RDJ Posted April 18 Share #1 Posted April 18 (edited) Advertisement (gone after registration) 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! I was comparing viewfinders between a M5 and a M2. Both have the .72 finder. I noticed the M2 view was a bit blurred when focused on subject. I seem to recall reading Leica changed the diopter from early cameras to what is installed today…..-0.5. It may have been done for improved eye relief. Can anyone verify this. Additionally when I look closely at my M2 eyepiece pictured there is a notch on either side not there on my M3 or M5. Could this indicate a custom diopter is installed. Edited April 18 by RDJ Corrected my statement…unsure Quote Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! I was comparing viewfinders between a M5 and a M2. Both have the .72 finder. I noticed the M2 view was a bit blurred when focused on subject. I seem to recall reading Leica changed the diopter from early cameras to what is installed today…..-0.5. It may have been done for improved eye relief. Can anyone verify this. Additionally when I look closely at my M2 eyepiece pictured there is a notch on either side not there on my M3 or M5. Could this indicate a custom diopter is installed. ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/420584-early-1960-m2-viewfinder-window-diopter/?do=findComment&comment=5788527'>More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted April 18 Posted April 18 Hi RDJ, Take a look here Early 1960 M2 Viewfinder Window Diopter. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
Sandokan Posted April 18 Share #2 Posted April 18 Twist it anticlockwise and see if it comes off? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDJ Posted April 18 Author Share #3 Posted April 18 Afraid too. Won’t move without a tool and I would hate to make a mar. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
spydrxx Posted April 18 Share #4 Posted April 18 Can't speak to the notch but here is what my m2 looks like with and without the diopter (concentric circles) 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! Quote 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/420584-early-1960-m2-viewfinder-window-diopter/?do=findComment&comment=5788585'>More sharing options...
Pieter12 Posted April 18 Share #5 Posted April 18 1 hour ago, RDJ said: Afraid too. Won’t move without a tool and I would hate to make a mar. I believe the diopter lenses Leica makes (made?) for the M cameras are designed to supplement the one that is already there, that is you screw the additional diopter lens onto the existing one, you do not remove anything. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDJ Posted April 19 Author Share #6 Posted April 19 I received an email from Youxin Ye the eyepiece notches are normal. Thats a relief. I have done a deep search but could not find a reference to Leica having anything other than a …. - 0.5 diopter in their finders. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
spydrxx Posted April 19 Share #7 Posted April 19 Advertisement (gone after registration) From what I've experienced and read over the years the Leica M (film) cameras have always come with a -0.5 diopter. If like me you needed something different, you purchased an auxiliary adopter which screwed into the existing eyepiece. Barnack bodies, of course, were different in that they had what was called a "telescope" which amounted to a variable diopter, which as one with varying eye conditions over the last 60 years I've found quite useful. As for the M bodies, I've purchased at various times screw in diopters to use one for when I'm either wearing glasses or not. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDJ Posted April 19 Author Share #8 Posted April 19 (edited) The reason I made this post is for some reason my M2 finder is not as easy for “me” to focus vs my overhauled 1963 M3 or serviced M5. The M2 is in pristine condition. As an example there are no wipe marks on the viewfinder eye piece which my other Ms have evidence of. On second look there may be a small amount of finder haze. In bright sunlight at a 90 degree angle I get flair off the front window and eye piece. The M2 finder is a shade darker than the M3 but has a brighter patch. In the field details are a bit less crisp than the M3. On a test at 1.4 meters I can read text a bit easier on the .72 M5 vs the .72 M2. The field definition is a tiny bit fuzzy with the M2. Is this typical? I paid a premium 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! for the condition of this M2 but the viewfinder is how we interface taking the photo and I’m not satisfied in that regard. Of course you make compromises to have some of the attributes of the older M3/2. I can live with the M3. I’m unsure how much a service will improve the finder. Replacing it with a M4 finder is pretty extreme. Even installing a Youxin Ye anti glare window is expensive. I’m puzzled on comments that some people think their M2 finder brighter than the M3 or as good as a M5. Edited April 19 by RDJ Clarity Quote Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! for the condition of this M2 but the viewfinder is how we interface taking the photo and I’m not satisfied in that regard. Of course you make compromises to have some of the attributes of the older M3/2. I can live with the M3. I’m unsure how much a service will improve the finder. Replacing it with a M4 finder is pretty extreme. Even installing a Youxin Ye anti glare window is expensive. I’m puzzled on comments that some people think their M2 finder brighter than the M3 or as good as a M5. ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/420584-early-1960-m2-viewfinder-window-diopter/?do=findComment&comment=5789025'>More sharing options...
spydrxx Posted April 21 Share #9 Posted April 21 I hesitatingly recommend visiting a Leica dealer with your M2 and seeing if things improve with their diopter tester. There may be a negligible difference in the actual prescription of the M2 diopter which might be correctible by the addition of a screw in diopter. It was frustrating for me to experience what you have described years ago when neither with or without my eyeglasses things just weren't as sharp as they should have been (it was an M4 rather than M2 at that time). I tried contact lenses without success, a new prescription for eyeglasses without success. I finally visited a Leica dealer and with his assistance, found a screw-in diopter solved the problem. Hopefully yours can be resolved much more quickly than mine was, as I came near to selling that wonderful camera out of frustration. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted April 21 Share #10 Posted April 21 If you send your prescription to Walterleica he can make you a diopter that is exact to your eye. In addition he offers Gold-coated contrast screw-ins I quite like the effect. https://walterleica.com/walter-contrast-lenses/ Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomB_tx Posted April 21 Share #11 Posted April 21 Comparing the VF "crispness" with M2 to M3, 4, 6 (.72 & .85) looking at fine details it does seem that my M2 appears a bit less clear. Overall contrast and brightness seem equal to my 1960 M3, but the higher magnification of the M3 makes the small details clearer. My 1985 M6 (.72) seems clearest of these, but DAG had upgraded it to multicoated windows when he did the "flare fix." It could well be that a bit of haze would lower the contrast and make it seem less clear, so you might see about having it cleaned, or even upgraded to multicoated windows without a full finder upgrade. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDJ Posted April 22 Author Share #12 Posted April 22 (edited) 11 hours ago, TomB_tx said: Comparing the VF "crispness" with M2 to M3, 4, 6 (.72 & .85) looking at fine details it does seem that my M2 appears a bit less clear. Overall contrast and brightness seem equal to my 1960 M3 TomB, thats useful info. I don’t feel a diopter is the answer as I see fine with the M5. It’s the low overall contrast coupled with a dimmer finder. My M2 patch is the brightest of my 3 bodies. Outside the M2 finder is fine. In dim light its harder to see details outside of the focus patch. This may not bother most people. It’s possible a rangefinder cleaning will improve contrast. It may be that when manufacturing the M2 finder there was variation in tint. It was effective in increasing contrast for the focus patch. Can anyone report if installing an anti glare window on the M3/2 helps. Edited April 22 by RDJ Added info Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mute-on Posted April 22 Share #13 Posted April 22 Some comments on M2 viewfinder tint in this thread … Comments on M2 viewfinder brightness and a potential ‘fix’, here … I haven’t particularly noticed my M2 viewfinder is any dimmer than my M4 or MP, but I generally don’t take photos indoors or in very dim light. It does sound like a clean to remove some haze could be all you require. Importantly, it sounds like your rangefinder patch is crisp and clear, which is vital. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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