WWYD: M10-D sticky RF

[pgh]

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Hi all,

I recently got a very barely used (about 700 shutter actuations for a 6 yr old camera) M10-D for what I consider a good price. Cosmetically, very good etc.

Problem is, it's got a sticky rangefinder. My guess is it's sticky because it probably was shelf-sitting for a few years. If I manually unstick it and refocus it takes a perfect image. The problem is only mechanical.

Anyways, I've got 2 choices.

I can return the camera and get another one that will almost certainly be more used but will be warranted and returnable just like this one, and I will have to pay about $400-$500 more for it.

Or, I can hang on to it and send to Leica - at a cost that I don't yet know (if anyone knows what a sticky rangefinder costs to fix that would help). I was quoted about 10 weeks turnaround, which is fine with me. (It sucks, but it's not an imposition for what I need it for).

Would you return it, or consider the good deal a cause to send it to Leica instead?

[Topsy]

If it were me (depending how long your return window is) I'd spend a while jiggling the rangefinder cam to see if use might free it up before making a decision. I did have a hankering for an M10-D but I found them rare in the used market and obviously no new ones.

[pippy]

21 minutes ago, pgh said:

...it's got a sticky rangefinder....if anyone knows what a sticky rangefinder costs to fix that would help)...

By a curious coincidence over in the 'What Made You Happy' thread very recently I posted this comment;

https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/336407-what-made-you-happy-today/page/245/#comment-5805271

I didn't use Leica as their repair-quotes seem to be on the high side and take for ages to be addressed whereas the chap I used has a policy of offering a repair-slot and the equipment can still be used - if possible - until such time as the repair-slot draws nigh. He has also carried out stellar work for me on a pair of M-mount lenses in the past.

Whereabouts are you based?

Philip.

Edited May 21 by pippy

[pgh]

13 minutes ago, Topsy said:

If it were me (depending how long your return window is) I'd spend a while jiggling the rangefinder cam to see if use might free it up before making a decision. I did have a hankering for an M10-D but I found them rare in the used market and obviously no new ones.

Ha, yes I agree. I did this actually, for a good week. I've put about 100 pictures on it, most of them in focus! It's still too finicky for regular use.

Need to make a call in the next day or two really. 

[pgh]

4 minutes ago, pippy said:

By a curious coincidence over in the 'What Made You Happy' thread very recently I posted this comment;

https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/336407-what-made-you-happy-today/page/245/#comment-5805271

I didn't use Leica as their repair-quotes seem to be on the high side and take for ages to be addressed whereas the chap I used has a policy of offering a repair-slot and the equipment can still be used - if possible - until such time as the repair-slot draws nigh. He has also carried out stellar work for me on a pair of M-mount lenses in the past.

Whereabouts are you based?

Philip.

I'm in the US. Leica repairs are on the high side agreed, but given the age and relative little use of the camera the peace of mind that it went to them is something I might not mind. The RF is finicky enough that keeping the camera around is a non-starter, I have a properly working M10 I will continue to use. 

It's really between returning the camera and inevitably paying a bit more for a more well loved replacement, or ponying up to Leica and getting it all sorted. If I return, I'll have a camera in working order more quickly, I know that. But I'm not sure I'll save much if anything. 

[Crem]

32 minutes ago, pgh said:

Hi all,

I recently got a very barely used (about 700 shutter actuations for a 6 yr old camera) M10-D for what I consider a good price. Cosmetically, very good etc.

Problem is, it's got a sticky rangefinder. My guess is it's sticky because it probably was shelf-sitting for a few years. If I manually unstick it and refocus it takes a perfect image. The problem is only mechanical.

Anyways, I've got 2 choices.

I can return the camera and get another one that will almost certainly be more used but will be warranted and returnable just like this one, and I will have to pay about $400-$500 more for it.

Or, I can hang on to it and send to Leica - at a cost that I don't yet know (if anyone knows what a sticky rangefinder costs to fix that would help). I was quoted about 10 weeks turnaround, which is fine with me. (It sucks, but it's not an imposition for what I need it for).

Would you return it, or consider the good deal a cause to send it to Leica instead?

I had a sticky M10-D rangefinder. My awesome dealer (Josh at Miami) had it overnighted to DAG. He fixed it same day and had it shipped back. Point being I would email DAG if you are in the USA. Cost will be very affordable.

Since then I dug into the problem and in most sticky M10 RF cases there is a spot where two pieces of metal ride against each other without any sort of bearings. That spot needs a tiny drop of oil. You could DIY if you are into that type of work. There are guides online. Taking the top plate off the M10 is very easy (two screws) and I've done it multiple times to clean out dust, swap my red dot for black, etc.

