kexari Posted February 25 Share #1 Â Posted February 25 (edited) Advertisement (gone after registration) Vertical rangefinder misalignment on new MP. Hello. Recently purchased a brand new MP, thought my brain was playing tricks on me but it appears to be slightly misaligned vertically. I tested this by using my laptop screen displaying a large high contrast letter W and focusing on it from around 0.8m. It seems to be shifted very slightly upwards. I also did the same test with my 40 year old m4-p body and I do not see this misalignment. Could my eyes be playing tricks on me or could the mechanical perfection be misaligned? I bought it from a dealer in HK on eBay, should I return it? Images attached: Image 1 Image 2 Edited February 25 by kexari Wrong links Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted February 25 Posted February 25 Hi kexari, Take a look here Vertical rangefinder misalignment on new MP.. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
pedaes Posted February 25 Share #2 Â Posted February 25 Is it new or new to you? Important for thread title I think! If you are not happy with it return it. If it is a used camera, you could get alignment fixed with a local repair shop, but it will cost. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kexari Posted February 25 Author Share #3  Posted February 25 31 minutes ago, pedaes said: Is it new or new to you? Important for thread title I think! If you are not happy with it return it. If it is a used camera, you could get alignment fixed with a local repair shop, but it will cost. It’s brand new (never been used). 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mujk Posted February 25 Share #4 Â Posted February 25 Yes, it is quite possible that you have a vertical RF misalignment. However, this can only be determined when the RF is focused exactly. A small vertical misalignment will then show up as a slight fuzziness of the image within the RF patch. Also if you can find a suitable grid pattern that fits inside the patch you should be able to see the vertical lines matching perfectly but the horizontal ones not matching. Your pictures show a situation where the RF is not focused and this may be misleading. The adjustment is really quite simple if you have the right tools. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kexari Posted February 25 Author Share #5  Posted February 25 46 minutes ago, mujk said: Yes, it is quite possible that you have a vertical RF misalignment. However, this can only be determined when the RF is focused exactly. A small vertical misalignment will then show up as a slight fuzziness of the image within the RF patch. Also if you can find a suitable grid pattern that fits inside the patch you should be able to see the vertical lines matching perfectly but the horizontal ones not matching. Your pictures show a situation where the RF is not focused and this may be misleading. The adjustment is really quite simple if you have the right tools. I didn’t know about the grid trick. Just tried with a grid and it’s even more obvious now. The verticals are perfect and the horizontals are shifted up slightly. Any pointers on where to learn how to do the adjustment? I thought vertical alignment was trickier to adjust than horizontal.  Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomB_tx Posted February 25 Share #6 Â Posted February 25 Vertical is a bit trickier - you have to remove the "red dot" Leica logo to make the adjustment. The mechanism has varied over the years - once a lotted screw eccentric, then took a special fork tool, and I'm not sure what is needed now. Some have also messed up the RF mechanism attempting it: On DAG's website he has pictures of some that were butchered and then sent to him to repair. The adjustment also has a limited range: I had one camera returned from a well-known tech with slight vertical misalignment, and the normal adjustment couldn't get it exact - it would adjust farther off, but not the direction needed. That tech just claimed it met factory specs... I sent it to DAG who had to remove the top cover and re-adjust the more basic setting before the front adjustment could be correct. Another point: the vertical adjustment also affects the horizontal. After doing the vertical you probably need to tweak the horizontal also. For a new camera I'd return and insist it be made correct. Having had one with that problem I know how irritating it is. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Collier Posted February 26 Share #7 Â Posted February 26 Advertisement (gone after registration) I have had this issue with an Elmarit 135mm lens with the bug-eyes adapter. I knew it was the lens because I have an M4, andM4-2, and an M6 and it was like that with all of them, and I have other lenses, etc. Of course it was the adapter, which has an adjustment. Just mentioning this in case it may apply to your situation. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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