis and there is essentially no wear on the body covering at all. This is not to diminish the issue for those who find themselves having it, but I think this was/is caused more by the design of the grip and body than by the materials. I don't think any soft materials would hold up if they are being scratched by fingernails the entire time. Most other cameras grips are designed so that the fingernails are facing away from the camera body (with the tips of the fingers pointing to the left (assuming you are behind the camera), whereas the SL cameras encourage a grip where the fingers go completely around the grip and end up facing the back of the camera, or if you have long fingers, actually touching the front of the camera. At certain finger lengths the nails are going to directly contact the camera and as you constantly tighten and loosen your grip you are going to scratch away at the surface of the camera coating. It is this contact that causes the problem, more than the materials. It is more of a design fault with the grip than with the coating, I believe. As Jaap said they did not run into this on the SL1, but that is because the grip was larger and there was just metal there. The redesign made the grip more comfortable (at least for me), but instead it led to this problem for some users.

[Stuart Richardson]

I am attaching to pictures to show what I mean. My hands are not very large. You can see that when I grip the camera the fingers are not touching the back of the camera. For people with longer fingers or who grab the camera further up on the grip will find their nails pressed against the rubber, where they will scratch away at the coating. This is clearly a design oversight for them. But unfortunately not one I think they can really remedy (the camera is no longer current either). If I personally suffered from this, I would be annoyed, but I would consider putting some black cloth tape on that area to act as a barrier against the coating. Obviously not a beautiful fix, but I think ultimately helpful for resale value should you be the kind of person who runs into this problem.

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[chris_tribble]

I mentioned this in the other thread, but it seems worth mentioning again.  To avoid this annoying (and resale price harming) damage, a £59 leather half case makes a lot of sense. I’d never normally use one, but I now have one on each of my SL2 bodies and actually find they give a better grip!  There are plenty likes this on eBay. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/395287317919
check you get the model that fully encloses the grip.  Some don’t.

[chris_tribble]

... the cases look OK and even (cheekily) have an embossed Leica logo!  They also work find with a Peak Design base plate.

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[FlashGordonPhotography]

I've used my SL bodies since release day without issues. I use them for work and play and put tens of thousands of frames through them each year. It's certainly possible but I guess in VERY small numbers. My SL2 has over 50K frames on it and basically looks new. My fingers do touch the material but I keep my nails short. If I had long nails I guess I'd go the half case route. I haven't ever had issues like described with other brands but I have had the rubber coverings peel away with several cameras over the years.

Maybe we need a Kevlar version?

Gordon

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[Markey]

It been like this for 6 months .Not got any worse .

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[chris_tribble]

3 hours ago, FlashGordonPhotography said:

I've used my SL bodies since release day without issues. I use them for work and play and put tens of thousands of frames through them each year. It's certainly possible but I guess in VERY small numbers. My SL2 has over 50K frames on it and basically looks new. My fingers do touch the material but I keep my nails short. If I had long nails I guess I'd go the half case route. I haven't ever had issues like described with other brands but I have had the rubber coverings peel away with several cameras over the years.

Maybe we need a Kevlar version?

Gordon

I think my problem is long fingers - my nails are always kept short.  Still - never had this problem with the 5D series cameras.  It's a design / materials issue, and Leica really can't blame users for their finger nails!