The last place I'd send it is Leica NJ. DAG Will fix it faster/cheaper. I would only send it to Leica NJ if DAG says he can't do it. He will likely add a drop of oil and send it right back to you.

Edited May 21 by Crem

[pgh]

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3 minutes ago, Crem said:

I had a sticky M10-D rangefinder. My awesome dealer (Josh at Miami) had it overnighted to DAG. He fixed it same day and had it shipped back. Point being I would email DAG if you are in the USA. Cost will be very affordable.

Since then I dug into the problem and in most sticky RF cases there is a spot where two pieces of metal ride against each other without any sort of bearings. That spot needs a tiny drop of oil. You could DIY it if you are that type, but your choice obviously. There are guides online. Taking the top plate off the M10 is very easy (two screws) and I've done it multiple times to clean out dust, swap my red dot for black, etc.

Ah yes, I did look it up and probably saw the same YouTube bideos. The DIY just makes me a little too nervous. I may look into DAG...

So...you wouldn't just return it?

[pippy]

4 minutes ago, pgh said:

...So...you wouldn't just return it?...

If it were me? No.

Philip.

[Crem]

6 minutes ago, pgh said:

Ah yes, I did look it up and probably saw the same YouTube bideos. The DIY just makes me a little too nervous. I may look into DAG...

So...you wouldn't just return it?

Depends on how much you value having a mint M10-D. They aren't particularly easy to find. I had a very similar M10-D so maybe you have the one I sold 😂

I wouldn't return it if everything else is fine. At 6 years old you are going to have problems like this. I think the bigger question is what are your expectations of a 6 year old Leica. If you bought a 6 year old German car I would imagine you would expect it to need some maintenance even if it was a garage queen. At least I would change every single fluid on it, tires, etc. The fundamental design of the M10 rangefinder (two metal pieces scraping against each other) will need a drop of lube every 5 - 10 years is my guess.

In the end I sold the M10-D for multiple reasons (I found out I like digitals to have screens, I shoot film when I don't want screens, I have concerns about long term spare parts for the M10-D).

Edited May 21 by Crem

[pgh]

6 minutes ago, Crem said:

Depends on how much you value having a mint M10-D. They aren't particularly easy to find. I had a very similar M10-D so maybe you have the one I sold 😂

I wouldn't return it if everything else is fine. At 6 years old you are going to have problems like this. I think the bigger question is what are your expectations of a 6 year old Leica. If you bought a 6 year old German car I would imagine you would expect it to need some maintenance even if it was a garage queen. At least I would change every single fluid on it, tires, etc. The fundamental design of the M10 rangefinder (two metal pieces scraping against each other) will need a drop of lube every 5 - 10 years is my guess.

In the end I sold the M10-D for multiple reasons (I found out I like digitals to have screens, I shoot film when I don't want screens, I have concerns about long term spare parts for the M10-D).

Ha, it's possible. Though did you sell it when the RF was still sticky? If that's the case then I would have expected the dealer to sort that out, though maybe that's too much to hope for. 

Anyways, I don't much value it being mint really, it sure won't be in my hands after a few more months. Though for what I paid I am happy at the lack of use that it has. It's more that this thing already feels like the devil I know, already made some pictures I like with it, trust it besides the RF etc. 

For better or worse I'm heavily invested in M10's (I have a regular one and 2 monochromes) and am okay with maintenance, since at this point I've always got a back up. I wish I liked the M11's but I just don't so I'm here committed to getting as much life out of these guys that I can. Given that I still see M8's going I'm hopeful I've got some time. Leaning towards repairing now...a few hours ago I thought I'd return haha. 

 

[TomB_tx]

DAG is a great choice for issues like this.

[Crem]

13 minutes ago, pgh said:

Ha, it's possible. Though did you sell it when the RF was still sticky? If that's the case then I would have expected the dealer to sort that out, though maybe that's too much to hope for. 

Anyways, I don't much value it being mint really, it sure won't be in my hands after a few more months. Though for what I paid I am happy at the lack of use that it has. It's more that this thing already feels like the devil I know, already made some pictures I like with it, trust it besides the RF etc. 

For better or worse I'm heavily invested in M10's (I have a regular one and 2 monochromes) and am okay with maintenance, since at this point I've always got a back up. I wish I liked the M11's but I just don't so I'm here committed to getting as much life out of these guys that I can. Given that I still see M8's going I'm hopeful I've got some time. Leaning towards repairing now...a few hours ago I thought I'd return haha. 

 

haha no I meant it more as a joke. The rangefinder was lubed (by DAG) and working as good as new. I really doubt you have the one I sold. Just pointing out it took me a long time to find a perfectly mint one. It looked like it just came out of the box and I'm glad I sold it mint. I would have used/abused it. It probably belongs in a collection somewhere as I do think it will be remembered as one of the coolest digitals ever to be made. There are days I regret selling it, but then I'm reminded how much I rather shoot film for the screen-less experience. I really value the screen to change minimum shutter speed for aperture priority mode. Still life? I'll set it to 1/f. Shots of my kids? Set it to 1/125 or higher depending on the situation. I really like digital for being lazy and film for that fully manual experience where I take my time. The WIFI on the M10-D is such a pain in the ass to change something basic like auto iso min shutter speed. Thus I stuck with the M10-R. I also very much value the base ISO 100. The extra resolution is the least useful part (for me).

Edited May 21 by Crem

[pgh]

I've got much respect for anyone who still wants to deal with film!

I did my time with that, currently in the process of re-digitizing archives since some of my old scans are so bad - but yea, anyways, M10D I agree is one of the coolest digitals ever made. I don't mind the wifi etc, my settings won't really change, but it's also not my only digital M. I don't have a darkroom so it's all digital in the end for me anyways. Ah well. 

I absolutely loved not having a screen for the trip I took it on so far, even if the RF did act up.

 

[Crem]

20 minutes ago, pgh said:

I've got much respect for anyone who still wants to deal with film!

I did my time with that, currently in the process of re-digitizing archives since some of my old scans are so bad - but yea, anyways, M10D I agree is one of the coolest digitals ever made. I don't mind the wifi etc, my settings won't really change, but it's also not my only digital M. I don't have a darkroom so it's all digital in the end for me anyways. Ah well. 

I absolutely loved not having a screen for the trip I took it on so far, even if the RF did act up.

 

Funny enough, I'm dealing with film burn out. I shot mostly film in 2024 & early 2025. Hours upon hours of development, scanning, etc. The film cameras are currently idle and I'm in lazy mode just enjoying digital today. Including the screen for settings and reviewing results. I'm glad to hear you enjoy the M10-D. If you aren't changing settings much then you definitely sound like the perfect candidate for the M10-D. I was the same way with mine and shot it basically like a M7 when lazy and like a M6 when looking for the fully manual experience. Obviously not telling you what to do, but I'll say I do hope you keep it and use it. I really do think DAG can have it working for you in a few days to a week if you call him up and tell if you need it fast. He has a body + lens of mine right now and that's about ~1 month to get it back, but I don't want him to rush it.

Edited May 21 by Crem

[Topsy]

1 hour ago, pgh said:

Ha, yes I agree. I did this actually, for a good week. I've put about 100 pictures on it, most of them in focus! It's still too finicky for regular use.

Need to make a call in the next day or two really. 

Good luck with it whatever you decide, the M10-D is certainly a most unusual camrea that is not right for everyone.

[lifeandmylens]

Easy fix.  1 drop of oil.  Same happened to my M10-D years ago.  

Youxin emailed me instructions to DIY it: "At the end of the finder focus camshaft, if you turn the focus cam back and forth a little, you see the joint area at the end of the arm to the shaft which goes into the camera.  At the joint area, you seep a little oil there, then move the focus cam back and forth, and let the oil run into there."

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[pgh]

1 hour ago, Crem said:

Funny enough, I'm dealing with film burn out. I shot mostly film in 2024 & early 2025. Hours upon hours of development, scanning, etc. The film cameras are currently idle and I'm in lazy mode just enjoying digital today. Including the screen for settings and reviewing results. I'm glad to hear you enjoy the M10-D. If you aren't changing settings much then you definitely sound like the perfect candidate for the M10-D. I was the same way with mine and shot it basically like a M7 when lazy and like a M6 when looking for the fully manual experience. Obviously not telling you what to do, but I'll say I do hope you keep it and use it. I really do think DAG can have it working for you in a few days to a week if you call him up and tell if you need it fast. He has a body + lens of mine right now and that's about ~1 month to get it back, but I don't want him to rush it.

It happens. I haven't really shot any since about 2015. I used to shoot hundreds of rolls a year and also shot it for magazine jobs, sometimes at my own cost. Eventually the scanning got so onerous - especially if I needed good scans - and the digital sensors got so good I couldn't make sense of why I was doing it, other than the process - which the M10-D largely brings me back to (and honestly, the rest of the M10's as well - not completely but they are a world away from a typical dSLR or mirrorless). The color was different, yes, and there is some visual facet that can't be replicated but for me, it was not integral - it did not supersede the content I tried to get in my pictures. 

I have a whole archive of Epson flatbed scans that have just utterly shite color I had to deal with because it was the only affordable solution, and some missed images because of that. I wasn't doing lab scans or drum scans for all of that. About to start "rescanning" everything with an SL2 - or at least a few rolls and see if it's worth it.

Anyways, yea, I still happily use my M10 from 2017 so pretty sure I'll use this M10-D for as long as it lets me. None of the advancements in camera tech interest me anymore - just more perfect versions of a picture when the only thing that's left is what's honest about a picture. With AI now any image at basically any level of detail can be fabricated by a motivated person - megapixel gains for larger prints feel like a novelty. I have an X2D and it's amazing, and every day I think about selling it because I'm struggling to see how the added resolution and sharpness communicate anything of real substance to a viewer - even in the very large prints I do sometimes. So the detail is that much better...so what? Feels like such an arbitrary thing most of the time now - there are subject matter based exceptions, but most don't apply to what I do.

Anyways I digress...going to sleep on it but thinking I will keep this camera and not replace it. 

 

[Crem]

21 minutes ago, pgh said:

It happens. I haven't really shot any since about 2015. I used to shoot hundreds of rolls a year and also shot it for magazine jobs, sometimes at my own cost. Eventually the scanning got so onerous - especially if I needed good scans - and the digital sensors got so good I couldn't make sense of why I was doing it, other than the process - which the M10-D largely brings me back to (and honestly, the rest of the M10's as well - not completely but they are a world away from a typical dSLR or mirrorless). The color was different, yes, and there is some visual facet that can't be replicated but for me, it was not integral - it did not supersede the content I tried to get in my pictures. 

I have a whole archive of Epson flatbed scans that have just utterly shite color I had to deal with because it was the only affordable solution, and some missed images because of that. I wasn't doing lab scans or drum scans for all of that. About to start "rescanning" everything with an SL2 - or at least a few rolls and see if it's worth it.

Anyways, yea, I still happily use my M10 from 2017 so pretty sure I'll use this M10-D for as long as it lets me. None of the advancements in camera tech interest me anymore - just more perfect versions of a picture when the only thing that's left is what's honest about a picture. With AI now any image at basically any level of detail can be fabricated by a motivated person - megapixel gains for larger prints feel like a novelty. I have an X2D and it's amazing, and every day I think about selling it because I'm struggling to see how the added resolution and sharpness communicate anything of real substance to a viewer - even in the very large prints I do sometimes. So the detail is that much better...so what? Feels like such an arbitrary thing most of the time now - there are subject matter based exceptions, but most don't apply to what I do.

Anyways I digress...going to sleep on it but thinking I will keep this camera and not replace it. 

 

Yeah the scanning costs get crazy expensive if quality matters. I have chatted with people that purchased a Noritsu and/or Frontier lab scanner for home use. I'm not willing to go that far. I ended up with a very pricy Negative Supply system with dedicated camera/lens (so no teardown/setup time).

It takes a while to really get good at camera scanning and it can be finicky. A couple pieces of unsolicited advice that nobody told me when I started:

• Get your alignment right. I always found this to be a pain in the ass. On accident I found this product called Vlads focus and alignment strips and it makes it so easy with something like a SL2. I need to go back and rescan tons of rolls where I know the alignment was way off.
• Dust is the biggest time waster of all. Unfortunately dust and static are best friends so you need to solve both problems. On some frames it felt like cloning out 100 pieces of dust. I then started using a rocket blower + Milty Zerostat 3 + an anti static brush and that solved a lot of it, but it's a slow process. Currently I'm waiting for a Kinetronics film cleaning device to ship and I expect that to get my speed back up to "fast enough". Not as fast as a commercial lab scanner, but plenty fast for me. Cloning dust out of hundreds of frames is really a soul sucking experience and can mess up the results like when it's on a persons face.

I won't derail this thread anymore! Enjoy the M10-D!

 

[jakontil]

8 hours ago, pgh said:

I've got much respect for anyone who still wants to deal with film!

I did my time with that, currently in the process of re-digitizing archives since some of my old scans are so bad - but yea, anyways, M10D I agree is one of the coolest digitals ever made. I don't mind the wifi etc, my settings won't really change, but it's also not my only digital M. I don't have a darkroom so it's all digital in the end for me anyways. Ah well. 

I absolutely loved not having a screen for the trip I took it on so far, even if the RF did act up.

 

I shoot films regularly and digitizing it. I developed my color and bw negs.. and use my M digital to scan or some sort.. no shame here

and yes m10D was a great analog experience… at least close to

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[sinjun]

The rangefinder cam on my M10-d was also a little sticky when I first got it (mint, 2nd hand). I worked it back and forth manually and have had no problems since then. I wonder if it could be due to lack of use?